Baby on Zantac

Hi K., My 6 year old son was put on Zantac when he was about 3 months old and we referred to them as Magic Drops when we saw the results. He screamed a lot too and was diagnosed with reflux. We did not experience the same lethargy symptoms that you refer to and I believe (hard to remember) that my son's dose was the same. I think we had to give it to him 2 or 3 times a day at least 15 minutes before meals. Perhaps there's a different brand that might work better for her reflux. Good luck!

K.,
My son was on Zantac from about 5 weeks on. He was hospitalized for RSV, and was in respiratory distress. After a couple of days the doctor felt like his reflux was complicating his condition. I didn't understand and he explained that when my son would spit up he was inhaling a small part of the stomach contents complicating the situation.

There are also some non medical things you can do to manage this condition. Make sure you put a pillow under her crib mattress as she needs to be elevated while she sleeps. Always keep her head above her stomach after she eats. Also give her the medication.

I took my son off of the medication about 2 weeks after he was discharged from the hospital, he began to wheeze again and so we went back to the doctor who told me that this condition does not go away and is linked to childhood asthma. Also he said that prolonged exposure to the stomach acids in the esophogus can lead to esophogeal(spelling?) cancer.

I remember the difference in my son after taking the Zantac, he wasn't himself, but that was a good thing because it seemed as though his mood was better! I hope this helps and good luck!
~K. O

Hi K.,
Sorry I didn't see this sooner. How is your baby now? If the refluxing is as bad as it was, docs probably prescribed something like Prilosec, which is a pill you can pull apart and feed with applesauce. It was very effective for my little guy.:)

I wrote about my experience with colic/acid reflux: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/202007/treatment...
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/25158/acid_reflu...
Hope it's getting better, good luck!

I don't know if you have looked on the internet for information but www.webmd.com is a really good website for information about medications, diseases, etc... it has pretty much anything you need to know and people you can contact and ask questions. Hope it helps you.

hello K.,
i have a 6 year old daughter and 2 year old son. both who had reflux and were on zantac. it takes about a week, i think, for it to really kick in and do it's job. my son was SOOO much better after a week of being on it. it was a god send! all he did was scream and cry. i would try for a whole week of being on it before you give up on it. and the does was rather small for my son too. it doesn't take much. if things aren't better in a week or so by all means call your doctor. not only is she in pain from the reflux but it can be harmful to her digesttive system. all those acids eat away at her. so i really would talk with her doctor before you take her off of it. good luck!
L.

My son is almost 9 months old and has been taking Zantac for reflux since he was 1 month old. When you first put them on Zantac it takes several days for it to take effect then it begins to heal the damage to their esophogus (sp?) and they will start feeling better and better over the next two weeks. I would hang in there for a few weeks to see if it helps because if it is reflux she will feel so much better very soon. It is a very painful condition and sometimes takes months or years before it goes away on it's own. My son started out on .5ml 3x's a day and is now up to 1.5ml 3x's a day. Let me know if you have any questions, I'd be happy to help.

Interesting. I would definitely call the Dr. and ask if that could be a side effect. To my knowledge, Zantac and most anti-acid meds really don't cause a lot of side effects. My son was on Zantac at 5 weeks-9 weeks and it really didn't work for him. It worked for a week or so, but then he started having the reflux episodes again. My pediatrician then started him on Prilosec and he has been on that ever since. He is now 13 months old. We will be trialing him off the medication in a month or so to see if he has grown out of the reflux. Good luck!

My son took Zantac for severe reflux......there were no side effects, however, it never really seemed to help the reflux problem, either.

The dosage is usually done by weight. It usually takes some time for their little bodies to adjust. I really wouldn't just stop the meds without discussing it with your doctor. Tell him what you are seeing and he will tell you if this is normal. Reflux over time can be damaging to her esphogus. If you don't agree with what this doctor is saying then get a second opinion.

My daughter has cerebral palsy and has been on many different meds for reflux. It is a terrible feeling to see our babies in pain. While your daughter will probably outgrow this mine has had it since she was about 5 mths old. She is now 14. Give it time and you will see she will come back to her happy self.

I agree with Rachel that sometimes the tiredness can simply be the babies finally being able to calm down enough to recognize they are tired! My baby girl (7 months) was diagnosed with reflux and put on Zantac at five months old. She finally began to seem tired and was a bit restless for the first few days until her body finally got back into its sleep rhythm. She had been so agitated by the reflux in the previous weeks that she couldn't sleep more than an hour or so at a time. That being said, YOU know your baby better than anyone so if you feel like something is wrong, call your doctor. Part of their job is to calm the anxieties of parents. Good luck!

My son was on this for about 6 months. I also put 1/2 teaspoon of cereal in his bottle, not to fed him cereal, we did that with a bowl in a spoon, but to help reduce the acid reflux, it works to make it a little thicker without the problems of giving cereal in a bottle, which I strongly recommend against! For the first about 4 or 5 days, my son did the same thing, he was not himself, but then he adjusted very well and was his old self. Remember, that if your doctor prescribed it, then you child probably needs it. Acid reflux can cause errosion of your teeth (even ones developing under the gums) and can cause holes in the esophagus. My parents didn't know that's what my brother had (when we were children) and he ahd to have surgery at 9 to fix damage to his esphoagus. This can be serious. Please give any medication your doctor gives you a few days to work and your child to adjust to it. If you are still strongly concerned call your pediatrician, but not treating a serious problem can make things so much worse.

hey K.... my youngest daughter had to take zantac for a while for really bad reflux (so bad they thought it was pyloric stenosis)... anyway, my daughter acted like that after a couple of days, not because anything was wrong with her, but just the opposite: her little body could finally relax and rest the way it should be since her little tummy wasnt hurting her anymore and she was finally comfortable!! if youre still uneasy about it, definately take her to the pediatrician! hope that eases your worries :) ~R.