Studies Link Some Stomach Drugs to Possible Alzheimer’s Disease and Kidney Problems
Doctors and patients are grappling with the unsettling finding that chronic use of popular heartburn medicines may be riskier than was thought
By Karen Weintraub | Scientific American February 2017 Issue
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Credit: Augusto Zambonato
Over-the-counter packages of Nexium, Prevacid and Prilosec tell you to take the pills—known to doctors as proton-pump inhibitors, or PPIs—for just two weeks at a time unless otherwise directed by a physician. Yet drugs of this best-selling class prevent heartburn and ease related ailments so well that patients—particularly those who suffer from a condition called GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease)—are often advised to take the medications for years. By decreasing acid production in the stomach, the agents prevent the caustic liquid from backing up—or refluxing—into the esophagus, where it can cause pain and can damage the food tube's delicate lining.
In recent years, though, safety questions have been raised about prolonged use of the blockbuster drugs. (The medications appear to be safe when taken for a short period, as directed.) Some studies, for example, have linked continuous treatment with proton-pump inhibitors to serious infections caused by the bacterium Clostridium difficile. Presumably something about lowering the acid environment of the stomach allows the pathogens to survive when they otherwise might not. Other investigations suggest long-term changes in the stomach's acid content can lead to improper absorption of several vitamins—such as B12—and minerals, triggering bone loss, among other ill effects.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/studies-link-some-stomach-drugs-to-possible-alzheimer-rsquo-s-disease-and-kidney-problems/
