Composition and release form
The remedy is sold in the form of a powder, which must be diluted in water before ingestion. One sachet contains a single dose - three grams of medicine, and contains:
- Diosmectin. This product is of natural origin. Made from a special type of shell rock found in Sardinia. After special processing, the natural component is used to prepare medicine.
- Flavoring and aromatic additives that make taking the drug more pleasant. There are versions of the drug on sale with vanilla pudding and orange flavors.
The powder is homogeneous in appearance and has a white color with a gray-yellow tint. Each dose is packaged in a separate sachet, and the sachets are packaged in cardboard boxes. The smell of the drug depends on the flavoring agent used, that is, the powder will smell like oranges or vanilla.
A complete analogue of Smecta is Neosmectin, the differences are only in the place of production. Smecta is a French drug, and Neosmectin is a domestic drug.
What is the drug
Release form Smecta is a drug that is primarily aimed at eliminating the symptoms of bloating and diarrhea. Its main active ingredient is smectin. This is where the name of the drug comes from. Smecta is available in the form of a white powder. It is intended for diluting the drug in water. The weight of one bag is 3 grams. One package contains instructions for use and from 10 to 30 sachets. Additionally, flavorings are added to the powder. For example, it could be vanilla or orange
The French-made medicine is available in small sachets in the form of a powder with a vanilla or orange flavor, and is intended for dilution in liquid (immediately before use).
Smecta is recommended to be taken for diarrhea, as well as for the purpose of removing toxins from the body (Neosmectin is an analog drug produced in Russia). Both French and domestic medicines are practically safe and effective.
Despite its high adsorbing capacity, it does not remove beneficial substances, vitamins and minerals from the body, so it is taken in the case of a wide range of pathological conditions.
Indications
Smecta for gastritis - is it possible or not? This issue should be discussed with a gastroenterologist. Since the drug helps to quickly improve well-being, it is often prescribed to patients with problem stomachs.
Smecta, used for gastritis, helps not only eliminate unpleasant symptoms, but also speed up the healing process. Smecta is used for gastritis because the product has the following effects:
- has a beneficial effect on the epithelial layer lining the stomach from the inside;
- forms compounds with protein substances of the mucous membrane, protecting it from negative influences from the inside;
- improves the quality and increases the quantity of mucus produced, which performs protective functions in the stomach;
- eliminates part of the pathogenic microflora, absorbing it and ensuring its removal to the outside.
The active ingredient “works” exclusively within the digestive system. It is not absorbed into the blood and has no general effect on the body. In addition, the product does not have a negative effect on intestinal motility.
The effect of Smecta on the gastrointestinal tract
Smecta is a crystalline gray-white fine powder with a vanilla or orange aroma. The therapeutic antidiarrheal and antitoxic effect is achieved due to the active substances included in the preparation: Dioctahedral smectite - has adsorbing properties. The surface layer absorbs excess hydrochloric acid in the stomach, thereby normalizing the mucous barrier in the intestines and stomach. Since the amount of acid in the stomach decreases, the negative effect on the gastric walls decreases, and the process of epithelial regeneration begins.
Dextrose monohydrate – enhances the absorption of smectite. Helps improve the liver's protective function against toxins. Sodium saccharinate is a flavoring additive of the drug. Allows the drug to be taken by people with a disease such as diabetes. Smecta has a detrimental effect on pathogenic microflora on the walls of the stomach and intestines, removing toxins - waste products of bacteria, including Helicobacter pylori.
How to take for gastritis
Smecta is most often prescribed for gastritis with high acidity, since this drug provides additional protection for the mucous membrane, due to which pain and other unpleasant symptoms of the disease disappear soon after administration.
Smecta is also suitable for patients with gastritis with low acidity, since taking the product stimulates the production of protective mucus on the walls of the stomach.
Advice! As a rule, for stomach diseases, Smecta is prescribed in combination with other drugs, since treatment requires the use of a number of medications for a complex effect.
It is recommended to take the product three times a day, an hour before the planned time of breakfast, lunch and dinner. But if gastritis occurs simultaneously with reflux esophagitis, then the suspension must be taken immediately after meals.
Before taking Smecta, the powder must be diluted in water. Take 100 ml of water and stir the powder in it. The powder does not dissolve in water, but turns into a suspension, that is, a solution in which solid particles are suspended. When settling, the solid phase will settle at the bottom, so you need to drink the suspension immediately after preparation, without waiting for a precipitate to form.
Advice! If the medicine is being prepared for a child, then the powder should be diluted in 50 ml of water. Instead of water, you can use milk or other drinks your child is familiar with. If the baby does not like the taste of Smecta, then it can be replaced with Neosmectin, as it has a milder taste.
The course of treatment is 3-7 days, specific terms of admission are discussed individually with a gastroenterologist. You can use Smecta once if your diet has been disrupted and abdominal pain appears.
If the drug is prescribed in combination with other drugs, then it must be taken into account that the interval between doses of enterosorbent and other drugs should be at least 60 minutes.
Mechanism of action
The sorbent is often used in the treatment of gastritis. It also has antimicrobial properties and eliminates traces of Helicobacter pylori intoxication.
Smecta is prescribed for high acidity in order to stabilize the level of hydrochloric acid production. Due to this, the walls of the stomach are regenerated and mucus circulation is improved, which is important during exacerbation of ulcers.
In addition, the beneficial properties of the sorbent are manifested in the following:
- Pain in the stomach, duodenum, and intestines is relieved. After taking it, discomfort in the esophagus decreases.
- The medicine combats the appearance of belching.
- Eliminates signs of nausea, suppresses the gag reflex.
- Used as an antidiarrheal drug.
If a gastroenterologist’s patient complains of flatulence, Smecta will effectively cope with this problem: it binds gases and removes them along with toxins.
It is taken when the gastric microflora is colonized by pathogenic bacteria due to a lack of enzymes. But it does not take long to treat this form of the disease with Smecta, since it inhibits the secretion of the main digestive organ.
Contraindications
The main contraindication in Smecta is individual intolerance to the components of the drug. The product can be used if necessary during pregnancy, since it acts in the digestive tract and cannot even theoretically cause harm to the baby.
Treatment of infants with Smecta is allowed. But children and pregnant women should take the drug, if necessary, either once or in a course lasting no more than three days. During the period of taking Smecta, alcohol is strictly excluded. The consequences of simultaneous intake of alcohol and enterosorbents can have dire consequences.
So, Smecta is not a drug for the treatment of gastritis, but it is often prescribed in combination with other drugs. The main purpose of using Smecta is to improve well-being, since the product provides additional protection to the diseased organ. The product must be taken strictly in accordance with the instructions.
Medicinal properties
Smecta, as an enterosorbent, has viscosity and plasticity, due to which it exhibits the following pharmacological properties:
- enveloping;
- anti-inflammatory;
- protective;
- antimicrobial.
The latter property is due to the enveloping of the mucous walls of the stomach and preventing the influence of bacterial agents on them, but Smecta does not eliminate them.
An increase in barrier function is also observed due to the binding of Smecta to glycoproteins of the mucous membranes. The drug is not capable of turning stool unusual colors. Does not affect the speed of movement of food mass through the intestinal tract.
Studies of the effectiveness of the drug have shown a decrease in the frequency of bowel movements within three days. The studies were conducted among six hundred patients. The medicine does not enter the general circulatory system, is not absorbed in the digestive tract and does not undergo metabolic changes in the kidneys and liver.
special instructions
If the mucous membrane of the esophagus is inflamed, smecta should not be taken on an empty stomach - it must be taken after a meal. In all other cases, the medicine is taken between meals, that is, at least 1-2 hours before meals or 1 hour after meals. Of course, you can eat after smecta, but not right away.
Diarrhea (especially in children) increases the risk of electrolyte imbalance and dehydration. To avoid this, the child is usually prescribed Regidron and Smecta together. Instead of Regidron you can use:
- Citraglucosolan,
- Disol,
- Trisol,
- Reosolan,
- Hydrovit.
Benefits of the medicine
The positive aspects of the adsorbent are selectivity of action (removes only toxins), the possibility of use by infants, during pregnancy and breastfeeding, and a pleasant taste.
The sorbent bag is easy to use on the road, while traveling, in the hospital or at home. Another advantage of the product is its shelf life - at a temperature of 25 degrees, sealed bags are stored for 3 years.
Smecta acts delicately but effectively. Among the advantages is cost.
The popularity of Smecta is easily explained:
- The presence of adsorbent and protective properties, in which, in recommended doses, the drug does not affect intestinal motility.
- Successful long-term use for diarrhea of various etiologies, symptomatic treatment of heartburn, food poisoning and intoxication.
- Use by different age categories of patients, including newborns.
- No interference with X-ray examinations of the stomach and intestines, since the drug does not stain the stool.
- Availability of popular analogues with the same active substance:
- Neosmectin (containing diosmectite - 3.76 g);
- Diosmectite;
- Bent;
- Neosmectin with orange flavor (for children), etc.
If we compare Smecta with other antidiarrheal drugs, then, having the same property of binding harmful substances and pathogenic microorganisms, they do not provide the high protective effect that is inherent in this drug. In addition, some of them have restrictions in use and are not prescribed to children under 3 years of age or more.
The drugs Polyphepan, Enterosgel, Polysorb, Sorbentomax, Filtrum, Enterodes, Almagel and the ancient remedy - activated carbon - are also enterosorbents. Enterosgel, for example, has a selective effect similar to diosmectite, adsorbing only toxins, poisons, bacteria, viruses and without affecting intestinal motility. But it was created to treat poisoning of various origins, since it easily removes harmful decomposition products. When choosing between them, you need to know that in cases of diarrhea and flatulence, you should choose Smecta, and in cases of poisoning symptoms, Enterosgel.
The drug Imodium (the active substance is loperamide) has a completely different mechanism of action than Smecta. It is not aimed at eliminating the cause of diarrhea, but only slows down peristalsis and reduces the tone of the intestinal muscles. It has more contraindications: infectious diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, intestinal inflammation, gastric ulcer, pregnancy, lactation, childhood.
For children with diarrhea, food allergies, heartburn, rotavirus infection, Smecta is preferable. The drug is a reasonable alternative to drugs containing loperamide due to its greater effectiveness, favorable results, safety, lack of age restrictions and a large list of contraindications.
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