Acid suppressing drugs have become among the most frequently prescribed pills in the pharmacy. Over 100 million prescriptions are filled for medications such as Aciphex, Nexium and Protonix. Prilosec and Prevacid are now also available over the counter. Given their popularity you might think that these medicines would have few, if any side effects.
But new studies show that proton pump inhibitors increase the risk of recurrent digestive tract infections caused by the bacteria called Clostridium difficile, or C diff. This type of infection causes diarrhea that can sometimes be lethal.
PPI acid-suppressing drugs can also increase the risk of broken bones in postmenopausal women. In this study, nearly 162,000 women were tracked for eight years. Those who took PPIs were at a slightly increased risk for spine or wrist fractures. Perhaps it’s time to reevaluate the routine use of acid suppressing drugs for heartburn.
