Thyroxine & Gaviscon

[Otto11]

Hi just a quick question. I'm prescribed Gaviscon 4 times a day after meals & at night. My Thyroxine dose was always taken in the morning for 30 years then asked to change to bed time in 2022. Just realised that I also take Gaviscon last thing at night too. Any suggestions as if I omit it I get indigestion. Thanks.

[HealthStarDust]

I have this issue. I continued to work which foods are the worse triggers for many many months, and use Gaviscon Advance at night only now and the other Gaviscon as needed.

For this reason, I could not move my morning Levothyroxine to night time.

[Otto11 in reply to HealthStarDust]

Thanks. Tbh I only take it at night too. Should I try to take it in the evening instead? What do you think?

[soppysokes in reply to Otto11]

gaviscon really is best taken around 4 hours between taking levo,either before or after. could you praps take thyroid med during night (if like many of us its pee time too!) I took them within about 1 1/2 hours for a couple of months and for me the result was all thyroid readings had got worse so now make sure I leave that time frame, but we are not all the same of course.Failing that I guess you could take them closer together if you are on gaviscon long term, and then always use those thyroid blood tests so the consistency is there? best thing probably is speak to gp re dosing schedules and hope he/she is informed enough to help you!

[Otto11 in reply to soppysokes]

Thanks. Think my GP wouldn't really get involved but I will speak to my Endocrine nurse next time I speak to her. I don't get up regularly in the night to wee & am on auto pilot so doubt I would trust myself to remember to take it. I really need to address this & it only just dawned on me!

[HealthStarDust in reply to Otto11]

I am not sure. For me, while I am optimising my dose, I feel it is more safer to take my Gaviscon at night. This is while a 2/4 hour window on either side of taking Levothyroxine is recommend (depending on the source of information), this can not take account of individuals variances.

Hope that helps.

[Otto11 in reply to HealthStarDust]

Thanks. I will try to speak to my Endocrine Nurse in the first instance. I already need to take my Calceos tablets together mid day so they do not compromise Thyroxine. Its a juggling game that I need to sort out.

[HealthStarDust in reply to Otto11]

Why have you been advised to take it at night?

[SilverAvocado]

Otto11, You haven't had anyone more knowledgeable comment, so I will just mention that Gaviscon might not be helping you.

With hypothyroid it is much more common to have low stomach acid, not high stomach acid. Low stomach acid causes all kinds of problems, as we need the acid to help digest our food, absorb all the vitamins and nutrients, to kill bugs, and keep everything else in equilibrium. The acid also triggers digested food to empty downwards out of the stomach and move on with its journey, so low stomach acid can cause food and digestive juices to hang around in the stomach, resulting in heartburn and stomach contents coming up the wrong way.

Medications that reduce stomach acid further can reduce the symptoms of heartburn. But by lowering stomach acid further, it is reproducing the same cycle.

Doctors will not check whether you have high acid or low acid. There is a very simple home test called the burp test you can do, by making a very alkali drink out of bicarbonate of soda, and timing how long it takes you to burb. If you search 'burp test' you can easily find details and how to time it.

Unfortunately, the question of how to wean yourself off Gaviscon is one I know less about. If you have low stomach acid, it can be treated by taking home remedies. But these are fairly inexpensive, including apple cider vinegar tablets, or if those are not strong enough, betaine hydrochloride (usually called betaine hc). There is a lot of info on the forum about how to dose with vinegar and betaine. Basically taking the lowest dose you need to digest food comfortably.

I definitely suggest reading up on it, and you may find other discussion on Gaviscon on the forum, and of PPIs (proton pump inhibiters), which are the other major medication that lowers stomach acid.

[Otto11 in reply to SilverAvocado]

Thanks. I’m going to have to research it more. I’m also on PPI’s. Omeprazole mostly because I have RA & they recommend them with the meds we take. I did try without Gaviscon last night & seemed ok so maybe the best way forward is to start reducing my dose. I do understand about absorption & stomach acid though as my daughter who has a lot of health problems takes Esomeprazole but she was on 80mgs ( 4 x 20 mg tablets) however GP changed her prescription to 40mg tablets & as the box is the same she didn’t realise so was in fact taking double for a long time before she realised. All her Vitamin levels are dreadful & her Folate isn’t even readable it’s that low. She has Vit D injections Ferritin infusions & is now paying privately for infusions adding B12 & Folate. I must admit my levels could be a lot better too especially Folate currently taking Methyfolate drops. Thanks again for you help. It’s something I hadn’t really thought about before.

[SilverAvocado in reply to Otto11]

Good luck to you and your daughter. I believe these are medications that can do all kinds of damage, so I hope you are able to figure out a good path through it for both of you.

I had a quick search on the forum for Gaviscon, just to make sure there was anything there, and a good few posts came up, including an older one of yours. I think there will be more if you search for Omeprazole, and perhaps just 'PPIs' as I think they are discussed more often.

I have not had as many difficulties as you guys, but used to be very bothered by reflux at night. I've tried a few different things over the years, including taking things with every meal. But now all I do is take one apple cider vinegar tablet with a snack before bed, and I only have problems if I've eaten foods that really disagree with me. It is amazing how effective they can be.