Q. My doctor prescribed Prilosec for heartburn and I took it for about a year. After discontinuing the Prilosec I was feeling very tired. The blood work that was done showed I had very low magnesium levels.
I took magnesium supplements as my doctor recommended and got my levels back to normal. This side effect of taking acid-suppressing drugs is worth sharing. Too few people pay attention to the possible side effects of drugs before they start taking them.
A. Omeprazole (Prilosec) and other acid-suppressing drugs such as lansoprazole (Prevacid) and esomeprazole (Nexium) control heartburn symptoms, but they can also reduce absorption of important nutrients including magnesium and vitamin B12. Everyone taking one of these medications for long periods of time should be monitored for such nutritional deficits.
We are sending you our Guide to Digestive Disorders so that you can learn about other ways to keep heartburn under control as well as the pros and cons of acid-suppressing drugs. A magnesium deficiency wouldn’t necessarily lead to fatigue, but it might lead to constipation, headaches, high blood pressure and muscle cramps. Research from the NHANES (National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey) shows that adequate magnesium can also reduce the risk of hearing loss as one grows older (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Jan. 2014).
