By Joe Meloni for Reflux1
Since acid reflux or gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) became a diagnosable disorder, it has been one of the most frequently inquired about illnesses for general internal doctors. As a result, formerly prescription medications such as Prevacid and Prilosec have become over-the-counter medications for patients to use at even the slightest hint of digestive irregularity.
The rush to diagnose GERD has spread to children as young as infants recently. It is common for babies to vomit and struggle to digest certain foods as their digestive system develops. Frequent vomiting, however, has worried some parents and doctors so much that they’ve began prescribing Prevacid to children. Nearly 70 percent of infants vomit occasionally, and some doctors are worried that this normal side effect of a still-developing digestive system is being diagnosed as GERD.
“Now everybody’s saying, ‘Oh, they must have reflux because they are spitting up. And we’ve got these great brand new drugs that we should give your baby’,” Dr. Eric Hassall, a gastroenterologist at the British Columbia Children’s Hospital in Vancouver, British Columbia, tells Canadian Television.
The drugs adults use to curb the ill effects of GERD are not designed for children, and, in a recent study published in the April 2009 edition of the Journal of Pediatrics, found that the medication had no effects on children. The study tested 162 infants, half of which received a placebo, and the only outcome was the 81 that received Prevacid “had a much higher risk of side effects,” according to CTV. The most severe of which were lower respiratory tract infections.
For years, parents and doctors worried that the disorder was underdiagnosed in children. Dr. Phillip Sherman of the Toronto Hospital for Sick Children believes that just the opposite is now happening.
“I think we need an education campaign to distinguish between a healthy baby spitting up and a baby with acid reflux,” Sherman tells CTV.
Dr. Hassall estimates that the number of babies with GERD is “likely less than five percent,” according to CTV.
Rather than putting children on a medicinal track, doctors recommend changes to infant’s diets and eating routines. If children struggle after breastfeeding or formula feeding, doctors recommend soy milk for children who struggle digesting dairy products. Also, keeping children in an upright position following feeding can allow for more seamless digestion.
One parent, Tara Cree, found that after following Dr. Hassall’s recommendations for diet changes worked better than Prevacid for her infant daughter.
“In five days, I noticed an incredible difference,” Cree tells CTV. “It was amazing. She was calm; she was smiling more often; she’d wake up happy instead of crying.”
The results of Dr. Sherman’s study can also be applied to adults. Problems with digestion do not simply signal the need for medication. Every person’s digestive system responds differently to certain foods. Rather than self-medicating at the slightest hint of heartburn, changes in diet can eliminate the issues caused by GERD. Since the excess acid can erode the esophageal tissue, medication is recommended for adults who suffer from pain following meals.
In general, the rush to medicate has become an alarming trend to some internists. Dr. Hassall’s comments illustrate a fear among doctors that handing out prescriptions rather than considering drug-free alternatives beforehand has become accepted practice. For children, this is especially harmful trend. Unless drugs are tested on children in clinical trials before release, it is impossible to understand their effects.
The anti-drug lobby is often ridiculed for their outrageous claims regarding the effects of medication. There is some truth in their concerns, though. When doctors are the people saying that other physicians are too quickly turning to medication, then the process of diagnosis needs reconsideration.
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