Heartburn Drug

Heartburn is a word that many people dread hearing about, and it is a condition that differs in its strength and symptoms from person to person. In order to ensure that your heartburn condition does not change into GERD, which is the more serious version of heartburn, you will need to consider taking the next step and take a closer look at what medications will help. There are different over the counter heartburn drugs available that you can take. They are ranging from mild to the extra strength option. Most of the times you even have the choice between a tablet form or liquid medication.

Ask your doctor about heartburn drugs

If you are experiencing any heartburn symptoms you should consult your doctor and get his advice on heartburn drugs that are available only from a prescription. He will also tell you what is the most suitable course of treatment considering your current lifestyle.
Antacids are the most common type of hearburn drugs. Those heartburn drugs should be taken orally. A lot of people don’t want to use those drugs even though it would be a tremendous improvement to their condition.

Many people prefer to use liquid antacids rather than the tablet variety as they are easier to take and can be more gentle on the body. If you are taking antacids in tablet form you should chew them well and swallow them at least 30 to 60 minutes after you eat. The antacids drugs are recommended because they have the chemical ingredients that are needed to neutralize the high levels of acid built up in the stomach that can lead to stomach acids refluxing into the esophagus and causing heartburn.

There are a lot of different over the counter antacids. Tagamet, Pepcid AC, Zantac and even Prilosec are the most popular ones. The strongest types of heartburn drugs that you can buy over the counter are Maalox II, Extra Strength Riopan, Mylanta IIand Gelusil II .
You can also find Alginic Acid and Antacids tablets that place a layer of foam over the stomach acidic juices to prevent reflux. These tablets must also be chewed well and taken at least 30 to 60 minutes after you eat and before you go to sleep at night.

In the drugs Gaviscon and Algicon you can find chemicals that float on the top of the digested stomach contents, so that when the stomach acids reflux into the esophagus it is the first substance to come into contact with the esophagus. These are excellent heartburn drugs that reduce the acid levels in the stomach.
There is another group of heartburn drugs which control and treat the symptoms of heartburn and provide heartburn relief to the sufferer. These are acid reducers or acid blockers. These acid reducers are part of a class of drugs that are called Histamine receptor blockers. You can get them either over the counter or in prescription strengths forms. In a nutshell, they reduce the amount of acid that you have in the stomach. For people who get no positive effect from these drugs another option to control or treat acid reflux are Proton Pump Inhibitors or PPI’s.

As you can see, the choice of drugs for heartburn is wide and therefore you should consult your doctor before making your final decision. If all of these drugs don’t work for you a surgery might be your last option to get rid of your acid reflux problems.