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Home arrow Health arrow Gut Health arrow Does TUMS Help With Bloating? Try or Avoid?

Does TUMS Help With Bloating? Try or Avoid?

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Written by Edibel Quintero, RD
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Fact checked by Rosmy Barrios, MD
Last update: July 21, 2023
3 min read 1267 Views 0 Comments
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TUMS is an over-the-counter medication designed to treat symptoms caused by excessive stomach acid. As it helps tackle problems with the digestive tract, you might wonder if TUMS can combat bloating. In this article, we explore the effects of TUMS and whether it can relieve bloating.

Do TUMS help with bloating

TUMS is a popular medicine that you can purchase over the counter.

People use TUMS and other medications to treat heartburn, acid indigestion, and upset stomach, among other digestive problems. Bloating is another common problem that can cause daily distress if symptoms frequently occur, but can this medication help with bloating?

Here you can discover if TUMS will help you beat the bloat.

Does TUMS Help With Bloating?

TUMS does not help with bloating, although it can settle an upset stomach. TUMS antacid medicines are designed for heartburn relief and not for bloating treatment. However, TUMS Chewy Bites with Gas Relief can alleviate excess gas, which in turn may reduce bloating.

Gas and bloating commonly co-occur. Often, excess gas is the cause of belly bloat, as trapped gas builds up in the intestines. So, while TUMS is not purposefully made for bloating, the Gas Relief variation can settle intestinal gas and relieve abdominal discomfort.

What Does TUMS Do?

TUMS is an antacid that treats heartburn, acid indigestion, sour stomach, and upset stomach. Antacids are medications that work to neutralize the stomach acid that causes heartburn.

The active ingredient in TUMS is calcium carbonate – a chemical compound that works to relieve symptoms of indigestion. Calcium carbonate neutralizes gastric acid by increasing the pH level of the stomach acid. It also increases gastrointestinal motility by moving the acid into the stomach.

You can purchase TUMS and other antacids without a prescription from your doctor.

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What Does TUMS Help With?

TUMS helps with all symptoms of excess stomach acid, including heartburn and abdominal discomfort. Lots of things can trigger heartburn, from certain foods to carbonated beverages. TUMS is a convenient form of treatment that doesn’t require a visit to your doctor.

TUMS can also help with gas pain. TUMS Chewy Bites with Gas Relief is designed to relieve gas and heartburn. One of the active ingredients in this product is simethicone – a type of medicine that treats flatulence and alleviates the painful symptoms of trapped gas.

It works by merging the tiny gas bubbles in the gut to make larger bubbles that are easier to pass with flatulence.

So, if you feel discomfort in your belly and chest, this antacid can help.

Does TUMS help with acid reflux?

TUMS can help with acid reflux by treating heartburn triggered by acid reflux. The reflux occurs when the esophagus muscles relax, allowing the stomach’s acid to flow back into the esophagus. Taking TUMS helps neutralize and reduce the amount of acid present.

However, acid reflux can indicate a chronic gastrointestinal disorder, such as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). GERD is a more severe condition that requires a medical diagnosis from a healthcare professional. You might require prescription treatment from your doctor for GERD.

How Fast Does TUMS Work?

TUMS works pretty quickly, so you can expect fast relief from discomfort. These antacids contain active ingredients that get to work immediately, counteracting acid upon contact. It’s usually best to take it with food or soon after eating to prevent heartburn and indigestion.

How to Reduce Bloating Quickly?

In most cases, the bloat is triggered by dietary choices, so you can prevent a recurrence with some lifestyle changes, for example, by adding a fiber supplement to your diet.

It might sound counterintuitive when all you want to do is curl up in a ball, but exercise can improve your digestion and combat the bloat. If you have gas and bloating, you could try going for a brisk walk or a slow jog to help move some of the trapped gas through the digestive tract.

Yoga is another helpful tool that’s great for gut stress. Certain yoga poses can help your body release excess air. It also relaxes the bowels and intestines and may prevent constipation. Drinking water has many benefits and can help you debloat by flushing out excess sodium from your body.

Foods are often the culprit behind bloating. It helps to identify the foods that might be causing gas pain so you can remove them from your diet. It helps to keep a food diary with a complete list of what you eat so you can track and note what causes your belly discomfort.

In addition, you could always try a fiber supplement that is designed to improve your overall gut health, combat constipation, reduce bloating, and even aid weight loss. They contain a natural dietary fiber which has numerous benefits for human health.

A Word From MD

Bloating is a common issue among the population.

It has multiple causes, and both gas and bloating usually occur together.

It is often caused by something you are eating, which makes dietary interventions an essential way to manage bloating. Some simple lifestyle changes can prevent it, like cutting out spicy foods and fizzy drinks, and eating your meals more slowly, so you don’t swallow excess air.

TUMS and other antacid products containing calcium carbonate are tailored to treat indigestion, heartburn, and other problems with acidity. Although some are purposely designed to treat gas pain, they are not necessarily suitable for managing bloating.

It’s always best to talk to your doctor about any health concerns. Frequent bloating could signal an underlying health condition, such as irritable bowel syndrome or celiac disease. Lactose intolerance – an inability to digest lactose, a sugar found in milk – is another possible trigger.

If you decide to try TUMS to alleviate gas, check the label and talk to your doctor to determine if it is suitable for you. They might affect or hinder any current medications you are taking, and possible drug interactions may cause adverse effects.

Conclusion

TUMS antacids are not the best choice for bloating. However, TUMS Chewy Bites variety provides gas relief, which is often the root cause of bloating. Alternatively, lots of home remedies can help the condition, such as sipping water, going for a walk, and stretching out.

Adding a fiber supplement to your diet can also shift gas and fight constipation to reduce your bloat. If bloating is a persistent problem, it’s best to talk to your doctor for professional advice. They can confirm if your bloating results from an underlying health condition that needs intervention.

Written by Edibel Quintero, RD
Edibel Quintero is a medical doctor who graduated in 2013 from the University of Zulia and has been working in her profession since then. She specializes in obesity and nutrition, physical rehabilitation, sports massage and post-operative rehabilitation. Edibel’s goal is to help people live healthier lives by educating them about food, exercise, mental wellness and other lifestyle choices that can improve their quality of life.
The article was fact checked by Rosmy Barrios, MD
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HR_author_photo_Edibel
Written by Edibel Quintero, RD
HR_author_photo_Rosmy
Fact checked by Rosmy Barrios, MD
Last update: July 21, 2023
3 min read 1267 Views 0 Comments
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