Side effects from antacids? Or?? Help?

Question

I've been taking these antacid pills for 2 weeks (small yellow ovals, I think sodium based) that was prescribed to me from a hospital doctor because I was having bad heartburn. I wasn't told the side effects, or even thought they were affecting me, so I've been taking them for 2 weeks (took the very last pill yesterday). I went to a new doctor a week ago, telling him that I lost weight and had mood changes but he didn't know what it was from. I'm 15 & a girl. * I have extreme brain fog/confusion, iribilitally, loss of weight, extra fatigue, lots of anxiety, muscle pains (legs & back), loss of appetite, jitteriness, heart palpitations & ocassionaly feeling the need to cough. * I DO have anemia, which I have been taking iron pills for for over a month & had none of these symptoms before I started taking the antacid pills except for the fatigue. All of these symptoms have gotten worse & worse. Even today even though it's been over 24 hours since my last pill? I don't have diabetes or thyroid problems or any abdominal problems- they checked. What could this be? Anxiety, depression or a bad reaction to my pills? I looked up side effects of antacids and they listed confusion & stuff. Should I go back to my doctor? My mom thinks I'll be fine in a few days but I'm not sure. Is it possible for me to have gotten worse & worse as I took the pills?

Answer 1

Doctors should tell you side effects. Most of the effects above that you written was from Antacids such as muscle pain, possibly irregular heart beat.

Answer 2

Updated Answer



I am not a doctor.



Don't take iron pills unless you have had a medical examination to validate it. Iron toxicity can be very serious, damaging the gut as well as the liver.



The safest way to get iron is to cook in an iron skillet.



What is the name of the "antacid' pills, it would be strange if they did not have a label, unless your in a clinical trial and did not know it. Find out what they are and include this information.



Get yourself a book on "Human Anatomy and Physiology", Barron's has a well written text in their EZ way series. Amazon.com also has older used editions of college and medical textbooks of physiology for cheap. I would not worry too much trying to memorize details of anatomy rather focus on the physiology aspects. This makes it easier to understand medical texts. (Word of warning: there is a great bias to promote drugs in the medical literature, so don't believe everything you read, use common sense based on your understanding of the human body).



http://www.merckmanuals.com/professional/injuries_poisoning/poisoning/iron_poisoning.html#v1119341



PANTOPRAZOLE SODIUM suppress the ability of the stomach to secrete acid (see FDA link below).



It would take a medical doctor to find out the true cause. The FDA pdf file below does list two things which might be the cause of your troubles:



The drug increases Gastrin levels and is dose dependent, one of the things Gastrin does is increase insulin secretion, and insulin lowers blood sugar levels, the body responds to low sugar levels by secreting epinephrine which moves sugar out of its storage sites in the liver but it also causes palpitations. Caffeine also can cause palpitations as well as missing meals.



The other thing is post marking information listed rhabdomyolysis as side effect, that is where the muscle cells fall apart leaking their contents into the body. Besides pain, the myoglobin stored in the muscle can show up in the urine. This would be one specific test your doctor could run, if it shows up then it should be reported to the FDA, as its possibility as a side effect is still under question.



Pepcid, is an acid reducer that available as a generic for cheap at the Dollar General stores does not have the side effect risks of the more powerful proton pump inhibitors that you are taking and has been on the market much longer, so there are fewer surprises.







http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2012/020987s043,022020s006lbl.pdf

Answer 3

Since the pH changed, so will the enzyme. Because the stomach has become more basic, more amino acids on the enzyme will be deprotonated and its conformation may change. This would ultimately change the enzyme itself, unable to receive pepsin. And since the enzyme is catalytic, the process will take a lot longer for the protein to be broken down.