EDUCATION
SYMPTOMS OF
INDIGESTION
Indigestion is a chronic
INDIGESTION • Gastroparesis
Indigestion (the medical term for which • Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection
is dyspepsia) includes a number of • Irritable bowel syndrome
symptoms and can often be a sign of some
disease in which the
• Lactose intolerance
symptoms fl uctuate other health condition. “Indigestion basically means • Peptic ulcer disease
in frequency and ‘poor digestion’ and describes some sort of disturbance • Stomach cancer
intensity usually over in digestion in the initial stages of digestion (usually many months or years. in and around the stomach rather than the bowels),” TREATMENT
It may occur every explains Nutritional therapist Ali Cullen. The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive
The University of Miami Hospital defi nes
day or intermittently
and Kidney Diseases advises that treatment for
for days or weeks at a indigestion as a painful or burning feeling in the indigestion depends on the cause and may include:
time followed by days upper abdomen and usually accompanied by • OTC and prescription medicines
or weeks of relief (a nausea, bloating or gas, a feeling of fullness, and, • Changing what you eat and drink
pattern referred to as sometimes, vomiting. While indigestion may be the • Psychological therapies
periodicity). result of a disease or an ulcer in the digestive tract, most often it is the result of eating too much, eating OTC and prescription medicines
be accompanied too quickly, eating high-fat foods, or eating during You can buy many medicines to treat indigestion
by a variety of other stressful situations. without a prescription, such as antacids, H2 blockers,
Indigestion may
or proton pump inhibitors. However, should the
symptoms. It’s
important to remember LOCATION OF DISCOMFORT indigestion lasts longer than two weeks, the patient
that each person’s “Indigestion occurs in the upper abdomen just should see a doctor. The doctor may prescribe
symptoms may vary. under the breast bone,” explains Eisenstein. It is a acid-suppressing medicines that are stronger than
burning discomfort in the stomach, sometimes likened those one can buy, antibiotics, prokinetics,
These symptoms
may include: to hunger pains – except that it occurs on a full stomach or psychological medicines.
• Feeling full too soon and a general precaution, is that chest discomfort due Antacids
to a heart attack may be incorrectly attributed to either Doctors often fi rst recommend antacids – OTC medicines
heartburn or indigestion instead. that neutralise acids in the stomach. Antacids include:
too. One similarity between heartburn and indigestion,
while eating
• Pain, burning,
• Calcium carbonate
and discomfort in
the upper belly or CAUSE • Loperamide
abdomen Indigestion is caused when the stomach acid comes • Simethicone
into contact with the mucosa that lines the stomach • Sodium bicarbonate
• Feeling bloated
to protect it from the acid. The stomach acids break
• Poor appetite
• Burping and loud
down the lining, causing the stomach acid to irritate Antibiotics
and infl ame the stomach. To treat a Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection, a doctor
will prescribe antibiotics, which kill bacteria. He or she will
stomach gurgling
• Acidic taste
• Nausea or vomiting
• Constipation
• Diarrhoea
According to the National Institute of Diabetes and prescribe at least two of the following:
Digestive and Kidney Diseases some of the common • Amoxicillin
causes of indigestion include: • Clarithromycin
Drinking • Metronidazole
• Too many alcoholic beverages • Tetracycline
• Too much coff ee or too many drinks containing caff eine • Tinidazole
• Too many carbonated, or fi zzy drinks
• Flatulence
These symptoms may
increase in times of
stress.
Eating H2 blockers
• Too fast or too much during a meal H2 blockers are medicines that decrease the amount
• Spicy, fatty, or greasy foods of acid the stomach produces. H2 blockers provide
• Foods that contain a lot of acid, such as tomatoes, short-term or on-demand relief for many people with
tomato products, and oranges
Sometimes when
you have indigestion, Stress
you may also have Smoking
heartburn. However,
Certain medicines
heartburn and
• Nonsteroidal anti-infl ammatory drugs
separate conditions.
Unlike heartburn which
can cause you to
awaken at night with
pain or discomfort,
indigestion usually does
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| MAY 2017
• Cimetidine
• Famotidine
• Nizatidine
• Ranitidine
• Some antibiotics—medicines that kill bacteria
indigestion are two
not awaken you.
indigestion. H2 blockers include:
Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs)
PPIs are most eff ective in treating indigestion when
Health problems and digestive tract diseases and patients also have heartburn. PPIs include:
conditions that can cause indigestion, include: • Esomeprazole
• Acid refl ux (GER and GERD) • Lansoprazole
• Anxiety or depression • Omeprazole
• Gallbladder infl ammation • Pantoprazole
• Gastritis • Rabeprazole
Pharmacy Magazine
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