Heart burn

[chris100]

I was just thinking, when you take benzos could they give you some heart burn? Thanks

[jhall93085]

If you want to do a little reading I would look at this article: Fass, R., Quan, S. F., et al. (2005). Predictors of heartburn during sleep in a large prospective cohort study. Chest, 127(5), 1658.

Pretty much the answer to your question is, yes. In the article, they found that benzodiazepine use might be associated with heartburn that occurs during sleep. These drugs can cause the esophageal sphincter to relax, resulting in gastroesophageal reflux....thus heartburn....i get it all the time it's terrible!

[dannyboy868]

They have never given me heartburn, thats a strange side effect ive never heard of. good job for your post jhall93085 you gave a great answer. Thats very interesting to me, never heard it before, but i guess it can. maybe take tums or something of the sort to battle the heartburn. good luck, danny

[Bobble22]

A very good drug for heartburn is Nexium (esomeprazole). Now that I don't take benzos I don't get HB, but when I did Nexium was very effective.

[bradw]

A very good drug for heartburn is Nexium (esomeprazole). Now that I don't take benzos I don't get HB, but when I did Nexium was very effective.

I regularly get heartburn, on an almost daily basis, although I don't attribute my heartburn to benzodiazepine use. I do find, however, that ranitidine (I buy a generic, but the branded product goes by the trade name Zantac) is an effective OTC/over-the-counter alternative to prescription medications. Ranitidine over-the-counter is available in 75 and 150 mg tablets, and I personally take 300 mg's once nightly (2 x 150 mg tablets) and occassionally another 150 mg's in the morning, depending on how bad my heartburn is that particular day.

I should probably see my doctor to get a prescription for a proton pump inhibitor (PPI) medication, since my heartburn is almost daily, but until I do so, ranitidine is an effective OTC alternative for me. As @Bobble22 said, esomeprazole (Nexium) is a prescription PPI that is known to be quite effective, if a daily prescription medication for heartburn is needed.

Where I reside, PPI's (proton pump inhibitors) are all prescription-only, but in the United States, several are available over-the-counter, including omeprazole (Prilosec OTC) and lansoprazole (Prevacid 24Hr, marketed by Novartis). These particular medications are also effective for the treatment and prevention of NSAID-induced ulcers (the over-the-counter product I use, ranitidine, is also useful for preventing NSAID-induced ulcers when both drugs are co-administered, although PPI's are more effective for this indication).

[hooverdangle]

I was just thinking, when you take benzos could they give you some heart burn? Thanks

As mentioned above, there are several studies that say benzos could perhaps relax the esophagus and cause some acid reflux. I wish I could help you more because as someone who suffers anxiety + heartburn they both are awful, but try just some OTC prilosec before bed, should do the trick.

[bradw]

I'd like to add that ranitidine, which I mentioned previously, is known to cause false-positive drug-test results for methamphetamine, so it may be advisable to steer clear of this particular medication if you are being drug-tested.

Just FYI

[SW19power6]

I have heartburn and sometimes reflux. The reflux is usually caused by drinking alcohol. I take Prevacid which is OTC and just had a checkup with my Dr. and he renewed my Xanax. I nver felt that the Benzo caused heartburn, more likely spicy foods, can't eat Mexican, green peppers or tomato sauce.