(NaturalHealth365)  Heartburn medications like Prevacid, Nexium, and Prilosec are widely used by Americans with acid reflux.  Up to 50 percent of sufferers turn to these drugs.  With the backing of big pharma, these brand names have become synonymous with relief for many.

Currently, around 7% to 15% of the U.S. population, regardless of age or gender, regularly uses proton pump inhibitors (PPIs).  These drugs are commonly prescribed to treat reflux and heartburn by reducing stomach acid, and millions more buy them over the counter.  However, emerging research links long-term PPI use to potential kidney damage, a serious condition that can develop quietly, often without noticeable symptoms.

Major warning about heartburn drugs: The problems can develop “silently”

In a five-year study of 125,000 patients published in Kidney International, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis found that more than half of the cases of chronic kidney damage and end-stage renal damage occurred in people without any previous record of kidney problems.  According to senior study author Dr. Ziyad Al-Aly, assistant professor of medicine at Washington University School of Medicine, the study showed that kidney problems in patients taking PPIs could develop silently and gradually over time, eroding kidney function and leading to long-term kidney damage or even renal failure.

End-stage renal disease is the failure of kidneys to remove waste from the body, necessitating either dialysis or a kidney transplant.

Dr. Al-Aly warned that doctors must carefully monitor kidney function in patients taking PPIs – including lansoprazole, omeprazole, and esomeprazole – even when there are no signs or symptoms of damage.

The study also evaluated 18,436 new users of another type of heartburn medication: histamine H2 receptor antagonists, or H2 blockers.  While H2 blockers don’t work as well on heartburn, researchers found they are less likely to cause kidney problems.

Additional studies confirm researchers’ disturbing findings

An earlier study published in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology also showed that long-term use of heartburn medications is associated with kidney damage, with PPI users 28 percent more likely to experience chronic kidney disease and a shocking 96 percent more likely to develop kidney failure.

The longer the drugs were taken, the higher the risk.  The daily dosage also affects risk.

In a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine, the team found that twice-a-day users of PPIs tripled their risk over people who took a single daily dose.

The research team called for using PPIs only when “medically necessary” and limiting the duration of the treatment as well.

Lead author Dr. Morgan Grams, assistant professor of epidemiology at Johns Hopkins University, pointed out that up to 70 percent of acid reflux prescriptions are handed out “inappropriately” – and he estimated that a full 25 percent of long-term users could stop taking the medication without suffering increased heartburn or acid reflux.

Of course, stemming the flow of prescribed PPIs will do nothing to reduce the number of people buying – and taking – these medications over the counter.

And, the damage from PPIs isn’t limited to the kidneys.

PPIs affect the absorption of essential vitamins and minerals

PPIs interfere with the body’s ability to extract vitamin B12, an essential nutrient, from foods.  Studies have shown that 75 percent of PPI users are deficient in vitamin B12 – compared to 11 percent among the general non-using population.

PPIs can cause dramatic declines in blood magnesium levels, characterized by symptoms of fatigue, unsteadiness, numbness and tingling, seizures, and heart arrhythmias.

As if that weren’t enough, PPIs can also lead to poor calcium absorption, raising the risk of bone fracture – especially in older patients.

In addition, PPI users are more likely to be obese and have high blood pressure.  PPIs are also associated with higher rates of pneumonia and C. difficile, a potentially dangerous bacterial infection.

And finally, a German study showed that older adults who take proton pump inhibitors have a 44 percent increased chance of developing dementia.

Natural solutions exist for acid reflux

Many natural health experts point out that heartburn typically results from too little stomach acid rather than too much – and that PPIs can actually worsen the problem.

You may be able to ease heartburn and acid reflux with simple dietary and lifestyle changes – such as avoiding fried, fatty, and processed foods, eating smaller meals, chewing food well, and avoiding smoking and excessive drinking.  Eating healthy amounts of vegetables and high-quality organic, unprocessed foods can help restore natural gastric balance, while consuming fermented foods – such as sauerkraut, miso soup, and kimchi – can help eliminate the H. pylori bacterium that can contribute to reflux.

Natural, time-honored remedies for heartburn include unfiltered apple cider vinegar, baking soda, ginger root tea, chamomile tea, and slippery elm.

Of course, you shouldn’t stop or substitute any prescribed medication without first discussing it with your healthcare provider.

The best advice on PPIs comes from Dr. Kenneth DeVault, president of the American College of Gastroenterology, “If you don’t need these medications, you shouldn’t take them,” advises DeVault.

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Sources for this article include:

NIH.gov
Pharmacytimes.com
Medicine.washu.edu
Kidney-international.org
Sciencedaily.com
Sciencedaily.com