Osteoporosis

[Dextersam10]

Has any one had omeprazole for reflux and has osteoporosis. I read that it's not good for people with osteoporosis due to bone health woul like to hear from any one .bit worried to take it .thank you and merry Christmas .

[hjskev]

I have both osteoporosis and acid reflux. I think Alendronic acid was the cause of my digestive problems and I used to take omeprazole. After a while the omeprazole stopped working for me. I read awful things about Alendronic acid so I stopped taking that too. Now I'm worried about Gaviscon because it is high in salt and I don't think that's good for bones. It looks like its a chicken and egg scenario. I'm no help to you I'm afraid I'm just empathising. I wish I hadn't allowed the doctor to take me off hrt. If I was of the right age for it that's what I would go for now, but I'm 74 and the doc wont give me it despite me still having menopause symptoms. Hope someone turns up who can set your mind at rest. Happy and healthy New Year.

[shazier2000 in reply to hjskev]

I to was on omaprazole for yrs for acid reflux I now read they can cause osteoporosis

My gp wouldn’t give me hrt because she said it can cause osteoporosis

I was 55 when I went throughout menopause

I asked again about hrt 5 yrs later was told it was to late by another gp

I now how severe osteoporosis and recently had two severe wedge fracture at T6/7

I was given alendronic acid in 2015 my stomach used to burn so I refused to take them

No alternative was offered and I’m in a right mess now and in so much pain

I’m no longer on omaprazole because I had a stroke and had to come of the and start taking lanzoprazole because of the blood thinner I was put on

I blame doctors completely for just leaving me re osteo

Last yr I had a really bad chest infection and had to go to the emergency room

I had respiratory failure and pneumonia

I also have severe emphysema

Anyway I was in agony with my back I thought m lung had collapsed

I was told it’s muscular and would heal

5 months later I was te admitted with my gallbladder but they couldn’t find the stone and have me a Ct scan

It the Ct scan that revealed the fracture that wrote present on X-ray 5 months before

They did nothing and now I have kyphosis which is caused by the fractures.

Nothing they can do now they should of braced me at least and told me not to twist or bend and rest up

The fractures took about 10 months to almost heal

Now my physio says they don’t tend to brace anymore in my country UK

I’m disgusted with the way I have been treated

When I tell my gp about the acid reflux she just gave me double the dose which again lanzoprazole as far as I know are not good for bones

I’m going to see a spine specialist privately because when I was referred they looked at my X-ray and results and refused to see me ? Why I I don’t know I didn’t get an explanation

So anyone that has gerd be aware of the long term effects of taking theses pills for acid

Doctors don’t seem to care like they did yrs ago 5/10 min to discuss your health and they write out a prescription

I may as well of seen a vet they might take more notice

[Jumpey]

I have taken it short term for Gerd but am off it now because I have osteopenia. It stops the body absorbing minerals such as calcium. It didn't actually work for me anyway. I drastically changed my diet to an alkaline diet and that did the trick.I can now eat fairly normally. Good luck.

[Fruitandnutcase]

I was with osteoporosis in 2020 but I suppose I had it for a while before that. In my past I was given omeprazole - I’m afraid I can’t remember what for though - but it was quite a few years before I was found to have osteoporosis.

I had unlimited access to the stuff. Eventually I read the patient information leaflet and realised that it is generally only advised for short term use although I know there are people who take it all the time as a ‘tummy protector’ because of other drugs they are taking.

Well that discovery freaked me out and I didn’t want to be taking it all the time so I worked on my diet and eliminated anything that was likely to give me heartburn and stopped the omeprazole completely with no ill effects.

More recently I was prescribed it again after I fractured my sacrum and was given a strong dose of Naproxen- doctor said she would give me a ‘tummy protector’ to go along with the Naproxen - I had already been given a lesser amount of Naproxen by a hospital GP - with no need for any sort of ‘tummy protector’. I wasn’t keen to take omeprazole again however ‘doctor knows best’ as they say so I did it.

That combination totally messed up my gut and I ended up with the worst diarrhoea ever plus a massively increased pulse rate - I felt dreadful. Spoke to GP who said to stop the naproxen but to double up on the omeprazole which I did. Still no improvement so I stopped the omeprazole altogether and things went back to normal for me.

I know what not to eat to avoid heartburn and there is no way I would touch omeprazole again especially as PPIs are supposed to not be good for your bones.

[fraid]

Hi, I have OP and have taken Omeprazole for years but only on and off, never had a problem with it. I only use it for GORD when I feel 'acidic' as it reduces the amount of acid you produce, but if it's not that causing your gut problems there are other things. I only take drugs when I have to, sleeping propped up helps my Gord more than anything else. Also I found that if you produce too much acid, more acid is best as stimulates body to produce more alkali, so a natural approach. Too much alkali makes body produce more acid ( learnt this re cystitis!) .Works for me and I rarely get problems now, inc. no colitis just occ. ibs. But everyone is different. Maybe ask gp re pros and cons? Good luck. 🤞

[Mavary]

hi I’m on two tablets of Omeprazol and couldn't do without it. My bones are quite bad. MyvDexa was -5.5 and is the last time I had one -4.2.

[shazier2000 in reply to Mavary]

If you don’t mind me asking do you take medication for your osteoporosis

My last hip score was -3.7 I haven’t got a clue what it means

I’m on alendronate now and have taken it for around 9 months with vitamin cali-d1000

My vit D is normal after many yrs of been negative

I am now being asked to go on zolandrate fusion 1 a yr for 3 yrs I’m so scared of the side effects and what can happen to your jaw

At least with the alendronate I can sto that when I want I can’t with the infusion it stays in you body for 12 months but I’m so worried my spine is going to re fracture

[Mavary in reply to shazier2000]

Hi Shazier. I was having Terraparatide injections at first. I had to do them myself every day. I had my biggest improvement while on that. Im now on Denosumab for the rest of my life. Luckily since I’ve been on it I haven’t had any more fractures. Im touching wood while saying it.

[MaggieSylvie]

I have taken omeprazole in the past but now take lansoprazole. I'm assuming there is a difference. I had cut it down to one a week but the pharmacist at the surgery said I should take one daily again. I have six spinal compression fractures. I took Alendronic Acid for nine months until I read what it could do, and at a later dental appointment, was told how my lower teeth on one side had moved up! I'm glad I stopped, but I still take the calcium and vitamin D.

[shazier2000 in reply to MaggieSylvie]

Oh gosh this is what’s bothering me I’m on alendronic acid at the moment and my teeth are not great as it is

I’m seriously thinking don’t swap over to to the zoldronate fusion I can’t just stop taking that

What do you do now apart from the vit D

Do you use diet alone and is it working

Do you know what your score is

[MaggieSylvie in reply to shazier2000]

I don't know my current score. I stopped taking alendronic acid after 9 months but I have started again on the advice of my GP. Only been on it 3 weeks tomorrow, and I don't expect to feel any benefits just yet. It's meant to strengthen the bones (when taken correctly) not reduce the pain. So I take Colecalciferol - calcium with vit D and I take a bucketload of supplements from Nyvana. To be honest I don't want to take that much and it's meant to be reducing. I'm vegetarian, so my diet isn't much help to me but I do my best. I have other things to think about at the moment so I just keep doing what I've always done and so far I will be 80 on xmas Eve. My teeth have always been quite good.

[99real]

I was diagnosed with severe osteoporosis after four years on omeprazole. Proton pump inhibitors are associated with side effects including fracture and kidney disease (and some say dementia). I also developed Hashimoto's, which is an autoimmune disease against the thyroid. Thankfully, my kidney disease went from stage 3 to just within the reference range after stopping omeprazole. The thyroid value for Hashimoto's is decreasing the longer I am off the drug. For the people who claim to be on a PPI for decades with no effect, you are lucky. Not everyone gets side effects but if you do, they are life-changing. Low acid, low fat, whole food diet is key for me now. You can learn about one version at jamiekoufman.com and other tips on addressing GERD without drugs. Dr. Jonathan Aviv is another ENT who promotes the low-acid diet. There is a FB group that has a ton of recipes based on Aviv's findings: facebook.com/groups/1990134.... Finally, there is a book by a chiropractor, Dr. Keith McCormick, that talks about secondary causes of OP. PPIs is one of them. You can buy his book or google videos of him. PPIs (and h2 blockers on a lesser basis) make it harder for you to derive optimal nutrition from your food because of the reduced stomach acid. Gut health is key to overall health. I started reading labels on store-bought food and there is so much acid as preservative in most of it. My perspective is if you can get by without an acid suppressor, that is best. If you use it short-term or once in awhile, maybe ok. I wish my doctor had said use it for a month to heal the inflammation in your esophagus while changing your diet and sleeping with your heard elevated. My health would be a lot better now. Good luck with your decisioning

[Tues]

I’ve been taking omeprezole daily for many years. I have osteoporosis. I’ve tried to stop it but I get dreadful reflux. I’ve read the replies to your post and will look further into getting off it. I was ill with alendronic acid then given risendronate but same thing happened. Currently taking no drugs (except vit d). Using a vibration plate and upped my calcium intake. Having my 2nd dexa scan next week. I will have to see how that goes b4 deciding on further treatment.

[Seniordoglover]

I took omeprazole daily for about 5 years for reflux. My PCP (primary care physician) at the time never once told me it could affect my bones, she just renewed the prescription every year. When I got a new PCP, the very first thing she did was tell me I shouldn’t take that drug long term and she switched me to famotidine instead. I’ve been taking that for about 3-4 years. I found out I had osteoporosis in my hip and osteopenia in my spine in August 2022 at age 50. Genetics might have played some role in it, but I blame the omeprazole. Neither the endocrinologist nor my current PCP will say that’s a possible cause, but after all my reading, I know taking that drug for so long certainly didn’t help my bones, and I am very upset that my first PCP allowed me to take it for so long without ever once warning me of what it could do to my bones long term.

[Yoga99]

I was taking Omeprazole too before diagnosis of Osteoporosis.

I have weaned myself off it. Not easy and now unable to take Naproxen for my Sciatica.

Good luck!

[MayGodBlessYou]

i've read that the 'prazoles can have ill-effects mentally for some, so take care