I think have seen posts here about using ACV for acid reflux. I currently take Omeprazole but need to stop it for 2 weeks prior to an endoscopy but worried that the acid reflux will be bad. Any advice would be welcomed.
I have also seen posts about using magnesium as a sleep aid and as I suffer terribly from insomnia, I would really like to know more about this.
Any advice that members can give me would be greatly appreciated! 😀
Soreknees2016 I use BetterYou Magnesium Spray. I use it on my legs and it helps with painful knees and gives me a good nights sleep.
nightingale-56 that's interesting, as I have problems with knees and ankles (Psoriatic Arthritis and osteoarthritis) so could kill two birds with one stone - thank you!
Hope it works for you.
Ppi might actually be causing low magnesium
gov.uk/drug-safety-update/p...
Ppi's can also lower B12 as well
pulsetoday.co.uk/clinical/m...
Interesting articles SlowDragon - I guess it's that old thing of every action having a corresponding reaction. I've been on Omeprazole for at least 10 years and only now becoming aware of the pitfalls since joining this and some other HU forums. Maybe 2 weeks without it will be a useful experiment!
If ACV has any effect on acid reflux would it not counteract the point of coming off omeprazole, namely to reveal what is happening without taking anything that affects acidity. I'm not sure if you are on any medication for hypothyrodism, hypothryodism can lead to acid reflux via reduced lower oesophagal sphincter pressure.
You're probably right jimh111 , and maybe I should just be prepared to thole it.
I have not been diagnosed with hypo - yet, so not on meds. But I do believe that I have many symptoms that suggest that I am heading in that direction, and my last BH results would seem to bear that out. Needless to say, my GP just thinks that my TSH is 'normal' so everything's hunky dory.
The endoscopy is to investigate possible causes of anaemia, but I suspect it is a symptom of hypo rather than stomach issues, so we shall see....
Hi soreknees2016,
Ask them to check for Helicobactor and Pernicious Anemia as well.
Kill 2 birds......as you say, 😊
They can and probably will take a tiny biopsy during the endoscopy to check for helicobacter pylori as it can cause excess acid secretion, gastritis and ulcers.
They didn't jimh111 the first time I had an endoscopy.
2 months later I did a breath test for hpylori which was positive.
It's a waste of resourses and such an inconvience to the patient if it is not done as routine.
That was my experience and I'd rather just gently remind the gastroenterologist. 😊🍀
I agree, I thought about it after I replied. Just a gentle question 'will you be checking for helicobacter when you do the endoscopy' should do the trick.
Assuming your endoscopy was for something that could be related to hp it was a dreadful waste of resources. I find the NHS really good in some ways but so inefficient, I have to resist taking charge and issuing orders, in 'basic' English.
I had burping and felt a bit bloated for the first time in my 56 years.
Now, I don't go to the GP too often, 🙊 But mentioned these symptoms to him.
So, an endoscopy was ordered. I asked why.
Anyone over 55 who has a change in their digestion should get it checked out. Fair enough.
Nothing showed up in the endoscope so my GP suggested, PPIs.
I read up about this and that and got the breath test for Helicobactor.
I was fortunate to eradicate it myself with Oregano Oil Caps, Mastic Gum and Manuka honey.
I was a happy bunny to be honest.
J 😊
The problem you are likely to meet is that coming off PPIs causes "rebound hypersecretion" of stomach acid.
refluxmd.com/what-to-expect...
Have you been told what you can take for two weeks?
If not, I would suggest trying bicarbonate of soda in water. It's cheap and doesn't contain a lot of the nasties that normal antacids do. But it does contain a lot of sodium which some people are told to avoid.
Have you been told whether you can take Zantac/ranitidine? You can buy that in boxes of 12 in Tesco - their own brand is much cheaper than the branded versions. The dose on the box is 75mg (one tablet) up to two times a day. The prescribed dose of the same thing is 150mg twice a day i.e. 2 tablets twice a day.
evidence.nhs.uk/formulary/b...
evidence.nhs.uk/formulary/b...
evidence.nhs.uk/formulary/b...
Soreknees2016 glad humanbean has posted this information for you as I had diarrhoea for 3 weeks after coming of Omeprazole. Have since found out you have to lower the doseage and taper off very slowly. Easy to be wise after the event! Hope you don't suffer. Bicarbonate of soda is good for nausea and morning sickness too.
PPIs are prescribed when patients complain about indigestion, heartburn and acid reflux.
The doctor suggests the patient has too much stomach acid and prescribes PPIs to suppress the acid. This makes no logical sense at all.
Most people produce less and less stomach acid as they get older (there are exceptions, I think, but they aren't common). By the time people are about 80 they probably produce no stomach acid at all.
Despite the reduction of stomach acid as people age the number of prescriptions for acid-suppressing medications increases as people get older.
The two things are completely incompatible with each other.
For an understanding of how Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) actually works and why it causes the symptoms it does the following linked articles are very thorough and explain the problem well, although they don't mention hypothyroidism as a cause of reduced stomach acid :
1) chriskresser.com/what-every...
2) chriskresser.com/the-hidden...
3) chriskresser.com/more-evide...
4) chriskresser.com/how-your-a...
5) chriskresser.com/how-your-a...
6) chriskresser.com/get-rid-of...
For a shorter set of articles concentrating on just the treatment of GERD :
scdlifestyle.com/2012/06/hy...
scdlifestyle.com/2012/03/3-...
I managed to wean off a PPI several years ago (but I'd not been on it for half as long). Started off by going lactose free, taking Gaviscon at bedtime, probiotics with breakfast and digestive enzymes with big meals... that pretty much solved the reflux, but not the intestinal bloating...which continued for some considerable time.
To cut a long story short I'm now gluten free....also took mastic gum to eradicate any lingering overgrowth of H Pylori.. then back onto dairy slowly...I've more recently made kefir, mixed results - fabulous at first, but my winter batches were a bit suspect and made me nauseous ( my theory: winter milk is possibly of a different quality to summer milk as cows are fed silage rather than fresh pasture - so the bacteria aren't as 'brilliant'.) I know that my gut bacteria aren't that great at the moment (poor mineral and vitamin absorption) but at least my gut symptoms aren't painful any longer.
Hi google Dr Sarah Myehill and look this up on her website. She has three treatments for low acid in stomach. I have no thyroid and had terrible IBS and acid reflux for years and had invasive colonoscopy, ppi etc and nothing worked.two months on ACV and keffir and all gastro, ibs dissapeared!!i am also now on T3 and dont have a thyroid post cancer.
Hi all
Thank you so much for all your advice - lots of stuff here for me to Investigate, especially for a longer term approach to managing the problem. In the short term, at least until I get this endoscopy out of the way, sounds like I just need to treat the symptoms (if they occur) and not take anything that directly replaces the Omeprazole.
Thanks again - much appreciated! 😀
For magnesium to be the most efficiently absorbed from the stomach and into the body, it requires your stomach to be slightly more acidic in nature. Taking Apple Cider Vinegar increases the acidic properties and in turn, helps your body absorb magnesium better.
I had very bad GERD and abdominal cramps and pains daily for about 2 years.
Many hospital visits from immense pain, specialists, scans, camera down the throat, colonoscopy, haeomotologist, gastroenterologist, GP... nobody could figure out what the problem was. I was also waking up at night with pains and cramps in my belly and calf and foot muscles.
I started taking Braggs brand Apple Cider Vinegar (with the Mother) 2 teaspoons a day and noticed that it reduced the severity and the number of occurances of the pains and the burps and GERD. I almost completed the first bottle after a few months when I had an episode of a relly bad cramp in my foot one night and my tummy at the same time.
I Then looked up something to help with cramps. Found Magnesium Glycinate with the higher elemental Mg content. Bonus was that it stated that it helps with insomnia, stress, relaxation and calming of the muscles. Well IMMEDIATELY that night I slept the whole night through without waking up throughout the night or in the morning with stomach cramps.
The next day I expected the cramps to come back - they didnt. The third day still sleeping all night long like a baby and no cramps. I was amazed. Could this have been my problem all along? Being Mg defficient. Then it made sense about the ACV working. ACV helps make the tummy more Acidic to absorb MG better. So I felt better because I was absorbing more Mg.
Then when I began taking an Mg Glycinate supplement, it totally eliminated not just the tummy cramps, but insomnia, anxiety, lethargy, muscle spasms, leg and foot cramps, GERD, blood pressure going up and down and some arrhythmia in my heart. I couldnt believe it and I still cant to this day.
A Mg blood test was useless because only 1% of Mg is found in our blood serum, the rest is distributed throughout our body. but the blood tests I did get showed me at the lowest end of the scale at 0.73 mmol/L.
Anyhow, I would just like to say to anyone reading this, at least give it a try. For under $30 you can get the Magnesium Glycinate and the Braggs Brand Apple Cider Vinegar with the Mother at any chemist. Results are virtually noticed within 24 hours!!!. Thanks.
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