Digestive Enzymes with anticoagulants

[JudyMarieC]

I'm considering trying digestive enzymes since I suspect that my afib episodes may be triggered by bloating, gas, etc. Does anyone know if these enzymes are contraindicated when taking anticoagulants?

[BobD Volunteer]

You may well find you are looking at it from the wrong direction as AF often causes digestive issues.

If you mean probiotics I doubt there is a problem but why not check with your pharmacist.

[JudyMarieC in reply to BobD]

Thank you, Bob. Good advice as always!

[CDreamer]

It’s really difficult to know sometimes which comes first - the chicken and egg situation as many people with heart arrythmias also often have or have had digestive problems such as IBS or Pylori, which are two reasons for bloating. Taking enzymes can be really helpful and many doctors now believe more effective for people with constipation than probiotics, however, they will only help in certain situations so you need advice from a professional. Unfortunately, unless a Wholistic, Intergrative Doctor (someone like Dr Chatterjee) very few will have good knowledge of using Enzymes and when they can be useful.

Personally I would go see your GP who should take a full history to determine what is causing this symptom as there are so many causes

This article is quite informative. health.harvard.edu/staying-...

[JudyMarieC in reply to CDreamer]

Thank you, CDreamer! I'll be seeing my primary care physician next week for a routine appointment and will definitely ask him. My episodes usually begin during the night (not caused by sleep apnea as I use a Cpap machine) so I've been wondering if pressure from the bloating is a factor. Recently, I've been able to get back to NSR with a couple doses of flecainide as instructed by my EP but, if it's triggered by a stomach issue, it would be great to be able to prevent the afib events.

[karrog in reply to JudyMarieC]

When you say a couple of doses of flec, how many mgs? How long before nsr?

[JudyMarieC in reply to karrog]

A little background: I took flecainide for 3-1/2 years following my ablation in 2017. I would still have bouts of flutter and afib during which my EP would increase my usual 2X/day dose of 50mg. morning and night. At one point, I was up to 100 mg. twice a day with no improvement in my flutter episodes. I had a cardioversion last October after a month long bout of flutter. When flutter returned a few days later, my EP suggested that I discontinue flecainide. The flutter episode stopped the next day. Since then, I've only taken flecainide when I experience either an afib or flutter episode which has only been 3 times since early November. I was instructed by my EP to take 50 mg. at the onset and then another 50mg. in 6 hours if the episode did not subside. I've found that the one dose usually works for me but once, I did need the second dose. I've gone back to NSR in as little as one hour but sometimes 4-6 hours after taking it. Of course, everyone's different but, so far, this is working for me.

[KG70 in reply to JudyMarieC]

I have a lot of stomach problems and have been taking Gaviscon Guardian for almost 3 weeks and have noticed my night times are much better. I mentioned this to a physiotherapist I'm seeing for polyvagal therapy and she said that if something is causing stomach irritation, ie, acid or food intolerances, and we lay down the irritation hits nerves higher in the stomach and activating the nerves at the top of the stomach can then activate the heart nerves and aggravate arrhythmia. I now take a Guardian in the morning and half before I take my night time Diltiazem and my nights have been much calmer and my rhythm is vastly improved. I spoke to my GP and told her I'm taking more than the packet recommended dose and she was ok with that as I'm having an ablation in 4 months so she's happy for me to hit the Guardian and Diazepam until them to keep my rhythm calm and give me more better days while I wait for the big A.

[JudyMarieC in reply to KG70]

Very interesting - makes a lot of sense. Good luck with your ablation!

[CDreamer in reply to JudyMarieC]

Could be if you are swallowing air unknowingly. I found I suffered this for a while with my CPAP machine because the pressure was set too high so I exchanged it for a variable pressure machine which pauses when I breath out and had no more problems.

I also found that taping up my mouth helps - I use a nasal mask.

[JudyMarieC in reply to CDreamer]

That's an interesting possibility. My cpap machine applies the amount of pressure that I need at any given time. I use a nasal mask also but notice that my mouth is often very dry - could be that I am, in fact, swallowing air. I'll have to look into this with my sleep medicine doctor. Thank you!

[CDreamer in reply to JudyMarieC]

My solution was to use this Myotape to tape mouth and the breathing exercises from the same web-site. buteykoclinic.com/store/ He has videos on YouTube. I have to say it is helping a lot. No more bloating and I am now a lot more conscious about breathing through my nose, which in turn helps a lot.

[JudyMarieC in reply to CDreamer]

Very interesting - thank you! I'll definitely check this out.

[Tomred]

Hi digestive enzymes are just that so if they aid digestion of what we ingest then are they also going to aid in the digestion of anti coagulants this may be a good thing or maybe not you would need to read some scientific literature on subject if it's even available I'd say say be careful

[JudyMarieC in reply to Tomred]

Thank you - you are right about being careful. It's always a good idea to research any supplement before trying it out.

[john-boy-92]

I've been taking AAVALABS Probiolac for about a year without problems. I started as I wanted to reseed my microbiome after colonoscopies.

[JudyMarieC in reply to john-boy-92]

Thank you for your response.

[Jesus4ever]

no i take the natural blood thiner nattokinase and the emzimes serapetase plus my meds for control hypertantion. aprove by my cardiologist..