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 | How do I choose an over-the-counter heartburn medicine?
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|  Your choice basically depends on whether you want to treat heartburn or prevent it. All over-the-counter heartburn treatments decrease the acid content of the stomach, but they do so in different ways. Antacids neutralize the acid that the stomach produces, while drugs called H2-blockers reduce the stomach’s output of acid. To prevent heartburn, choose an H2-blocker. Examples include ranitidine (Zantac 75), famotidine (>Pepcid AC), cimetidine (>Tagamet HB 200), and nizatadine (>Axid). You can take these medicines at bedtime or 30 minutes before a meal. H2-blockers can prevent heartburn for four to eight hours following a dose.To treat heartburn that has already started, choose an antacid. Examples include >Tums, >Titralac, >Maalox, or >Mylanta. Antacid effects begin within five to 15 minutes and can last for as long as three hours.>Pepcid Complete is a new product that combines the antacid, calcium carbonate and magnesium hydroxide with the H2-blocker famotidine. One tablet works to both neutralize and reduce stomach acid. If you are taking other medicines, read product labels and talk to your doctor or pharmacist to prevent a drug interaction. For example, some antibiotics are not effective if they are taken with antacids.
See a doctor if your heartburn doesn't go away within two weeks, gets worse, or is accompanied by other symptoms.
Sources:
Micromedex Healthcare Series. Micromedex, Inc., 2001.
Handbook of Nonprescription Drugs. American Pharmaceutical Association, 2000.
Pharmacotherapy: A Pathophysiologic Approach. Appleton & Lange, 1999.
The Merck Manual of Medical Information: Home Edition. Merck & Co., 1997.
Feldman: Sleisenger & Fordtran's Gastrointestinal and Liver Disease. W. B. Saunders Company, 1998.
Pepcid Complete Product Information, Johnson & Johnson-Merck. Last accessed 6/25/01.
This reply prepared 6/25/01.
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