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Heartburn Treatment for Occasional Heartburn Episodes
By M. A. Fulmar

When people experience chest pains due to heartburn, they are often confused on the kind of heartburn treatment to buy due to the varieties of medication available. In addition, while some over-the-counter heartburn treatment worked well for you, this same medication may not be effective to other people.

Antacids are the Most Reliable Heartburn Treatment: True or False?

The most popular heartburn treatments are antacids. These tablets, foams or liquids work by neutralizing stomach acids to prevent or treat heartburn almost instantly after consumption.

Antacids are ideal for treating patients that experience heartburn occasionally. On the other hand, antacids are not ideal for people who have high levels of blood pressure, patients with kidney stones and those who are undergoing a sodium diet. Although antacids can be an effective heartburn treatment because of its instant results, its calcium content will eventually cause an increase of stomach acid production after about four hours upon taking.

A drawback of heartburn treatments like antacid is that it could interact with certain drugs. When this happens, the acids in your stomach could mix with both the antacid and other drugs and cause other serious health problems.

Are Acid Blockers Effective?

For many years, antacids have been the most effective heartburn treatment available over-the-counter. The popularity of antacids is probably due to its instant relief from heartburn. However, since antacids can only neutralize stomach acids for a few hours, acid in you stomach will eventually go back. For this reason, many people are looking for other heartburn treatment alternatives to get rid of excessive acid production.

Acid blockers, another type of heartburn treatment, work by finding the roots of the problem and suppressing acid in your stomach's cells without affecting your digestion process. These kinds of heartburn treatments can prevent acid production for several hours, depending on the dosage used.

Side Effects of Antacids and Acid Blockers

Both antacids and acid blockers can cover up the symptoms of bleeding ulcers for patients diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. While these heartburn treatments do not produce the bleeding itself, taking these medications may prevent patients with arthritis seek medical attention from bleeding ulcers.

Antacids could also be a large contributor to kidney stones and could aggravate the condition of patients with kidney problems. Generally, acid blockers produce lesser side effects than antacids. However, you should still consult your physician about certain heartburn treatment before buying and consuming over-the-counter medications.

Author Details:
M. A. Fulmar, copywriter for various websites including, Acid Reflux and The A to Z of.

Article Source: Top Health Articles

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See also: Acid Reflux