Hi everyone, I went into AF at 5.30 tonight. I couldn’t work out what could have triggered it. Then I checked the ingredients of Gaviscon tablets and can see what straight away. Not only do they contain aspartame, but they also contain quite a lot of salt.
I have taken them quite frequently over the last few weeks and been fine. Today I had about 7 which is more than usual.
I just can’t win. I have failed on Apixiban, Dabigatran, Edoxaban and now Riivaroxaban due to gastric symptoms including severe nausea.
I am seeing my GP on Monday. Don’t know what the answer will be. I think he despairs with me because I can’t tolerate many meds at all.
Has anyone else had this problem with Gaviscon? I will try the liquid as that doesn't contain aspartame and salt. However, last time I tried it, it caused severe nausea.
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Mrsvemb
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I haven't had the problem with Gaviscon, but can understand the ingredients causing AF. Artificial additives and especially sweeteners are a sure trigger for me.
I'm also very prone to digestive soreness and have learnt how to resolve triggers. I take Warfarin mid breakfast in the morning with no effects. Unlike others on here I cant take magnesium by mouth as that too will cause stomach soreness, so I put salts in my bath and also spray it on in an oil form. I also avoid eating yogurts, too much fat and foods containing vinegar. If the slightest hint of soreness starts I eat a banana, which helps.
After years of suffering I now have had no acidity problems for several years .
Thanks for your reply. I wouldn't say that I am prone to digestive soreness. It is the anticoagulants that cause the problem. Take them away, which I know I can't and I am fine. I always take them with food with plenty of water.
I am not able to tolerate a lot of meds. After surgery I was tried on so many pain relief meds and I had terrible nausea also staggering around. I couldn't focus and my glasses seemed too strong. This was before I was on anticoagulants so there was plenty of choices. In then end, I refused to take any apart from paracetamol, which I can tolerate but they are not much use.
I have been tried on PPI's but they make the nausea worse, so I cant tolerate them either.
It's very unfortunate, because I failed on Apixaban and Dabigatran within a few weeks, but I was on Rivaroxaban for about 3 years with no problems. I asked to try Edoxaban because of hair loss but failed on them within 2 weeks. Since going back to Rivaroxaban, the problems started with that as well.
I wish that I had never meddled with them.
I don't eat much fat at all, but when I am in problems with tablets not agreeing with my I can't digest any. Vinegar is not a problem for me.
I have never had a problem with gaviscon tablets but must admit take them rarely and only ever one at once. I tend to suck them and they can dissolve over an hour!
I feel fortunate that apart from big meals no specific food or drink seems to cause an issue. Anything in moderation .
I have taken Gaviscon over the years, but only one at a time with no problems. This time I took 7 over about 16 hours. My fault, I should have checked the ingredients, because aspartame is a trigger for me and too much salt is no good for any of us.
Thanks for your reply.
Short answer, no. Gaviscon no sweat. But, I only take it rarely and then in liquid form.
Pretty much agree with jeanjeannie and bagrat.
Have you ever tried warfarin?
To my way of thinking you may possibly have an issue with the vagus nerve.
The ingredients are different in the liquid form. I haven't tried warfarin. I have always resisted it because I have enough dietry issues being gluten intolerant. Also the anti coagulation clinic is not easy to get to from where I live. It is at the main hospital, where it is impossible to park. I cannot get a bus and taxis would cost £40 return.
I too am gluten intolerant and so am gluten free, wheat free and oats free ..... and that's just the tip of the iceberg, food wise, that keeps me free of AF. I am on Warfarin and my quite extensive diet does not clash in any way with Warfarin.
Another thought you may like to consider is - if you went down the Warfarin track - is to self test for your INR number at home. Roche produce their Coaguchek XS system for blood testing and so do Omron. There maybe others too, I don't know. The last I heard was that Roche sell these little devices, interest free spread over 12 months. Again, the last I heard the going price was about £300.
To satisfactorily self test at home you would ideally need the support of your local anticoagulation clinic, so just out of interest you could phone them and make some enquiries.
All that happens with me is I take a blood test and phone it through to my local INR nurse at my GP surgery and about 4 hours later she phones me back and tells me my next dose and the next test date.
I think there is a few of us on here who self test. The Coaguchek device has a meter, test strips ( which are on NHS) and little lancets for puncturing the skin.
Really, no different to a diabetic taking blood tests. Not every Clinical commissioning Group approves the test strips on NHS prescription, mine does. Not sure how much they are to buy from the Pharmacist over the counter.
I even take mine when I go on holiday, even when I go to Australia. Then I just email my INR Nurse.
Must say its unusual to hear of people who can't take the NOAC's. Normally its people who can't handle Warfarin who opt for the NOAC's.
I have always had a bee in my bonnet about Warfarin. What put me off initially, was hair loss. Having said that the DOAC’s also cause hair loss as I have found out.
There just wasn’t enough data on the new anticoagulants.
I am totally fed up with taking tablets to fix one problem, but causes another.
Do you still eat greens, brocolli etc? And if so do you have to eat them consistently?
I've always hated greens and I eat the stuff according to my moods. I try and aim for consistency but usually fail. I eat Cabbage, Broccoli, Brussels, Spinach ..... most of the rubbish stuff except any pulses, But I do eat Broad beans. Often though, I have no greens at all. If you can do it consistency is the buzz word when on Warfarin, so perhaps I'm irregularly consistent.
My INR Nurse knows about all this and reckons I'm weird ( and quite naughty) and strongly disapproves of my alcohol consumption and the way I eat greens while on Warfarin BUT the fact is all of this has no bearing on my INR test numbers - my range is 2.0 to 3.0, with the ideal target being 2.5 ......... my actual results have always put me between 2.4 to 2.7, say 98% of the time.
I haven't been aware of hair loss on Warfarin, but, definately much more brittle finger nails.
Maybe it is my overall diet that has a bearing too - like I said I am free from ...............wheat, oats, gluten, peas, yoghurt, pork, duck, soft cheeses, ( but hard cheeses are OK), no raspberries, but strawberries are OK. No bread except perhaps using sourdough. I also try and embrace the FODMAPS diet concept. I have been added salt free for decades now, and added sugar free for about the last 4 years maybe more. The list goes on and on. Usually my first sign of things amiss is food that causes bloating, that can then progress to AF. However, I have it under control with meds and diet, my last AF event was February 2018 (sleeping on my left side) and before that April 2015.
Many thanks for your detailed reply. My apologies for the delay in responding.
I know that I would be inconsistent with greens, broccoli etc. I live alone, so if I buy a pack of greens or a head of broccoli, it lasts me for a few days.
Anyway I have seen my GP this morning and I have agreed to give Warfarin a try. He said that I would only have to go to the anticoagulation clinic once. After that, I can have my bloods done locally and get telephone results. We shall see.
Thanks for all of your detailed replies, they have been very helpful.
I haven’t had any problems with Gaviscon - it’s been my saviour many a time but I stick to the liquid. I haven’t had problems for years now as like Jean - I sorted my triggers.
This may be a bit far out but I accidentally came across a TV programme looking at a trial to help people whose symptoms resonated with those you describe. It seems that there is a rare condition where there are patches of stomach cells high up in your oesophagus which can give constant acid problems, pain, burping and loads of other symptoms.
There was a trial at Liverpool ??? I think for a new procedure to ablate the tissue in the oesophagus and they were asking for participants. May be worth a shot?
When My stomach and heart are out of balance then af is triggered. Just last night my heart had a group of nasty strong intense ectopics and in tandem my stomach growled and caused me issues. If my stomach is upset my heart will play up which for me signals it being vagus nerve driven.
I have really bad acid reflux and can't take proton pump inhibitors as they always send me into nasty bouts of af and svt and have been advised against having a Fundoplication so all I am left with to deal with the issue is copious amounts of gaviscon.
I take it in liquid form often several times a day. Can't say it's caused me af problems in particular its the stomach/heart connection which is the issue for me.
It's infuriating as last week I had a seven day holter monitor and my heart behaved perfectly, after two days without it and heart has decided to kick in again.
Good luck finding a solution it's frustrating as I know only too well.
Thanks for your reply. Definitely food for thought. I will try the liquid Gaviscon again, as the ingredients are different to the tablets. I live in a village, so would have to drive to get some and after 12 hours in AF, I don't think I should drive today,
I have a stomach heart connection. Ectopics started initially when I was having an IBS flare up. Ever since then I suffer badly when I have indigestion or a bloated stomach. I have tried various antacids and have found that Rennie Deflatine work the best for me. Gaviscon certainly helps with indigestion but does seem to make ectopics worse for me.
Have you tried good old Rennies....they're a fraction of the price and much more effective....I have a hiatus hernia and suffer from acid reflux a lot...a Rennie sports out the pain.
Hi, have you tried kefir? It is full of gut friendly bacteria and for some people it is helpful with IBS symptoms and reflux. You can buy sachets of culture in health food shops and make your own, good if you want to use something other than cows milk. Purists on kefir say that supermarket kefir doesn't have as much gut friendly bacteria but it may be worth a try. My friend, a huge rennie consumer now barely takes them and swears by kefir made by a farmer from unpasteurised milk. I make my own. You can also buy kefir yoghurt. Hope you get something that helps. Best wishes Kath.
Thanks not sure that it is for me. I only use a dash of skimmed milk as I cant stand the taste or smell of milk. I do have a low fat toffee yoghurt mixed with fat free crème fraiche on my breakfast. The toffee yoghurt is to take the nasty taste of the plain creme fraiche away
Are you drinking enough water? Ever? I have found, over the years, that I had severe indigestion, Gerd, whatever, especially when taking heart medication. And two months ago, I started to earnestly drink 64 ounces of spring water daily, the indigestion faded away.
Here's what triggers a lot of folks' afib. Give it a try and see if it works for you:
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After 9 years of trying different foods and logging EVERYTHING I ate, I found sugar (and to a lesser degree, salt – i.e. dehydration) was triggering my Afib. Doctors don't want to hear this - there is no money in telling patients to eat less sugar. Each person has a different sugar threshold - and it changes as you get older, so you need to count every gram of sugar you eat every day (including natural sugars in fruits, etc.). My tolerance level was 190 grams of sugar per day 8 years ago, 85 grams a year and a half ago, and 60 grams today, so AFIB episodes are more frequent and last longer (this is why all doctors agree that afib gets worse as you get older). If you keep your intake of sugar below your threshold level your AFIB will not happen again (easier said than done of course). It's not the food - it's the sugar (or salt - see below) IN the food that's causing your problems. Try it and you will see - should only take you 1 or 2 months of trial-and-error to find your threshold level. And for the record - ALL sugars are treated the same (honey, refined, agave, natural sugars in fruits, etc.). I successfully triggered AFIB by eating a bunch of plums and peaches one day just to test it out. In addition, I have noticed that moderate (afternoon) exercise (7-mile bike ride or 5-mile hike in the park) often puts my Afib heart back in to normal rhythm a couple hours later. Don’t know why – perhaps you burn off the excess sugars in your blood/muscles or sweat out excess salt?? I also found that strenuous exercise does no good – perhaps you make yourself dehydrated??
I'm pretty sure that Afib is caused by a gland(s) - like the Pancreas, Thyroid (sends signals to the heart to increase speed or strength of beat), Adrenal Gland (sends signals to increase heart rate), Sympathetic Nerve (increases heart rate) or Vagus Nerve (decreases heart rate), Hypothalamus Gland or others - or an organ that, in our old age, is not working well anymore and excess sugar or dehydration is causing them to send mixed signals to the heart - for example telling the heart to beat fast and slow at the same time - which causes it to skip beats, etc. I can't prove that (and neither can my doctors), but I have a very strong suspicion that that is the root cause of our Afib problems. I am working on this with a Nutritionist and hope to get some definitive proof in a few months.
Also, in addition to sugar, if you are dehydrated - this will trigger AFIB as well. It seems (but I have no proof of this) that a little uptick of salt in your blood is being treated the same as an uptick of sugar - both cause AFIB episodes. (I’m not a doctor – it may be the sugar in your muscles/organs and not in your blood, don’t know). In any case you have to keep hydrated, and not eat too much salt. The root problem is that our bodies are not processing sugar/salt properly and no doctor knows why, but the AFIB seems to be a symptom of this and not the primary problem, but medicine is not advanced enough to know the core reason that causes AFIB at this time. You can have a healthy heart and still have Afib – something inside us is triggering it when we eat too much sugar or get (even a little) dehydrated. Find out the core reason for this and you will be a millionaire and make the cover of Time Magazine! Good luck! - Rick Hyer
PS – there is a study backing up this data you can view at:
I have just checked the Bisodol ingredients and they contain saccharin and 18mg salt per tablet. This may effect some (me) if taking a fewer the course of the day.
I went to my drug store a year ago and they suggested Gavascon for my stomach. I asked them if it would upset my a fib and they said no. That night I went out of rythm. I told them a week later and they said I was wrong...They were absolutely wrong. Normally they are quite on the ball but this time I had to get shocked back into rythm. Dam.
Sorry to hear that you were caught out too. Aspartame is a definite trigger for me and obviously salt will dehydrate you. I have since checked out and taken small amounts the liquid Gaviscon and that is fine for me.
Try to define if your stomach is too acidic or too alkaline. If the latter then try Betaine Hydrochloride. If the former take Sodium Bicarbonate. Unfortunately it will be trial and error.
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