Anybody else find that Omeprazole causes excessive wind, gas and bloating?

Posted , 12 users are following.

I've been taking omeprazole along with ranitidine for several months now and, although the combination works brilliantly for my acid reflux, I think the omep is now causing me to have a ridiculous amount of wind/gas/bloating. Sometimes this becomes trapped and is extremely painful. I also have incomplete bowel evacuation. Has anybody else any experience of these symptoms whilst taking ppis?

0 likes, 9 replies

9 Replies

  • Posted

    Yes, I had IBS, which I think was caused by being on Omeprazole for so many years.  I suffered with it for years, and have struggled many times trying to stay off the drug.  I recently had a urinalysis done which showed a trace amount of protein in my urine, which finally made me see I cannot take it anymore.  I am still taking rantinidine, which helps, but I have to watch what I eat much more carefully now.  But one think I can tell you that healed my IBS, is Triphala, a supplement made of fruits, which has been the most wonderful thing I ever found.  I now go regularly, and well, and it has changed my life.  If I can get through this withdrawal of Omeprazole, I will be happy.
    • Posted

      Thanks very much for replying and for the info on Triphala.

      I also posted this question on the IBS Network forum and quite a few people have responded saying that they too have the same problems with omeprazole. I stopped taking it yesterday and, like you, am now hoping the ranitidine copes with my reflux on its own.

      I'd not heard of Triphala before and have just spent some time reading about it. I think I'll have to give this a try as it looks very interesting. Can I ask which particular brand you buy and in which form you take it, i.e. pills, liquid or tea?

       

    • Posted

      roz85048, please be sure and come off the omeprazole very slowly, like over a period of months, or you might experience bad backlash acid reflux.  May I suggest that you go to the subject box and put in omepprazole and read some of the posts and you'll see other stories about how people have come off the drug.  I had taken it for over 10 years and just got off after several months.  Now I take ranitidine or famotidine with no problems.  Best of luck to you.

       

    • Posted

      Hi,

      Thanks very much for your reply.

      I did read the posts about the difficulties people have coming off omeprazole, so I'll be careful, but I've been having such bad bowel problems these last two weeks or so, I really can't keep taking it every day. I have an irritable bowel as it is and I really don't need any additional problems!

      I hope things stay okay for you.

  • Posted

    I recently started taking omeprazole and immediately I feel excessive gas, bloating. It feels like my chest front and back, and throat are being squeezed. I stopped taking it and looking for different resources. Until then I take it only as needed. Omeprazole makes all symptoms worse. So far I've found that I can manage it during the day, but not when I need to sleep. .. Also where can I post my own question on here.

  • Posted

    Hope you are feeling better. I just went off Omeprazole 40mg 2x a day and did it cold turkey and the withdrawl symptoms are horrible. I had IBS for years and the Omeprazole made me so bloated and uncomfortable and gassy. Now I am still gassy, backpain, indigestion and not sure but may now have a gluten intolerance and dairy intolerance.

  • Posted

    Get off Omeprozole, Esomeprazole or any other PPIs as soon as you can! PPIs are only intended for short term use (a couple of months) but people find themselves on them for decades. Not only do they cause the digestive problems referred to here, but they cause a number of other conditions such as osteoporosis. Just look it up on line and you will be shocked. The underlying reason for the acid problem in the first place must be explored and dealt with. For example, do you have a hiatus hernia? Is the problem excessive acid or not enough stomach acid? Doctors tend to prescribe the same meds for both scenarios whereas in reality they should be treated differently. If you have low stomach acid and are prescribed PPIs then your problems will get worse not better. Sufficient stomach acid is required to close the sphincter from the stomach to the oesophagus after eating. If you haven't got enough acid the sphincter won't close properly and so what stomach acid you do have will rise up. You then get treated for excess acid even though in fact it's the opposite. This is why some people are often surprised that apple cider vinegar works to control their 'excess acid'. PPIs can be great short term for calming down any inflammation caused by stomach acid damage but we should not look upon them as a long term solution. Look these things up on line and start to become a detective. Even for things like hiatus hernias there are ways of controlling your symptoms through specific exercises and there are ways to manage and control things through diet and lifestyle changes without reliance on damaging drugs.

  • Posted

    Hi

    ive been on the omeprazole for a few weeks now and they don't agree with me at all, bloating and gassy, really bad wind. It got that bad last night that i couldn't sleep and had a hot water bottle across my stomach as i was in that much pain.

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