So What About Brioschi? - Dr. Ed Iannuccilli

So What About Brioschi? - Dr. Ed Iannuccilli

Last week I enjoyed a brief stint on WPRO’s Gene Valicenti radio show. He was most kind to invite me to discuss an upcoming writing seminar that we were presenting at The Mount Hope Farm. I was ready to discuss The Farm and its role in Rhode Island’s history. But along the way, after promoting the event, Gene did a quick pivot and asked me what medical specialty I had practiced. When I mentioned gastroenterology, he immediately segued to a hilarious discussion of acid reflux and how his grandfather used buckets full of Brioschi to quell his heartburn. Gene transported me to my youth.

When we children visited my aunt, she often sent us on a mission to the local pharmacy to buy her some chi-dra-da, as she pronounced citrate, which was sold in granular pieces. Until recently, I thought she used it for acid reflux. She did not. Her citrate was magnesium-based, and she used it to promote regular bowel function, something older Italians considered critical. I’m not sure how I confused it with Brioschi, a different product used for upper intestinal issues rather than lower. The Brioschi story is interesting.

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The company was founded in 1880 by Achille Antonio Brioschi (1860–1942), who had served as an apprentice at various manufacturers of chemical/pharmaceutical products. He began small-scale production of an effervescent powder, Brioschi, sold in blue bottles, bought over the counter and which, when dissolved in water, produced citric acid/sodium bicarbonate, a gassy antacid used for the temporary relief of upset stomach, particularly heartburn; “acid indigestion” per the Brioschi marketeers.

Unlike today’s medications which inhibit acid production, citric acid and sodium bicarbonate can neutralize the acid that is already secreted by the stomach.

Aunt Vera’s chi-dra-da is magnesium citrate, an over-the-counter laxative. It is primarily used to treat constipation, although it was marketed for acid indigestion also. What value! Somehow, Aunt lost track of her favorite cure-all when her local drugstore closed. She was rather distraught. Some years later, I visited a salumeria in Boston’s North End, and lo and behold, there I found her beloved chi-dra-da. I bought it. When I took it to her, she smiled, caressed the bottle, and kissed me.

And she took a dose. So enamored was she of her reunion that when a few of those white granules spilled on the counter, she wet her finger and attacked them, her finger flying back and forth from counter to mouth in a blink of an eye, not leaving a morsel of citrate.

Gene asked if I knew whether Brioschi was still around. I wasn’t sure. “Doc, said Gene, “You can still get it. It is available at Venda on Federal Hill. Still in a blue bottle.” Brioschi, though less used than the newer acid-blocking medications is, nonetheless, still up there in sales.

Thanks, Gene. Those who heard me on your show said that you gave me a story, and you did. It is about Brioschi and citrate. And my dear aunt, of course.