On BBC Morning Live Dr Xand van Tulleken explained people 'take them for a lot longer than they should without a regular review'11:59, 28 May 2026Updated 12:02, 28 May 2026Omeprazole users told to watch out for 'red flag'A BBC expert has given viewers the ‘red flags’ they need to watch out for if they’;re taking widely prescribed medication Omeprazole. Speaking on BBC Morning Live Dr Xand van Tulleken explained that a recent survey had come out suggesting that risks are tied to long-term use or inappropriate high dosing. The primary dangers revolve around nutritional deficiencies, kidney stress, bone fractures, and gastrointestinal infections‌Omeprazole is a widely used medication that reduces the amount of acid your stomach produces - and can be prescribed if people are taking other long term medication which can lead to heartburn - such as aspirin and ibuprofen. It belongs to a class of drugs called proton pump inhibitors.‌And Dr Xand said that if people are suffering from acid reflux they can do a number of things to help - including what they eat, how they sit, and even how tight their belt is. Dr Xand wanted to emphasise it is one of most widely used drugs - like statins and people should be confident there is no big danger. He said: “What these drugs do is they suppress your stomach making acid. We take them for a couple of reasons to protect the stomach from drugs from drugs like aspirin. So if you’re taking an aspirin you want to sort of reduce the effects of acid because aspirin can make your stomach more vulnerable to bleeding and the other thing is for things like reflux disease so heartburn and those kind of things.‌“What worries me is if you stop these medications suddenly, if you look at that headline and go, 'Oh, maybe I shouldn’t be taking it then. I think I’ll stop this one.' You can get a rebound over-production of acid which can make symptoms worse, cause problems and generally cause difficulty. So I would say the evidence does not stack up to believe this headline at all. And because it’s a headline that will affect tens of millions of people around the country, we should be very nervous of it.”He explained that if people were taking it for longer, there are a number of things they should watch out for. He said: ”The important thing to say is these drugs are safe and important. It is also worth saying people take them for a lot longer than they should without a regular review. You should always go back and check your symptoms“ If you’re taking any medication that you don’t know what it is, what it’s for, you’ve been taking for a long time without a review, do go and talk to your GP. They will be happy to do it. But the other thing to say for reflux is there. I’ve got a few tips on how to manage it. So, if we think about eating smaller portions, avoiding lying down after eating if you can, literally loosening your belt so that you’re not wearing very, very tight clothing.‌Content cannot be displayed without consent“So, small, you know, cutting out foods that trigger you. For some people it’ll be coffee, some people it’ll be curry, some people might be chocolate. You’ll know what triggers you. Yeah. So, pastries can be a big deal. Often highfat foods can sort of turn around in your stomach. Eating a lot can squeeze the acid up into your food pipe. And raising your bed. In the old days, we’d just say put a phone book under the legs of your bed. You want to tilt the whole mattress. If you’ve got a phone book, that’s great. Um, I don’t think anyone’s got a phone book anymore. So, some other fat book or a house brick or whatever you’ve got that can prop your bed up by a few degrees can make a big difference.”Article continues belowThe program was looking at an article in the Telegraph which suggested two thirds of people with suspected acid reflux do not have the condition, according to a study. It said research by the Functional Gut Clinic found that 66 per cent of people with suspected acid reflux had normal levels of acid exposure and therefore did not have the condition.Dr Xand said: “The number one thing I want people to remember is these medications are extremely safe. They are blockbuster drugs. They are taken all over the world by billions of people. They have been studied very carefully up to very recent trials looking at these medications. And what they have found is there is a very very small increased risk of gut infections. We’re talking about a 0.4 of a percent increased risk.“So not nothing for a large number of people but outweighed by the fact that they stop you getting dangerous bleeds. They they reduce your risk of cancer and for all the other things that we were sort of worried about over the years thought maybe these will be causing problems. Really the data say they are very very safe drugs. The additional point is if you stop them suddenly your stomach has been suppressed from making acid and it kind of rebounds and goes right I’m going to make loads of acid now and that will make your symptoms much worse.”