Acid Reflux & Heartburn

EFFECTIVE RELIEF, HONEST ADVICE

Heartburn and acid reflux can turn every meal into a gamble. Explore our pharmacist-curated range of fast-acting antacids, acid reducers and once-daily treatments, all checked by our pharmacy team and delivered to your door, with prescription options for persistent symptoms.

Shop reflux relief Supply of pharmacy medicines is subject to approval by our pharmacist.
  • Choose your products
  • Checked by our pharmacist
  • Delivered to your door
  • GPhC-registered pharmacy
  • Confidential plain packaging

The condition

Understanding acid reflux

Acid reflux happens when stomach acid escapes upwards into the food pipe, because the muscular valve at the top of the stomach relaxes when it should not. The result is heartburn, a burning feeling rising behind the breastbone, often with an acidic taste, and it is one of the most common digestive complaints in the UK.

Large meals, eating late, fatty or spicy food, coffee, alcohol, smoking, excess weight and pregnancy all make reflux more likely, and some people have a hiatus hernia that contributes. Occasional heartburn is normal. When it happens twice a week or more, it is worth treating properly, both for comfort and to protect the food pipe over time.

Know the signs

Symptoms and when to seek help

Reflux wears a few disguises. The common ones are below.

  • A burning feeling rising behind the breastbone, often after meals or when lying down
  • An acidic or bitter taste, or food coming back up
  • Bloating, burping and feeling uncomfortably full
  • A nagging cough, hoarseness or sore throat, especially in the morning

When to see a doctor

Most reflux is uncomfortable rather than dangerous, but some symptoms need a doctor promptly. See your GP urgently if any of the following apply.

  • Food sticking or difficulty swallowing
  • Unintentional weight loss, or persistent vomiting
  • Vomiting blood, or black, tarry stools
  • New or changed symptoms that persist, especially if you are over 55
  • Feeling unusually tired or breathless, which can suggest anaemia

Heartburn and heart attacks can feel alike. Call 999 if chest pain comes with sweating, breathlessness, nausea, or pain spreading to your arm, neck or jaw, or if it starts during exertion. Never assume chest pain is just reflux. For urgent advice that is not an emergency, call NHS 111.

Our clinic model

How it works at Medicosmetic

Choose your products

Browse the range and pick what suits your symptoms. For pharmacy medicines you answer a couple of quick questions at checkout, which takes under a minute.

Checked by our pharmacist

Our pharmacist at Erdington Community Pharmacy reviews your answers and approves supply only if the product is right for you. Persistent symptoms can be referred into a prescriber consultation for prescription options.

Delivered to your door

Your order is packed at our pharmacy and posted with tracking. Not sure what to pick? Call our team on 0121 382 7477 for advice.

Over-the-counter once-daily treatments are intended for courses of up to 14 days. If you still need them after two weeks, or reflux keeps returning, speak to our pharmacist or your GP, because persistent reflux deserves a proper review. You are not charged for anything that is not supplied.

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Evidence-based options

Treatment approaches

Treatment works at three speeds. Antacids and alginates neutralise acid and form a protective raft on top of the stomach, giving relief within minutes, and suit occasional heartburn after meals or at bedtime. Acid reducers cut acid production within about an hour and last up to twelve hours, good for predictable triggers. Once-daily treatments switch off acid production at the source, take a few days to reach full effect, and suit frequent reflux as a course of up to 14 days from the pharmacy. For symptoms that persist beyond that, prescription options exist through a consultation reviewed by a UK-registered prescriber.

Habits move the needle too. Smaller meals, finishing eating three hours before bed, easing off coffee, alcohol and smoking, losing excess weight, and raising the head of your bed a few inches all reduce reflux. Sleeping on your left side helps many people. Medicines control reflux, but these changes treat the cause.

Compare your options

Choosing your reflux treatment

The main differences between reflux treatments are how fast they act and how long they last. Match the treatment to your pattern, occasional, predictable or frequent. Our pharmacist checks every order of pharmacy medicines before supply.

Antacids & alginates (sodium alginate)

From £X including delivery

  • How it's takenTaken after meals and at bedtime
  • Starts workingRelief within minutes
  • LastsA few hours per dose

For occasional heartburn. Forms a protective raft on top of the stomach contents. A first choice in pregnancy, subject to pharmacist approval.

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Acid reducers (famotidine)

From £X including delivery

  • How it's takenA tablet when needed, or before a trigger meal
  • Starts workingWithin about an hour
  • LastsUp to 12 hours

For predictable heartburn, like that Friday takeaway. Cuts acid production rather than just neutralising it.

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Once-daily treatments (omeprazole, esomeprazole)

From £X including delivery

  • How it's takenOne capsule daily, ideally before breakfast
  • Starts workingFull effect builds over a few days
  • LastsCourses of up to 14 days from the pharmacy

For frequent reflux. If you still need it after two weeks, see our pharmacist or your GP rather than buying repeat courses.

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Supply of pharmacy medicines is subject to approval by our pharmacist, and once-daily treatments are for courses of up to 14 days without review. Prescription options for persistent symptoms require a consultation reviewed by a UK-registered prescriber, and supply is never guaranteed. Information above is factual and does not replace clinical advice.

Trusted care

Why Medicosmetic

GPhC-registered pharmacy

Medicosmetic is a trading name of Erdington Community Pharmacy (Premises No. 1107990). Verify on the GPhC register.

Named Superintendent Pharmacist

Mohammad Luqman Ghani (GPhC 2220694) oversees our pharmacy services.

UK-registered prescribers

Every form is reviewed by a clinician registered to prescribe in the UK.

Genuine UK-sourced medicines

Dispensed by our own pharmacy, never third-party marketplaces.

Discreet by design

Plain packaging, tracked delivery, and confidential handling of your information.

Straightforward next steps

If treatment is not suitable, we explain why and signpost you to the right care, usually your GP.

Common questions

Acid reflux FAQs

How do I know it's heartburn and not a heart attack?
You cannot always tell, and neither can doctors without tests, so take chest pain seriously. Heartburn typically burns behind the breastbone after eating and improves with antacids. Call 999 if chest pain comes with sweating, breathlessness, nausea, pain spreading to your arm, neck or jaw, or starts during exertion. If in any doubt, treat it as your heart and call 999. Nobody will criticise you for checking.
What causes acid reflux?
A valve at the top of the stomach relaxing when it should not, letting acid rise into the food pipe. Large meals, eating late, fatty and spicy food, coffee, alcohol, smoking, excess weight and pregnancy all make it more likely, and some people have a hiatus hernia that contributes. Knowing your triggers is half the battle.
Which reflux treatment should I choose?
Match it to your pattern. Occasional heartburn after meals suits an antacid or alginate for relief within minutes. Predictable heartburn from known triggers suits an acid reducer taken beforehand. Frequent reflux, twice a week or more, suits a once-daily treatment as a 14-day course. Our pharmacist checks every order and will flag a better fit if there is one.
How long can I take omeprazole or esomeprazole?
From the pharmacy, courses of up to 14 days. If symptoms persist beyond that, or return soon after stopping, do not simply buy another course. Speak to our pharmacist or your GP, because persistent reflux deserves proper review, and longer treatment should be supervised. It is about doing it safely, not stopping you getting relief.
How can I stop acid reflux at night?
Finish eating three hours before bed, raise the head of your bed a few inches with blocks rather than extra pillows, and try sleeping on your left side, which positions the stomach below the food pipe. An alginate at bedtime forms a raft that stays put while you lie down. Night reflux that persists despite all this is worth a review.
Is acid reflux common in pregnancy?
Extremely, particularly in the later months, as hormones relax the valve and the baby presses on the stomach. Antacids and alginates are generally the first choice in pregnancy. Tell us you are pregnant when ordering and our pharmacist will confirm what is appropriate before supply, and smaller, earlier meals genuinely help too.
When is acid reflux something serious?
See your GP urgently if food sticks or swallowing becomes difficult, you are losing weight without trying, you vomit blood or have black tarry stools, or symptoms persist or change, especially over 55. These symptoms need investigation to rule out serious causes, and for most people the checks will be reassuring. Untreated persistent reflux can also damage the food pipe over time, which is another reason not to just live with it.

Enjoy your meals again

Match the right treatment to your pattern of reflux, let our pharmacist check your order, and have it delivered to your door. Persistent symptoms? A prescriber consultation is available too.

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