Study This Tums Pregnancy Class, Is it safe?

In pregnancy, women will suffer from several sudden health problems. Some women have to struggle with morning sickness even after the first trimester is done. Some other women have to experience heartburn.

There are various reasons behind the sudden health problems. The first glaring reason is diet change. In addition, health problems often occur due to fluctuating hormones. Hormonal issues make women feel sick, lazy, weak, and excited at the same time.

Additionally, health problems might occur due to the crowding of the abdomen. Study this Tums Pregnancy Class.

According to MedlinePlus, Heartburn (Synonyms: acid indigestion, Pyrosis, cardialgia) is a painful burning feeling in your central chest, throat, neck, or upper central abdomen.

Heartburn happens when stomach acid backflow into your esophagus, the tube or food pipe that carries food from your mouth to your stomach.

The heartburn problem is harmless but it can be so painful/uncomfortable and pregnant women will need to relieve it with a safe medicine. Some of the medications are Zantac, Pepcid, Prilosec, and TUMS.

What is Tums? (Heartburn and Tums)

Tums antacid is an effective medicine to relieve heartburn during pregnancy. However, it will be better for women to consult their doctors before taking this medicine. Tums is the treatment of occasional mild heartburn.

Additionally, it is also beneficial for moderate heartburn as well. This is a brand of antacid and Tums is the number one among many brands.

Are there any signs and symptoms of Heartburn?

Heartburn has several symptoms. Moms have to be cautious with those symptoms for better medication.

1. Every after eating, the patients might suffer from a burning feeling behind their breastbone.
2. After being over and in other body positions, chest pain might occur as well. Though the heartburn might occur frequently, patients should never assume that it is heartburn before consulting the doctors.
3. Some patients feel some burning in their throats. Some will feel hot, sour, acidic, and even salty tasting.
4. There are times that the patients will find it hard to swallow.
5. Heartburning is so uncomfortable since it feels like food sticks in the middle of the patients’ chest or throat.
6. The worst thing is that heartburn can lead to other illnesses such as a cough and sore throat.

Does Tums really work?

Tums works as an antacid so it will relieve the heartburn in no time. An active ingredient in TUMS is Calcium Carbonate (CaCO3). Tums reduce the amount of gas in the stomach and intestines, provide a barrier to restrict the backflow of stomach contents into the esophagus, and neutralizing the acid in your stomach.

Based on the claim and the customer’s review, Tums is effective and works fast.

Is it safe to use Tums during pregnancy?

According to the conclusion of the presentation “Safe and effective medication use in pregnancy and lactation” by Susan McLellan, BSc. Pharm, Tums is perfectly safe for use during pregnancy but may be constipating. Tums provide safe heartburn cures for all including pregnant women. Besides, it will also add calcium to human bodies.

Therefore, it will be fine to take this medicine during pregnancy. However, make sure that Tums is taken separately with the iron supplements.

Hypercalcemia and hypercalciuria may result from long-term use. When moms take this medicine, they need to wait for at least two hours before taking iron supplements.

What is the recommended dosage of Tums during pregnancy in Tums Pregnancy Class?

Here are some regular doses of Tums:

• 500mg: Tums Regular and Tums Freshers (chew 2-4 tablets, less than 15 tabs in 24 hours).
• 750mg: Tums Extra, Tums Kids, and Tums Smoothies (chew 2-4 tablets, less than 10 tablets in 24 hours).
• 1000mg: Tums Ultra (2-4 tablets, less than 7 tabs in 24 hours).
• 1177mg: Tums Chewy Delights (chew 2-3 tablets, less than 10 tabs in 24 hours).

Take Tums about 1 hour after eating or when you have heartburn. For pregnancy, there is no exact dose of Tums to take. Moms need to take it based on the regular dose recommendation unless doctors suggest different doses.

What drug class is Tums? Tums FDA pregnancy category

Based on the old FDA Pregnancy Risk letter Categories (A, B, C, D or X), Tums gets Category C. Though it is reported to be safe for pregnancy, this drug is marked in Class C.

It means that either study in animal have revealed adverse effects on the fetus (teratogenic or embryocidal) and there are no controlled studies in women, or studies in women and animals are not available.

This is due to the lack of research that explains the effects on human pregnancy because no one wants to conduct experiments and trials on pregnant women. It is acceptable if the benefits to the fetus outweigh the risk.

The FDA published the Pregnancy and Lactation Labeling Rule (PLLR). The PLLR requires changes to the content and format of the information presented in prescription drug labeling in the Physician Labeling Rule (PLR) format.

The PLLR replace old pregnancy risk letter categories with narrative sections and subsections to include:

• Pregnancy subsection (8.1)
• Lactation subsection (8.2)
• Females and Males of Reproductive Potential subsection (8.3). The old pregnancy risk letter categories, which still may be found in some package inserts.

Information in the Pregnancy subsection includes a risk summary, clinical considerations, pregnancy exposure registry, and data. Below is a sample PLR format of Tums Regular Strength 500.

Indications and side effects of Tums

All medicines can leave side effects. In Tums, the side effects are minor. The side effects are rare to occur in the patients.

Contraindications of Tums: Hypersensitivity, Renal calculi, Hypercalcemia, Hypercalciuria, and Hypophosphatemia. Yet, some patients report suffering from some allergies after taking the medicines.

Read another article about Using Emetrol for nausea during pregnancy, Is it safe?

What are healthy alternatives to Tums?

Moms can take yogurt, ginger, wheatgrass, and peppermint to reduce the effects of heartburn during pregnancy. Besides, aloe vera juice is also helpful for relieving the pain.

In addition, fruits such as papaya and pineapple are also beneficial for curing this health problem. The last herbal remedy is apple cider vinegar.

It will be good to get an effective medicine for some health problems during pregnancy. However, moms need to get informed from the reliable source and Tums Pregnancy Class before taking any medicine.

In addition, it is also important that they consult their doctors prior to taking Tums or any medications. And now, the good news is for most women the heartburn will likely stop after giving birth.