Help with Indigestion Symptoms

[Ilysha]

Beyond Aciphex, I was wondering if anyone had suggetions for dealing with indigeston symptioms that are probably being caused by the prednisone. I'm on Aciphex, which helps some, but doesn't totally do the trick.

Anyone have any other hints?
Thanks,
Ilysha

 

[mikeyarmo]

I am sorry, but I have no experience or help beyond Aciphex .

 

[DanSJVDavis]

Try to take your prednisone with a meal, if you can. I used to take mine with a little milk, but I know some folks can't tolerate dairy.

 

[Kev]

I've been experiencing a lot of indigestion and acid reflux since I started pred.. I have opted to avoid/limit OTC remedies for it.. I switched to low acid juices, esp. orange juice.. I found a low acid juice combo that offers probiotics in it. I find it esp helpful. I also eat low fibre cereal with lactose free milk. I avoid the use of sugar, esp refined sugar. I will even drink semi flat ginger ale.

Or make a pot of decafinated tea drunk with lactose free skim milk. I've also found (maybe it's just me) that pred seems to slow down the whole digestive system, AND that as my system slows down, the potential for heartburn increases.. So I try to balance my intake.. eat less solid foods,
opt for more liquids.. (soups versus heavy or hearty meals).. But, having said that, one other thing that seems to trigger or aggravate my heartburn is too much liquid.. I think whenever the stomach 'thinks' it is full, regardless of if it's liquid or solid to digest, it triggers the release of more stomach acid. So I watch what comes out, and limit my intake to balance. It's a natural thing to try to extinguish those nasty internal flames by drowning it with beverages, but it never seemed to offer me any benefits. But that could just be me. My ex., when she was pregnant.. esp with son numero duo, got awful heartburn. She was taking antacids left and right.. but they caused serious edema (sp) 'eeer... fluid retention'. Almost life threatening.. None of her doctors at the time could pinpoint the culprit. When she cut out the antacids, the fluid buildup went away.. leaving her with the heartburn. But the occasional plain old soda cracker seemed to help.. I use them on occasion, but very sparingly. (have to watch my fat intake).. The last little tidbit of advice I can offer, and it's a bit risky.. SO, IF YOU DECIDE TO TRY IT, BE VERY CAUTIOUS.. is a trick I learned BEFORE I was symptomatic, diagnosed, and eating like a normal person.. And it seems completely counter-intuitive.. like the very worst thing a person SHOULD do (SO PERHAPS THIS IS TOO RISKY FOR ANYONE OTHER THAN THIS FOOLISH OLD FART).. but back in the day when I was able to eat anything, one of my favourite foods was chili.. and the hotter it was, the more I enjoyed it.. The odd thing was that, eating other folks chili ALWAYS gave me heartburn EVEN though it was WAY milder than my own.. WHILE ANY person who was brave enuff to try my 5 alarm chili NEVER got heartburn. The result would invariably come out the other end. More embarrassing perhaps, but a lot easier on the tum tum.. Why? Well, it wasn't due to my using only fresh, natural ingredients.. others did with their milder versions but that didn't solve their heartburn problems.. I had no secret ingredients.. Just potentcy. I think that was what did it. Now, am I suggesting you try to cure heartburn with my 5 alarm chili? NO!!! Think those days are gone forever. But I find if I add just a little gassy food to my diet, very sparingly, to increase my levels of 'emmissions' (so to speak) that passing MORE gas actually aleviates my acid stomach problems.. I mean, it's not good for those around me, and all of my neighbours are petitioning to have my house hermetically sealed, but it works for me in bad to worse case scenarios... And I figure (strictly from my 'own' point of view) that IF I'm going to suffer from heartburn anyway, might as well add a lil something, something to my typically VERY bland diet and least get some pleasure from the pain.. Really, what have I got to lose other than some more of my colon??? OK, so the dog gets a bit suicidal, but I watch him..

Look, there are probably a ton of people on here who pop this pill for that and it works wonders.. Their advice is probably way more intelligent than mine is.. So be sure to try their advice first..

I just prefer to find 'natural' solutions that work for me whenever/however I can without resorting to either an Over The Counter or Prescribed 'Wonder' drug that comes with a staggering list of short & long term 'side effects' you have to watch out for. But if you too are crazy enuff to try any of my home remedies, just be very cautious, make little changes, just take baby steps.. OK?

 

[DanSJVDavis]

Kev,
It could be the heat too, strangely enough. Oddly, as much as chili's burn the crap out of our mouth and makes it feel like we're crapping napalm when we eat too much of it (done when my boss and I ate two whole pickled habeneros on a dare back when I worked for Kroger), chili's are actually good for the digestive system and also cause more saliva production. Some suggest that they have antibacterial properties as well and there's other researchers that claim that they may even help keep the onset of ulcers at bay. They're packed with vitamin C and can help fight colds and even clear the sinuses. And they make our bodies release endorphins, which is the feel good chemical in our brains.

Just like Kev, I'd say to use caution if you try it at all, because chili's aren't good on some bowel conditions and naturally stimulate the digestive system and intestinal tract, which could cause problems during flares.

Usually it's my extreme heartburn that causes more gas in me and I've seen an undeniable correlation between my heartburn severity and my Crohn's problems, which I attribute to my loss of ileum. When my heartburn's real bad I tend to get that over production of gas that doesn't go anywhere and gives me horrendous pain in my bowels. The terminal ileum reabsorbs bile, which is usually mixed with stomach acid and oil. With no terminal ileum, the bile doesn't get absorbed, which means none of that other stuff does either. When it comes out it feels like I'm crapping acid.

 

[Ilysha]

Ken and Dan,
Thanks for the interesesting perspectives. When I'm not in a flare mode, I actually tolerate chilli quite well, but it did not occur to me to try it in a flare when I'm hearburny as well. I'm not quite to that point yet, but you both bring up some interesting points. I do the same thing with red meat--I find it gives me extra fiber and that "kick" when I need to get the bowels moving and have had enough of bland.

I'm doing a bit better thanks to pill popping --prevacid--but don't want to be on it for long so I'll keep your advice in mind.

 

[DanSJVDavis]

Heh! Just looked at my post again. Pretend the spelling of those those chili's are chile's as in the pepper, not the stew.

 

[D Bergy]

Ginger helps digestion, sooths the stomach and helps to absorb nutrients. Also has many other benefits. Use capsules, tea, or raw ginger.
I would not take it at the same time as medication.

Good Luck.

D Bergy

 

[Evagation]

I second D Bergy's ginger advice. I like capsules, tea, and ginger ale (ginger ale is pretty much the only carbonated beverage that I can stand).

While I completely understand not wanting to pop Prevacid just to deal with the Prednisone acid reflux, there are reasons for it beyond quelling the acid reflux. For me, when I stopped taking the Prevacid while on Prednisone (and when I'm on pred, I usually take twice as many meds just to deal with the nasty pred side effects--ellavil for going insane, prevacid for acid reflux, calcium supplements for bone loss, etc.), an upper GI showed scarring in my lower esophagus. The stomach acid had actually caused lasting harm to the lining of my esophagus.

So, it's a very fine line for me between acid reflux that I can deal with through natural, herbal remedies (the ginger, cutting out highly acidic foods/drinks from my diet) and needing to take Prevacid because the acid reflux isn't responding to anything else.

Katie.

 

[katiesue1506]

Kev... its funny you say that... back when they were trying to heal my inner intestinal ulcers naturally, i was suggested to ingest red chili pepper... either the actual ground ind or the kind they set out at the tables at pizza hut next to the parmesan cheese. Apparently it sort of cauterizes them... I never did it, because it was so COMPLETELY counterintuitive... but you've got me thinking.