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    Stomach Acid Drugs Increase Risk of Bacterial Infections, FDA Warns

    LiveScience.com – Wed, Feb 8, 2012

    The Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers today that certain stomach acid drugs may increase the risk of a serious intestinal bacteria infection.

    The drugs, including Nexium, Prilosec, Prevacid, Zegerid and others, fall into a category called proton pump inhibitors (PPIs). They are prescribed to treat acid reflux, stomach ulcers and other conditions, and work by reducing the amount of acid in the stomach. 

    The bacterial illness is called Clostridium difficile–associated diarrhea (CDAD), and its main symptom is diarrhea that does not improve, according to an FDA statement. The bacteria are commonly referred to as "C. diff."

    "Stomach acid is a very important defense mechanism against pathogens. It kills them," said Dr. Edith R. Lederman, who authored a study published in October linking C. diff infections to stomach acid drugs, in an interview with MyHealthNewsDaily at the time.

    Patients taking PPIs who develop diarrhea that does not improve may have CDAD, according to the FDA. The agency is working with manufacturers to include information in the drug labels about the increased risk with use of PPIs. PPIs are the third highest-selling class of drugs in the U.S., according to 2010 findings from Consumer Reports. 

    Lederman's study, published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases, showed nearly half of 485 patients hospitalized at a medical center over a four-year period who had C. difficile infections had previously been prescribed an acid suppressing drug, most of which were either proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs), such as Prilosec and Prevacid, or histamine-2 antagonists, such as Tagamet and Zantac.

    The FDA is also reviewing the risk of CDAD in users of histamine H2 receptor blockers. 

    The elderly, and people with certain medical problems, generally have the greatest chance of developing C. diff infections, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The infection can spread in hospitals because C. diff spores can live outside the human body for a very long time, and may be found on items such as bed linens, bed rails, bathroom fixtures and medical equipment.

    There are antibiotics that can be used to treat C. diff, according to the CDC, but in some severe cases, surgery to remove the infected part of the intestines may be needed. 

    In Lederman's study, 23 patients died from their C. diff infections; 19 of them had taken prescription acid suppressants during the 90 days before their hospital stay. 

    Hand washing, alcohol-based sanitizers, and taking only antibiotics that are prescribed by a doctor can lower a person's risk of getting or spreading C. diff, according to the CDC.  

    Pass it on: People taking drugs that suppress stomach acid production may be at an increased risk for intestinal bacteria infections.

    This story was provided by MyHealthNewsDaily, a sister site to LiveScience. Follow MyHealthNewsDaily on Twitter @MyHealth_MHND. Find us on Facebook.

     

    53 comments

    • pls
      pls  •  3 mths ago
      And some people who do not take them and have acid reflux (bad) risk the chance of esophageal cancer. So...it's the old "do the benefits outweigh the risks" rule as always.
      • Kirkwood
        Kirkwood 3 mths ago
        That's what they tell you. Acid reflux is a type of ulcer and is an infection.
      • Jennifer
        Jennifer 3 mths ago
        Kirkwood, get your facts straight. Acid reflux is when acid from your stomach washes up into your esophagus. It can be caused by many things, ulcers are one of them. However, some people have something called a hiatal hernia where the esophagus pulls up through the diarphragm. It makes it so that there is no way to keep the acid from coming up, so people have to take proton pump inhibitors to cut the acid down so it doesn't cause a precancerous condition called Barrett's esophagus. Barrett's is when the cells in the esophagus start to change and look more like the cells in the small intestine, and they sometimes turn cancerous. Once that happens, you better find it early, or you're dead.
      • pls
        pls 3 mths ago
        Thank you, Jennifer. The H-Pylori bacteria can cause acid reflux and ulcers as well. I tested positive and went through the treatment, as did my husband many years later. Although it did subside, we both still take Prevacid; he 1 every day, and I take 1 every other day.
    • Stark Contrast
      Stark Contrast  •  3 mths ago
      200 years ago people didn't need prilosec and stuff like that because their food supply was simply just that.....a FOOD supply......NOT a supply of additives, colorants, surfactants, anti-caking agents, anti-foaming agents, preservatives, flavor enhancers, hormones, fungicides, antibacterials, antibiotics, etc.

      And now you can add genetically modified foods to your food supply.
      That "Atlantic Salmon" you bought isn't a real fish.... It is a chinook salmon hybrid they genetically modified to grow twice as fast and three times as big. I wonder if things like this FRANKENFISH are part of the stomach problems????

      THEN you add in the fact that the American family unit is completely fragmented by both parents having to work stressful jobs that want more, more, MORE...and the kids are raised by nintendo and t.v. because Mom and Dad are at work all the time...

      I changed my diet after 15+ years on prilosec. I am vegetarian now, and I eat ZERO fast food....I eat alot of fresh foods and I try to stay away from breads, deep fried stuff and too much sweets. I rarely drink alcohol, even in moderation these days. I quit smoking ciggies, too.....the change in habits made more difference than the pills did, and I've been prilosec free for 2 1/2 years now.

      Along with America's decaying family comes decaying eating habits, we're doing less cooking and more microwaving and eating out....usually not eating well at all. The BIG PHARMA companies have your hot n' ready remedy (as usual) and they are handing them out by the handful to all of us unhealthy eating, stressed out Americans.

      Time to get back to a healthy lifestyle instead of believing their pills can REPLACE a healthy lifestyle.....think about it.....do you ever see obese depressed people on McDonald's commercials???

      NOPE.....they are always slim, sharp as a tack, and happy ambitious people....Hmmm

      HEALTH ISN'T AN ILLUSION....It's up to YOU, though!!!
      • Jennifer
        Jennifer 3 mths ago
        You know that people have been genetically modifying things for years, right? They just used to cross pollinate crops instead of doing it in a lab. Paranoid much?
    • BrianD
      BrianD  •  3 mths ago
      PPI's aren't for occasional heartburn, they're for people like me who have GERD and would probably be dead of esophageal cancer after years of racking pain.

      Instead of being perfectly healthy with them.
      • SKYRED
        SKYRED 3 mths ago
        I have the same problem BrianD. I have been taking them since they came out over 30 years now. I started taking an antibiotic last month that gave me C. diff infection, then they had to give me another antibiotic to take care of it. The Prilosec had nothing to do with it.
      • Terri J.
        Terri J. 3 mths ago
        Same here, Brian. I feel your pain too.
      • BrianD
        BrianD 3 mths ago
        C diff is generally caused by overuse of antibiotics, and of course is supercontagious, be sure to steritize commodes with bleach.

        Best wishes to the Nexium brotherhood/sisterhood...
    • tom
      tom  •  Lancaster, New York  •  3 mths ago
      Try organic apple cider vinegar. It worked for me.....
    • Dmitry
      Dmitry  •  3 mths ago
      Me: Doc, is there any problems with taking antacids every day? I mean the stomach acid is there for a reason right?

      Doc: Na, don't worry its the safest drug you can take.

      After 3 months of daily diareaha and cramps I feel like my stomach is being ripped apart. Hospital doc says "Your fine, just a little cold".

      Stoppped taking atacids and guess what...no more stomach pain or diareaha. Never trust the medical establishment, research it yourself and listen to what your body tells you.
    • Tammy W
      Tammy W  •  St Louis, Missouri  •  3 mths ago
      Funny. Something that natural doctors have been saying for years!
    • Christopher
      Christopher  •  Flint, Michigan  •  3 mths ago
      I have been hospitalized twice for C-Diff, it is not just diarrhea, it is PAIN, vomiting to the point where I scratched my throat open trying to puke but could not, can cause your kidneys to fail and intestines to burst. it feels like there is something angry trying to rip its way out of your stomach through your navel. yes, I was on Prilosec for a long time before my attacks. worse pain in my life!!!!!!!! now I take probiotics and a Rolaids for occasional heartburn.
    • Step
      Step  •  Moscow, Idaho  •  3 mths ago
      Good wine and a healthy salad with vinegar/oil dressing. Keep life simple.
    • safeinthewoods
      safeinthewoods  •  3 mths ago
      ... oh, relax ... here, have a black coffee and a Pall Mall ...
      • Jim Em
        Jim Em 3 mths ago
        If you ever have occasion to look at magazines from the sixties and earlier, you see lots of ads citing medical doctors promoting various brands of cigarettes.
      • dr know
        dr know 3 mths ago
        pall mall is my favorite a close second is camels and def with strong black-coffee
    • Barry P
      Barry P  •  South Bend, Indiana  •  3 mths ago
      If mountain dew will dissolve a mouse just think what it will do to those germs.
    • Breadman
      Breadman  •  3 mths ago
      They based this on 19 patients and the word "may".....
      Shall we yell fire in a crowded theater too?
    • Jody W
      Jody W  •  St Joseph, Missouri  •  3 mths ago
      Prevacid has been my morning routine for.....10+ years........do some more research!
    • POE1195
      POE1195  •  Santa Clara, California  •  3 mths ago
      I've been taking Omeprazole for the last year and have had no problems or infections.
    • B
      B  •  3 mths ago
      What drug does'nt have the potential of causing harm? The FDA has no way of establishing that any drug is safe until the medicines are taken and what effect it has on a person. People need to study and educate themselves before considering taking a drug for their ailment before taking the FDA's word for it.
    • lefty
      lefty  •  New York, New York  •  3 mths ago
      balance risk / reward ratio no drugs are without consequence
    • BillsXLVII
      BillsXLVII  •  Wilmington, North Carolina  •  3 mths ago
      I've been taking Prilosec for 3 years and never had an infection.
    • Me
      Me  •  3 mths ago
      I knew some negative side effects would eventually come to light on these. Is there ever a medication or something that you have to take regularly that affects your body that does not have some kind of side effect?
      Years ago I was diagnosed with acid reflux. The doctor, friends and family all told me how great things like prolosec were. I did not want to go on them, because of issues like this. I changed my diet and rarely get heartburn anymore. Stop relying on the easy pill fix and take a look at your lifestyle. Yes, it requires effort, but what in life doesn't.
      Now I get my rounds of I told you so's...lol
      • Brian F
        Brian F 3 mths ago
        I have acid reflux. I have a very healthy diet. Certain foods make it worse. But I have it whether I eat them or not. I just take pepcid when I have bad stomach acid. Stress causes acid reflux too. I'm certain that stress is a leading cause for mine. I'd love to be less stressed. Unfortunately, I have very little control over that. I used to smoke a little weed every now and again. That helped tremendously. Now I can't. I have a job where I'm drug tested and my career takes precedence. Too bad alcohol doesn't relax me in nearly the same way.
      • sensational
        sensational 3 mths ago
        Sorry, but there are instances where you can't just change a diet and fix everything.There are condition that isn't treatable, so one has to treat issues caused by that condition. Severe acid reflux, is one of those issues, and only way it is eased is by acid reducing drugs. There is just no way around it. This isn't something that is caused by bad habits or life style. This is just what it is.
      • BrianM
        BrianM 3 mths ago
        ME... You are so correct! Its what we put in ourselves 99% of the time. Or how we deal with stress. You may think you are eating healthy, but in reality the food you are eating may be making you sick. I had terrible heart burn for years, used zantac and pepcid to cope. Then i read about wheat intolerance... I tried cutting wheat out of my diet, and within 2 weeks my heart burn was nearly gone. It took probably a full year for my digestive system to fully heal after. Im not saying wheat is a silver bullet for all, but it certainly worked for me. There could be something in "your" "Healthy Diet" Brian F that is keeping you sick. I hope you find some relief!
    • Bella
      Bella  •  Las Cruces, New Mexico  •  3 mths ago
      Can't believe they are just now figuring this out, or at least just now telling us. One of the functions of stomach acid,in addition to digestion, is to kill bacteria, so that we are not constantly ill from what we ingest. Anything that suppresses that acid production on a long term basis will increase susceptibility to certain bacteria, however, these medications are an absolute must for some of us,regardless of risk, that have severe GERD (not simple heartburn). GERD can make your life miserable, as well as increasing the risk or espophageal cancer. For those who have only heartburn,due to dietary indiscretions, I would suggest trying other things first, such as simple antacids and diet modifications. Save the proton pump inhibitors for more complicated issues.
    • The Stifled Patriot
      The Stifled Patriot  •  3 mths ago
      I worked on the marketing for Prilosec and Nexium back between 1998-2003. This is not news...here's some real news...lose 10 pounds, stop eating chocolate, stop drinking coffee and alcohol...and you'd be shocked...your heartburn will likely go away without prescription.
    • Misty
      Misty  •  Parsons, Tennessee  •  3 mths ago
      a home remedy is to take a teaspoon of vinegar. that reduces the chance for acid reflux and u still have the stomach acid to do its job. no more acid reflux and problem solved
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