ORLANDO, Fla. (Ivanhoe Newswire) — Every day, millions of people take meds known as NSAIDs to relieve their pain. But many aren’t aware that these popular drugs can also lead to a serious complication. Ivanhoe explains.
If you’ve ever had pain, chances are, you’ve taken an NSAID. This common class of drugs includes meds like aspirin, Aleve, and ibuprofen also known as Advil. While they can ease your discomfort, NSAIDs can also cause an unwanted side effect: ulcers. It happens because the drugs reduce your body’s ability to make a layer of mucus that protects the lining of your stomach from damaging acid. And the longer you take them, the higher your risk.
“These kinds of anti-inflammatories are meant to be taken on a short-term,” explained Charles Srour, DC, a chiropractor.
Signs of an ulcer include burning stomach pain, excessive burping, bloating, and heartburn. Up to ten percent of ulcer patients will experience a perforated ulcer, which is a serious condition that requires immediate medical attention. To reduce your risk, don’t take NSAIDs for more than 14 days. If you do require treatment for longer, your doctor may prescribe acid-reducing medicines. You can also try natural anti-inflammatory alternatives, such as turmeric, fish oil, or complexes like infladox, which combine supplements.
“In some cases, the effect that they get is even stronger than what they would get with pharmaceuticals,” continued Srour.
NSAIDs aren’t the only reason for ulcers. Another common culprit is a bacterial infection.
Contributors to this news report include: Julie Marks, Producer; and Roque Correa, Editor.
IBUPROFEN AND ULCERS
REPORT #2879
BACKGROUND: NSAIDs are among the most common pain relief medicines in the world. According to the American Gastroenterological Association, more than 30 million Americans use them daily to soothe headaches, sprains, arthritis symptoms, and other discomforts. Most people are familiar with over the counter, nonprescription NSAIDs, such as aspirin and ibuprofen, but they are more than just pain relievers. They also help reduce inflammation and lower fevers. They prevent blood from clotting, which is good in some cases but not so beneficial in others. For example, because they reduce clotting action, some NSAIDS, especially aspirin, may have a protective effect against heart disease. NSAIDs can increase the risk of developing nausea, an upset stomach, or an ulcer, and may interfere with kidney function.
(Source: https://www.webmd.com/arthritis/features/pain-relief-how-nsaids-work and https://orthoinfo.aaos.org/en/treatment/what-are-nsaids/)
NSAIDS AND ULCERS: NSAIDs can cause ulcers by interfering with the stomach’s ability to protect itself from gastric acids. Even though these acids are vital to the digestive process, they can cause damage if the protective barriers of the stomach are compromised. NSAIDs slow the production of protective mucus in the stomach and change its structure. A class of lipids made by the body called prostaglandins influence pain receptors. NSAIDs work to reduce pain by blocking the enzymes that are involved in the production of certain prostaglandins. Prostaglandins are also protective in the mucosal layer of the stomach, and when they are depleted, there can be a break in that layer. The suppression of the body’s natural defenses against gastric acids can lead to inflammation in the stomach lining. Over time, this can cause the rupture of a capillary blood vessel, causing bleeding and the development of an open, ulcerative sore in the mucosal lining.
(Source: https://www.verywellhealth.com/nsaids-and-peptic-ulcers-1941723)
LARGEST STUDY LINKS DEPRESSION AND ULCERS: University of Queensland researchers confirmed a link between depression and stomach ulcers in one of the largest studies of genetic factors in peptic ulcer disease. Professor Naomi Wray from UQ’s Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB) and Queensland Brain Institute, and Dr. Yeda Wu from IMB provided information to how the gut and brain work together by studying health data from nearly half a million people. The research supported a holistic approach to caring for patients with gastrointestinal diseases like peptic ulcers, which affect between five and ten percent of people at some time in their lives. Medication had shown to reduce the disease’s prevalence, but the importance of other risk factors including lifestyle and psychological factors needed to be re-emphasized. “Six of the eight variations can be linked to why some people are more prone to H. pylori infection, which would make them more susceptible to peptic ulcer disease,” said Professor Wray. An existing peptic ulcer treatment targets the gene linked to one of these genetic variations and so identification of other associated genes could offer opportunities to develop new treatments.
* For More Information, Contact:
Jim Capalbo, Public Relations
Free weekly e-mail on Medical Breakthroughs from Ivanhoe. To sign up: http://www.ivanhoe.com/ftk
