Warning – PPIs – Good or Bad?
Are you on any PPIs?
Proton Pump Inhibitors – what risks do they have in common?
The article below, shows
increased risks of Dementia
associated with Proton Pump Inhibitors,
but as we’ve discussed before, there are other potential adverse side effects too:
1) Alteration of absorption of
vitamins and minerals, i.e. Iron,
Calcium, Magnesium, and B12
to name a few.
2) Metabolic effects on Bone Density
3) Related drug interactions in terms of alterations thereof, and
on intended effect, i.e. co-administration of PPIs
with high dose Methotrexate may potentially lead to Methotrexate
toxicity.
4) Higher risk of infection, i.e.
Pneumonia, and C. Diff.
5) Hypersensitivity response
with consequent organ
damage, i.e. Small Intestinal
Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO),
Spontaneous Bacterial
Peritonitis, and Interstitial
Nephritis.
To read the article detailing this, click here
6) Mitochondrial Damage
As explained in a recent article, it seems to lead to very
destructive Mitochondrial Damage function, see below:
Acid Blockers Shut Down
More than Stomach Acid
BY ANH-USA ON AUGUST 22, 2016
“What you don’t know
about this class of drugs
can ruin your health.
It can even kill you.
We’ve written before
about the dangers of
acid blockers and how,
in many cases, they are
likely exacerbating stomach
pain while causing serious
disease.
New research gives us
even more reason to stay
away from these dangerous drugs.
Did you know that acid
blockers don’t merely shut
off acid pumps in the stomach?
Recent research warns
that they also shut off
production of acid inside
the mitochondria every
cell in our bodies!
Yikes. The health of our
mitochondria determine
our overall health. Yet
here we are blithely
interfering with their
cellular energy production
and detoxification processes.
Sometimes our cells
need more acid and
sometimes the opposite.
But you can be sure that
no drug company knows
(or cares) precisely what
your mitochondria need
to keep your cells happy
and flourishing.
Each cell may have
hundreds or even
thousands of mitochondria.
As if this news is not scary
enough, in his most recent
newsletter (Second Opinion,
August 2016), Dr. Frank Shallenberger
discusses a brand new study
showing that acid blockers
do not simply cause acute
kidney disease
(acute interstitial nephritis)—
they may also be associated
with chronic kidney disease.
The study in question looked
at 10,482 men and women
(average age of 63, with
average kidney function)
over a period of fifteen years.
The researchers found that,
compared to those who
were not taking acid
blockers (proton pump
inhibitors), those taking
them were up to 76% more
likely to get chronic kidney
disease. The study also
found that the risk was
dose-related—the more
acid blockers patients took,
the higher the incidence
of this kidney disease.
Kidney disease is only
one among many known
health problems caused
by acid blockers, including
higher risks for dementia,
heart attacks, pneumonia,
heart palpitations,
muscle cramps, convulsions,
weak bones, and more.
Some of the problems
may be linked to the
difficulty we have assimilating
and using protein and minerals
when we deliberately reduce
the stomach acid (as we
do with these drugs) that
is either needed for digestion
or for producing enzymes
necessary for digestion.
And, yes, acid blockers
often make the original
problem—stomach pain—
worse. As we’ve pointed
out before, too little stomach
acid is more often than not
the culprit behind indigestion
and stomach pain.
Taking acid blockers in
these cases offers temporary
relief but over time just
makes the problem much
worse. Low stomach acid—
also called hypochlorhydria—
affects about half of the
population, especially
middle-aged and older
people, the ones who
typically develop stomach issues.
The bottom line: there are
lots of reasons to be wary
of taking acid blockers,
and we recommend consulting
an integrative physician
before deciding to use
them even on a short
term basis.
Did we mention that once
started, they also cause
dependency and can be
hard to get off of?
Visit our Find a Practitioner
page to find an integrative
doctor near you.”
My comments
We have spoken about these
health side effects
before, but not with so many
serious side effects affecting
every cell’s multi-purposed
functioning within your body!
It seems to me, that a good
healthy alternative is:
Slippery Elm Powder.
(click on the link).
What’s the Solution?
Substitute your PPI with
Organic Slippery ElmBark *
* Always check with your doctor/pharmacist
before making changes to your medications,
and supplements.
7) PPI Use Linked to Dementia!
from: Medscape Medical News > Neurology
“Proton Pump Inhibitors Linked to Dementia”
February 15, 2016
“A new study has confirmed an association
between proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) —
drugs that treat heartburn, peptic ulcers,
and other acid-related disorders of the upper
gastrointestinal tract — and increased risk
for dementia in older patients.
An earlier study by the same researchers
found the same connection between PPI use
and dementia risk, although the current study
is larger and based on information from a
pharmaceutical database rather than on
medical records, as the previous one was.
The new study, by Willy Gomm, PhD, from
the German Center for Neurodegenerative
Diseases, Bonn, Germany, and colleagues
and published online February 15 in JAMA
Neurology, is important, as PPIs are among
the most frequently prescribed drugs and their
use has been increasing sharply, especially
among the elderly.
“Unfortunately, overprescribing of PPIs is
reported frequently,” said study coauthor
Britta Haenisch, PhD, also from the German
Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases.
According to some research, up to 70% of
all PPI prescriptions could be inappropriate,
she toldMedscape Medical News.
“In general, clinicians should follow guidelines
for PPI prescription to avoid overprescribing
PPIs and inappropriate use.”
The study used the largest mandatory public
health insurer in Germany, which includes
one third of the overall population and as much
as 50% of the elderly population. Its database
includes information on diagnoses and drug
prescriptions.
The analysis included 73,679 subjects aged
75 years or older who initially did not have
dementia at baseline. Over the course of
the study (2004 – 2011), 29,510 subjects
were diagnosed with dementia. More than
half (59.0%) had a diagnosis of at least
two different types of dementia.
Researchers focused on regular PPI
prescription for at least 18 months.
They looked at intervals starting with
a 1-year baseline in 2004 followed by
18-month intervals, with the last interval
lasting 12 months.
Regular PPI use was defined as at least
one prescription per quarter in these
intervals of omeprazole, pantoprazole,
lansoprazole, esomeprazole, or rabeprazole.
The results showed that 2950 patients were
regularly using a PPI. These users had a
significantly higher risk for dementia compared
with those not taking this drug
(hazard ratio [HR], 1.44; 95% confidence interval
[CI], 1.36 – 1.52; P < .001).
Depression and Stroke
Several confounding factors were significantly
associated with increased dementia risk;
for example, depression
(HR, 1.28; 95% CI, 1.24 – 1.32; P < .001)
and stroke (HR, 1.37; 95% CI, 1.29 – 1.46; P < .001).
Having diabetes and being prescribed five
or more drugs other than the PPI (
defined as polypharmacy) were also
associated with significantly elevated
dementia risk.
“In our analysis, polypharmacy elevated
the risk for occurrence of dementia by
about 16%,” commented Dr Haenisch.
For the three most prescribed PPIs
(omeprazole, pantoprazole, and
esomeprazole), researchers performed
subgroup analyses and found similar results.
To examine the effect of duration of PPI use,
the researchers analyzed occasional use,
defined as a prescription in less than six
quarters within an interval. They found
a lower HR for occasional use
(HR, 1.16; 95% CI, 1.13 – 1.19).
The risk for dementia with PPI use
gradually decreased with age, with the highest
HR among those aged 75 to 79 years.
Depression and stroke also had lower effect
sizes with increasing age.
“This might reflect the decreasing influence
of external and internal factors on dementia
progression with age, possibly owing to
an already initiated disease process,”
the authors write.
Researchers are not clear on how PPI
use might raise dementia risk. Evidence
suggests some PPIs may cross the
blood–brain barrier and interact with
brain enzymes and, in mice, may increase
beta amyloid levels in the brain.
Although the current study did not include
vitamin B12 levels, other research has
linked PPI use to vitamin B12 deficiency,
which has been shown to be associated
with cognitive decline, Dr Haenisch noted.
The new results coincide with those
of the research group’s earlier study:
the German Study on Aging, Cognition
and Dementia in Primary Care Patients
(AgeCoDe). That study, which included
3327 community-dwelling patients aged
75 years and older, also found a link between
PPI use and dementia, with an HR of 1.38
(95% CI, 1.04 – 1.84).
Because the claims data used in the current
study lack detailed sociodemographic
parameters, the researchers could not
integrate education levels into the analysis.
“This is a limitation of the study that has to
be taken into account when interpreting the
results,” commented Dr. Haenisch.
“In the previous AgeCoDe study, we were
able to include education into the analysis,
and it did not mainly affect the result.”
Also unlike the earlier study, the current
one did not assess the effect of APOE 4 status.
There are several alternatives to PPIs to
treat gastrointestinal disorders in the elderly.
According to Dr Haenisch, these include histamine
H2 receptor antagonists, prostaglandins,
and antacids.
Dr.Haenisch stressed that the study can
only provide a statistical association between
PPI prescription and occurrence of dementia
and does not prove that PPIs cause dementia.
To evaluate the cause-and-effect relationships
in the elderly, randomized, prospective clinical
trials are needed, she said.
More People With Dementia
In his accompanying editorial,
Lewis H. Kuller, MD, DrPH, from the
Graduate School of Public Health,
Department of Epidemiology, University
of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, notes
that even a relatively small increased
risk for dementia could translate into many
more people in the population having
dementia.
For example, he writes, a
1.4-fold increased risk, as suggested by
the study, would increase the estimated
incidence rate of dementia from 6.0% to
about 8.4% per year.
In the United States, 13.5 million people
are in the 75- to 84-year-old age bracket.
If 3% of them were receiving PPIs, this
could result in an increase of about
10,000 new cases of incident dementia per
year in this age group alone, said Dr.Kuller.
Dr.Kuller also pointed to evidence of
PPIs possibly increasing both production
and degradation of amyloid, at least in
animals, and of reduced B12 and other
nutrients among PPI users, which could
be tied to dementia risk. However, he
said, it is possible that the association
between PPI use and dementia is not causal.
Older people, said Dr.Kuller, often take
many drugs, which may reflect the extent
of disease and comorbidities. Specific
drugs may be associated with both
PPI use and dementia.
The authors, said Dr.Kuller,
“have provided an important and
interesting challenge” to evaluate the
possible association between PPI use
and dementia risk. Their study raises the
issue of “whether a careful evaluation of
cognitive changes and/or neuropathology
should be a component of the evaluation of
drugs that are widely used among the elderly,”
he concludes.”
There was no outside funding for the study. The authors and
Dr Kuller have disclosed no relevant financial relationships.
JAMA Neurol. Published online February 15, 2016. Article
abstract, Editorial extract
Click here to read the Article
What’s the Solution?
Substitute your PPI with
Organic Slippery Elm Bark *
* Always check with your doctor/pharmacist
before making changes to your medications,
and supplements.
Will it help you?
YES!
…. a great deal….
And
