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Question.
Yesterday
while at the doctor's I received some samples of Nexium, a brand of esomeprazole.
I tried reading the brochure, that came with these samples, to find out
how to properly take this medication. If that information was in the brochure,
I couldn't find it. And the print was so small! So...how do I take this
product? Is it one in the morning or at one at night? Should this product
be taken with or without food? I would surely appreciate your advice.
PM Santa Margarita, CA via email
Answer.
Nexium
is a product that is in the family of medications called proton pump inhibitors.
In a nutshell this means that these chemicals are designed to stop the
chemical cycle that produces stomach acid. Members of this family are
very effective at accomplishing the goal of reducing stomach acid. Generally
within 3-4 days after beginning these products your stomach's acid content
will be reduced by 95%. Yet, there will be sufficient stomach acid to
help with the breakdown of proteins, but hopefully not enough stomach
acid to cause symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
Nexium is a once a day product and I would advise taking it within one-half
hour of a meal or with a meal. The agent itself requires the presence
of food in the stomach. Food starts the chemical cycle necessary for the
production of stomach acid. It is this chemical cycle that must be running
for the proton pump inhibitors to be activated in your system so that
the stomach's acid production can be significantly curtailed.
Our body tends to produce more stomach acid after meals. As dinner is
generally the largest meal I would suggest taking the product as close
to dinner or or during dinner, if possible. It is the late day production
of stomach acid that causes more problems of reflux later in the evening
or at night while we sleep.
Somewhere down the road say....3-4 weeks and once your system becomes
adjusted to this chemical, you might want to discuss with your physician
and consider taking the product 5 out of 7 days to see if it is as effective.
As I mentioned in the opening paragraph, these products are long acting.
I have seen many patients who can do with just taking agents in this class
of products, every other day.
Nexium is a prescription medication. Briefly stated the parent compound
that Nexium is derived from is omeprazole which is now available in an
over-the-counter tablet known as Prilosec OTC. The average purchase price
of this product is around $0.57-$0.80 per dose. If you compare this cost
to the prescription cost of Nexium you may find you can save a significant
sum of money and obtain the same relief.
Of course you will have to consider your insurance co-pay and other insurance
factors such as is this product, Nexium, on your health insurance's formulary.
If not, the co-pay and/or out of pocket expenses may be significantly
higher. For now I would think quelling the acid beast would be you first
goal if that is indeed you problem.
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