So why are we misled into thinking that we need this medication? There are two basic reasons for this.
i) Firstly conventional heartburn medication only treats the symptoms of heartburn and not the factors that cause the acid reflux which produces these symptoms.
ii) Secondly, heartburn medication is a huge money spinner for the pharmaceutical companies, so what incentive is there to develop a cure for the condition, which would then lose them a fortune in lost sales of traditional products?
There are three main groups of heartburn medication, each providing heartburn relief in a different way. Lets briefly consider what they actually do.
a) antacids - these are the normal course of treatment for those who suffer mild heartburn. They bring rapid relief by neutralising the stomach acid that causes the problem.
b) H2 Blockers - these act by blocking the body's signal to the stomach to produce stomach acid, thus reducing its production.
c) Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPI) - these act directly on the cells in the stomach that produce the acid, stopping its production.
So, what are the problems that these products can cause?