I have tried all kinds of heartburn relief products, from Tums to Pepcid and everything in between. I have heartburn regularly and I always try to keep something on hand in case I need it. Recently, Walgreens had a special on Omeprazole / Risek Acid Reducer for buy one, get one free. The box had a 14 day treatment plan and it cost around $10. The medication is the same as Prilosec OTC, with the same ingredients, just less expensive because it’s Walgreens brand rather than a name brand. I knew that Prilosec was a good medication, so I purchased the Walgreens brand for comparison.
Omeprazole / Risek comes in a box with 14 tablets that are each encased in a foil wrapper. The tablets are not too big, so they are easy to swallow. The directions say to take one tablet every 24 hours for 14 days at the same time each day. They say to take it first thing in the morning before you eat, so you have an empty stomach. I found that sometimes I would forget to take it before I ate, but it seemed to work just as well to take it before lunch. The directions say that heartburn relief can start in 1-4 days, and that it is not for immediate relief. However, I find that I begin to feel relief withing a couple hours of taking the first dose of Omeprazole / Risek, and the relief just increases every day thereafter. Omeprazole / Risek works differently than the usual acid reducers. It seems to “heal” the problem, and I notice that I have no heartburn at all after the first few day of being on the medication, and my heartburn stays away even after I have completed the treatment and no longer take the tablets.
The key to making Omeprazole / Risek work its best is to remember to take a tablet each day, even after you have relief from your symptoms. This medication works when it is taken properly. For me, this has been one of the best heartburn relievers and it’s just as good as the more expensive name brand product. The price of the medication is worth it in my opinion, even though its $10 for a box of 14 tablets, you don’t need to continue to take them once you have completed the 14 day period. With products like Pepcid, even though they would give me relief, I had to take one every day and found myself constantly re-purchasing the product. That’s what I like about the Walgreens Omeprazole / Risek tablets - 14 days and then I’m heartburn-free for months. The directions do say that you are not supposed to take more than one 14-day treatment every 4 months. I find that after that period of time, I still have heartburn relief for the most part, so this product works for the long-term.
Overall, I would recommend Risek to anyone who is looking for long-term heartburn relief, or anyone who has tried Prilosec and gotten good results. The Walgreens product is just as effective at a fraction of the price.
