Another downside to heartburn drugs

According to a recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association, people on prescription heartburn drugs, such as Prilosec, Prevacid and Nexium, are at greater risk to getting a dangerous form of diarrhea caused by the bug Clostridium difficile. The study explains that because the drugs reduce the amount of gastric acid in th gut, patients have a weakened resistance to bacteria and viruses.

Patients with prescriptions for powerful acid-fighters called proton pump inhibitors, which include Prilosec and Prevacid, were almost three times more likely to be diagnosed with the bug than those not taking the drugs. Those on less potent prescription drugs called H2 receptor antagonists, which include Pepcid and Zantac, were two times more likely than nonusers to get C-diff infections.