Apple cider vinegar may remedy your acid reflux
Q: I took prescription meds for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) for 10 years. Finally, I tried apple cider vinegar after my evening meal. Although it seemed counterintuitive, it worked!
I also sleep with the head of my bed raised. I use the things they sell to raise all bed legs for under-bed storage, but only put them under the headboard feet.
I’m happy to be med-free so I don’t need to worry about side effects. I didn’t go cold turkey with the meds but weaned off them gradually. We have stomach acid for a reason — to digest our food. If we don’t digest it properly, we can’t absorb the nutrients in it.
A: Thanks for sharing your story. Apple cider vinegar is a popular remedy for acid reflux. Although it has not been studied in a clinical trial, doctors are beginning to take notice of its use (Current Gastroenterology Reports, July 10, 2019). Naturopaths have adopted the use of apple cider vinegar and deglycyrrhizinated licorice (DGL) to treat reflux (Integrative Medicine, August 2018).
Not everyone benefits from this treatment. Occasionally, people report that vinegar makes their heartburn worse.
Q: I read that pycnogenol could help heal eczema. I’d been struggling with this skin condition for months, so I bought some and started taking it. Within a couple of months, my eczema was gone. Do you know if I need to keep taking it every day, or only when I have another flare-up?
A: We appreciate your report. Pycnogenol is a compound derived from French maritime pine bark with antioxidant and antiinflammatory activities.
We could find no clinical trials of pycnogenol for eczema, but scientists have confirmed that it calms inflammation in skin cells called keratinocytes (Free Radical Biology and Medicine, Jan. 15, 2000). Investigators have determined that this dietary supplement can improve skin barrier function (Skin Pharmacology and Physiology, February 2016).
Usually, more robust barrier function means less eczema. Unfortunately, however, we don’t have an answer to your question. If you experiment on yourself, please let us know what you learn. Q: I went to the emergency room with severe abdominal pain last month. I thought it might be a recurrence of hiatal hernia, but it turned out to be bowel obstruction.
I was discharged after two days and went home with partial obstruction. The doctors said I should manage it with diet and laxatives. After nine days of bloating, cramping and a distended belly, I searched the web and found your article on lisinopril causing abdominal obstruction. I immediately stopped taking lisinopril and notified my cardiologist. After a few days, my symptoms diminished dramatically. I’m now back to normal.
A: ACE inhibitor blood pressure drugs like lisinopril can trigger a condition called angioedema. Emergency physicians are familiar with symptoms such as swollen lips, tongue and throat. If not treated promptly, angioedema can become life-threatening because the airway may close.
Health care professionals are far less familiar with intestinal angioedema. ACE inhibitors can also cause swelling of the small and large intestines leading to bowel obstruction. This, too, can be a life-threatening complication.
Doctors may have trouble diagnosing abdominal angioedema because symptoms may mimic many other digestives disorders. Nausea, diarrhea, bloating and intermittent abdominal pain are common complaints. We’re glad you were able to discover the source of your distress.
In their column, Joe and Teresa Graedon answer letters from readers. Send questions to them via www.peoplespharmacy.com.