Think Twice Before Reaching for the Zantac: Popular Antacid a Possible Carcinogen
And More Importantly — Recommendations from Your Licensed Naturopathic Doctor on How to Treat Heartburn and GERD Naturally
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The pharmaceutical world is still reeling since news hit that Ranitidine (or Zantac,) the popular antacid used to treat heartburn and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) has a tendency to break down into a cancer-causing agent. Over 15 million prescriptions are written each year for babies, children and adults and many more people find Zantac over the counter.
Valisure, a pharmaceutical company that tests the drugs it sells, filed a petition with the FDA that read in part:
“Valisure tests all batches of all its medications for quality and consistency issues and through such tests detected extremely high levels of N-Nitrososdimethylamine (“NDMA”), a probable human carcinogen, in every lot tested, across multiple manufacturers and dosage forms of the drug ranitidine.”
Since then, numerous manufacturers have recalled this and similar drugs. Walgreens, Walmart, CVS, and Rite Aid have all stopped selling Zantac. The same is true at outlets around the world.
It’s likely family doctors and gastroenterologists will offer different drugs instead. I caution against switching over to a PPI as research shows PPIs have been associated with everything from cognitive decline, osteoporosis and believe it or not, early death. We also know that having less acid in the stomach allows bacterial overgrowth to take place and that bacterial metabolism of dietary nitrites can lead to carcinogenic agents. This kind of complication takes place with any antacid treatment. Those who take PPIs have a higher chance of developing pneumonia and Clostridium difficile infections in hospital settings.
SO! We need some alternatives to both Ranitidine and PPIs, and we need them soon. Statistics show that at least one in four Americans are suffering with GERD. Naturopathic treatments are geared at…
