This category covers Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease or GERD for short. GERD is a severe form of acid reflux with the most common symptom being heartburn.
Yes, famotidine (Pepcid) can cause anxiety, but it’s uncommon. The FDA prescribing information lists anxiety among nervous system and psychiatric side effects reported in less than 1% of people in clinical trials, alongside insomnia, depression and hallucinations. Confusion and agitation have also been reported since the drug came to …
Can Famotidine Cause Anxiety? What the Evidence Shows Read More
The pH of stomach acid in humans is usually between 1.5 and 3.5. On an empty stomach it sits around pH 1.5 to 2, which is strongly acidic. In a classic study of healthy adults, the median fasting pH was 1.7 [Dressman et al., Pharmaceutical Research, 1990]. Stomach pH …
What Is the pH of Stomach Acid? And Why It Matters Read More
Gaviscon Advance and Gaviscon Extra Strength work in different ways. Gaviscon Advance (the UK formula) is an alginate: 1,000 mg of sodium alginate per 10 ml forms a thick raft that floats on your stomach contents and physically blocks reflux. Gaviscon Extra Strength (the US formula) is an antacid: …
Gaviscon Advance vs Extra Strength: Key Differences Read More
Gaviscon Advance isn’t sold in the US because its active ingredient, sodium alginate, isn’t on the FDA’s approved list of over-the-counter antacid ingredients. US antacids are sold under an FDA rulebook called a monograph, and alginate isn’t in it. So the Gaviscon you’ll find on American shelves is a …
Gaviscon Advance in the US: Why It’s Not Sold Here Read More
The H. pylori breath test (urea breath test, or UBT) checks for an active Helicobacter pylori infection in your stomach. You breathe into a bag, drink a solution containing a specially labeled form of urea, wait about 15 minutes, then breathe into a second bag. If H. pylori is …
Chest pain after eating is most often caused by acid reflux. A meal stretches your stomach and makes the valve at the top of it open more often, so acid and stomach contents rise into the esophagus, which runs right behind your breastbone. That can feel like burning, pressure, …