Gastroesophageal reflux disease is a horrible condition where the stomach esophageal sphincter or flap doesn’t close properly. When the sphincter doesn’t close, it causes acid to travel back in to the esophagus. Until the past ten years, treatments were limited in this condition. While many types of medications are available like: Rolaids, Tums and Mylanta, they didn’t provide a long term treatment option.
The PPI or Proton pump inhibitors were introduced in the last decade, these drugs brought relief too many people. The problem with GERD is it causes the esophageal lining to inflame. When the lining is inflamed not only can it cause burning sensation, and excess gas but it can also cause a condition called Barrett’s Esophagus. This is a condition where the lining becomes diseased and can develop cancer.
In an effort to help these suffering people, PPI drugs were created to decrease the amount of acid in the stomach. By decreasing the acid in the stomach, it relieved the symptoms. There are several drugs on the market today, Nexium, Protonix, and Prilosec. All of these drugs basically work in the same manor, they heal the stomach. The excess acid causes quite a bit of problems including, ulcers. People who are suffering from these conditions certainly welcome the help from the PPI drugs.
Nexium is one of the most popular drugs on the market in the PPI category. Not only does Nexium decrease the acid, but it also has healing properties that can erase any damage done by the acid. One work of caution is that Nexium can cause low magnesium levels. These low magnesium levels put you at risk for broken bones. The side effect list with this drug is small, but they should be investigated before one begins therapy, with this medication.
There are hundreds of acid producing cells, also called pumps, inside the stomach. These cells aid in the digestion of food. Drugs like Nexium, work to turn off these little pumps, so that you are not creating as much acid. They don’t completely stop the production of acid, as we need some acid for the digestion of food.
Unlike some drugs, Nexium is not a magic pill. You cannot expect to instantly take a pill and have all symptoms go away. In some patients it takes up to a month for them to see a different and to feel any relief from the acid. In some clinical studies, certain PPI drugs made it worse for some patients. For the majority of people, Nexium has lived up to its name, The Healing Purple Pill.
