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Article: What's in an antacid?
- Article from:
- FDA Consumer
- Article date:
- January 1, 1992
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1992 U.S. Government Printing Office. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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The opposite of an acid is a base, and that's exactly what antacids are.
But a base all by itself can't neutralize the acid inside you. For reasons that are best explained on a blackboard in chemistry class, a base needs some chemical helpers," or ingredients, to accompany it on its neutralizing mission into your stomach.
All antacids contain at least one of the four primary "helpers" or ingredients: sodium, calcium, magnesium, and aluminum.
Here's a brief rundown of the composition and some potential side effects of various antacids:
Sodium (Alka-seltzer, Bromo Seltzer, and others)
Sodium bicarbonate or baking soda, perhaps ...