Author: Janice Leary

For the 28 percent of Americans who experience gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), acid reflux occurring two or more times per week, proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) like Nexium, Prilosec and Prevacid, reduce the secretion of acid in the stomach and relieve their symptoms of heartburn, chest pain and a hoarse throat. Increasingly, however, studies and clinicians are warning about the serious side effects of long-term use of PPIs, which can range from colon infections to pneumonia, an irregular heartbeat to muscle spasms, bone loss to seizures and kidney disease. Some patients also find that they quickly become dependent on these medications,…