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In a population-based study from Scotland, use of commonly-prescribed acid suppression medications such as proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) was linked with an increased risk of intestinal infections with C. difficile and Campylobacter bacteria, which can cause considerable illness.
Compared with individuals in the community who did not take acid suppression medications, those who did had 1.7-times and 3.7-times increased risks of C. difficile and Campylobacter, respectively. Among hospitalized patients, those using the medications had 1.4-times and 4.5-times increased risks, respectively.
Although acid suppression therapy is often considered relatively free from side effects, the findings suggest that there are significant adverse gastrointestinal consequences of their use. "Users of these medications should be particularly vigilant about food hygiene as the removal of stomach acid makes them more easily infected with agents such as Campylobacter, which is commonly found on poultry," said Prof. Thomas MacDonald, senior author of the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology study.
DOI: 10.1111/bcp.13205
Maybe they should cut back on haggis and chips instead.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 07 2017, @03:34PM
I find it strange that so many western people are taking such medications. A small percentage might have actual medical problems that require them but it seems that a significantly higher percentage are doing so on a regular basis[1]. Those people should stop eating food that causes problems with their stomachs (or stop eating them in ways or quantities that cause such problems).
Sleeping pills are another thing.
If my stomach is too acidic I just pop a calcium tablet. I don't take those on regular basis but where I live it's cheaper to buy them as a supplement (they last fairly long - they're basically chalk). And for sporadic use it's likely to be safer than PPIs ( http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2016/02/15/465279217/popular-heartburn-pills-can-be-hard-to-stop-and-may-be-risky [npr.org] )
[1] http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/06/25/combating-acid-reflux-may-bring-host-of-ills/ [nytimes.com]
These are the third highest-selling class of drugs in the United States, after antipsychotics and statins, with more than 100 million prescriptions and $13.9 billion in sales in 2010, in addition to over-the-counter sales.