Any Experience with Zantac???

Our oldest daughter screamed all the time as a baby, didn't spit up much, and docs told me "that's what babies do" but I kept thinking it was more...at 6 months we tried Zantac and it worked wonders--we kept her on it until she was one.
From what we were told, it cannot hurt to try it. She didn't like the taste at first but got used to it. It was pretty miraculous for us, she definitely responded to it. She is now 4 and has had no problems since we put her on it, and stopped when we thought she was past it, which seems like around one year for most kids who need the Zantac for reflux, Good luck!

my neice is on Zantac. She is also breast fed and has horrible reflux. She wouldnt really spit up, but she did "swallow" alot. She would sit and swallow constantly until they finally put her on Zantac because it got worse instead of better with age. She has been on Zantac since she was about 5 weeks old and it is finally starting to get better. She wouldn't eat much or lay flat because it was uncomfortable for her to lay down.
Your son will eventually grow out of it, but I would recommend giving it to him to make him comfortable, because frankly, the acid from his stomach is doing more damage to his esophagus than the Zantac would.
I hope this helps!! Good Luck!

I used to care for my niece when she was an infant and the situations sounds very similar. She was put on a genaric Zantac and was wonderful for her. She was happier, not as fussy and eat better. The other thing that they tried was to feed her less but a little bit more often. It sounds like it would help your baby. Talk to you peds dr about it and ask what they think first of course!

HI J.,

When my son was 6 weeks old, we put him on Zantac. As a first time Mom I was so hesitant to give my new baby drugs, so I tried other avenues first. I took him to the chiropractor for adjustments, visited a holistic doctor, we tried just about everything. I was also BF and we thought he could have allergies, and so,I gave up wheat, soy, dairy, and nuts for 6 weeks to see if that helped, it did not!
The zantac was the trick. It started working within 2 days, and he was a totally different baby. He was off the Zantac by 9 months. Today he is 2 and perfect!!!
We also used DR Brown Bottles, they are great for children who spit up alot, have reflux, etc. You can buy them at wal mart.
Good luck, and follow your instincts. This is YOUR baby, and no one will take as good of care of him as you !!!
Any other questions feel free to email me.
Good luck,
G.

My daughter now 3 was on Zantac it works for the fussiness but not for the throwing up. I actually had to stop breast feeding and put her on Enfamil A.R It has added rice to it so that it sticks to there stomach lining. My son is 13 months and was throwing up a lot and it was very smelly although after taking him in we found out that he needed to be on a Lactose free diet. The doctor said that he thinks that it is just the whole glass of milk he has a problem with not all dairy. We switched to Dairy Ease 100% Lactose Free Milk and everthing is going fine he also has to take 1 tablet a day for 30days to help his stomach ajust. We have not had a problem since, a few burps now and then but not throwing up.

I've got a puker too! She's only 3 months old and we just finally found a formula that works. Our peditrician had us thinking up her formula (1-2 tbs. of rice cereal per 4 oz. bottle) since 5 weeks old and that's helped. Have you checked out this route? Enfamil makes a brand (Enfamil AP or AR) which is specific to babies that spit up. From what we were told, our daughter should outgrow the spit up stage around 6 months when she's eating solids and sitting upright. It has to do with 7 out of 10 babies not having a fully developed "flap" that closes the esophogus to the stomach. Apparently it's normal and a "laundry problem" more so than a "health problem". Since it's smelling like vomit - it's making it's way to the stomach and back up again (if's it's smelling sour) which is acid reflux and I've heard that Zantac is a wonderful solution for both Mom and Baby (we have friends that had a colicky baby that needed this treatment). Please let me know what you find out as we've experienced the same thing. Good luck!

Our son who is 5 weeks old is on Zantac and has been for about 2 weeks now. He spits up all the time and it is often projectile, so took him to the Dr. Zantac will not stop the spitting up, but is designed to make them more comfortable. Since he has been taking he will actually sleep more than 10 minutes because the spitting up doesn't really bother him anymore. I would recommend.

Hi J.,
I am a mother of two and also a daycare provider working towards my Associates Degree in Early Childhood. I saw your advice request and thought I would offer my two cents worth because my 6 month old son went through the same thing. With my daughter, she never spit up once, but my son spits up all the time and it can be up to 2 hours after he eats and will still spit up. Like your child, mine is gaining weight fine and I bottle feed so I know how much he is getting (which is on the low side of where he could be per feeding) so I asked at my 3 month check up about Zantac because my husband takes medication daily for heartburn. My doctor originally suggested doing more feedings of lesser amounts more often to see if that would help. When that didn't seem to matter we tried the Zantac (which was very expensive because my insurance didn't cover it for a child) and he took it for about 3 days and when we saw no improvement the doctor advised to stop using it. She said he would just outgrow the condition. His spit up also smells like vomit when it comes out but he does not appear to be troubled by it. I did not research the side effects of the Zantac but you may want to do that prior to starting it or talk to your doctor about it. Keep in mind that if you start that now your child could have to take it the rest of their life. The other problem with the Zantac is the taste.....it is awful and you will probably have to disguise it to get your child to take it. Good luck and please feel free to contact me if you have any other questions.

S. S

Hi J.. I have no experiences with Zantac, but my son (now 22 months) had the same problem of spitting up all the time when he was young. He used to spit up nearly every time we laid him down to change his diaper. If it's any consolation, he did outgrow it, sometime around 8 months of age. Ask your pediatrician about GERD (reflux). My son was on formula and I ended up switching him to soy (vs. cow's milk) and it made a huge difference. (It sounds like you're still breastfeeding, so that little tidbit may not help.) Also, be sure you "click" with your pediatrician and agree on the best way to approach the problem. I know this is hard, especially with a first child (I went through it) when you feel like you have a million questions. My first ped was very laid back and not very proactive. The ped I have now is much more proactive and thorough. If you aren't totally comfortable with what your ped tells you, or if it doesn't help, don't hesitate to try a different doctor for more ideas and/or a second opinion. It's worth your peace of mind. Hang in there!

If you watch my daughter's home video's I swear everytime I was taping she spit up. She had reflux and the doctor didn't want to do anything since she was gaining weight and growing. Aslong as they hold food down they say it's ok. My daughter got better and better and eventually outgrew this. Her neck got raw and smelly and she ruined alot of clothes. Bathtime was a must more often than most babies. I think my daughter was done with the reflux thing around 6mos. I would say if it happens at 7 or 8 mos. maybe use medication but if he seems to be getting better just wait it out. We were very fortunate not to use any medication.

My son also spit up like crazy since he was born. I was usually doing his laundry all the time (not for his clothes though - to get back the burp cloths and bibs!). At 2 weeks the doctor decided that we should put him on Zantac. It's nasty smelling so I imagine that it's nasty tasting. We saw no improvement, but were told that it takes a few weeks to work or so. We did Zantac until he was 4 months old. We still saw no improvement - it was then that I was told that it won't stop the spit up - just the burning that occurs with the spitting up. Sure would have been nice to know that before I started forcing him to take it. When taken off it at 4 months he did fine. He still continued to spit up, but was hardly ever troubled by it.

Hope this helps,
J.

I'm a first time mom to a6 week and she throws up after feeding(breast fed) and was fussy. the Zantac helped w/fussiness not throw up. She is now on previcid for acid reflux. It has been a week and told to see how this works ( we are frustrated!!). She too is gaining weight fine. This may not help too much but I sympathise with you!

We just got through with this problem with our daughter. At first I thought it was the formula.. but thought it was weird because it was the most gentle formula. Then the Dr. ordered an ultrasound of her stomach to make sure everything was well-formed.

The culprit?? She eats WAY too much!! She was eating about 2X as much as other kids her age.. and in about half the time. So the Dr. reccommended about how often to feed her, and how much.. and how to fill her up more on cereal. We also try to keep her upright for 20 minutes after she eats.

I was just wondering if it's possible that your daughter is having the same problem because she is gaining weight well.

Also.. she was forcefully spitting up.. and it was projectile by about a foot even. (Reminded me of the exorcist!) But she just had too much milk in her little belly! She is a greedy eater!

I would try this first and use Zantac only as a last resort! Also check with your Dr. first.

I think sometimes rushing to medications only masks the underlying cause of a problem.

You are doing the right thing by going into the doctor.
Definately discuss ascid reflux, my son had it serverly.
It's nothing to mess with.

We tried Zantac, it didn't work for us, but I know it does work for mild reflux.

Try feeding him smaller more frequent meals - bananas were our life saver. Stay away from acidic foods (oranges, pineapple, tomatoes etc.)

keep me posted.

My son was on Zantac for the first year of his life. It isn't designed to stop the spitting up (an immature muscle/valve is generally the cause of that) but it will stop the vomit from being acidic if your child has an reflux problem. Once the burning was gone from his throat my son was a much happier camper and the Zantac was a lifesaver for us. Smaller, more frequent meals will help too. You might also consider a milk allergy if he's on formula. My son continued to have issues after he stopped nursing and started to drink whole milk. After switching to an alternative he was able to go off the Zantac successfully. Check with your doctor. They'll be able to determine whether your child needs Zantac or soy/goat milk or if it's just a physical issue that he'll grow out of.

Hi,
My daughter was born in 2003, she would spit a lot. My doctor suggested Zantac for 4 to 6 months. Once she started taking Zantac there was no spitting. After 4 months she was totally fine, no spitting since then. She vomits sometimes but very rarely. Now my son is also on Zantac, he is 1 and half year old. He is also doing fine once he statrted taking Zantac.

It helped a lot for both my kids. Hopefully it help you too.

Thanks,
N.

Hi J. - I don't have experience with Zantac but my 10 mo was a pretty good spitter for a long time. She used to spit up after every single feeding (breastfed) and I would go through burp cloths like crazy. I remember sitting in a mother's group at the hospital around 6 weeks and all the other babies were happily nursing and burping and I was onto my second cloth which was soaked! By about 4-6 months she started to slowly improve and I noticed that it wasn't every time I fed her etc. We thought the spitting was excessive at first and went to our pediatrician for answers - medication was offered and we did fill the script however I changed my mind about implementing it as I just had "one of those feelings" about it - you know a mother's intuition experience... Anyway - we went on without meds and it very gradually deminished to the point where it is rare - maybe once a week that she spits up. We were careful not to squish her or lay her down after feeding and like you said she did reach for things or get down to crawl and she would sometimes throw up, but she was what I'd describe as a happy spitter - no crying as she was hurling everywhere. I spoke in the early days with a lactation consultant who described her "problem" as a laundry problem not a medical one and that was the theory I stuck with until it resolved itself.

Other friends have had what seems to be a "true" reflux issue where meds have been the only answer, but for us it was just maturation that cured the spitting.

Good luck!

A.

My daughter had really bad reflux. She had the kind where she never spit up but always had that burning inside from it - she cried 20+ hours a day. She was given Zantac which actually didn't help us at all. Then the doctor put her on Prilosec. That was wonderful. She was a whole different child. She didn't outgrow the reflux until 2.5 years old. She's 3 now and happy as can be.

Both of my girls too Zantac and now my foster son also takes it. His was left untreated for so long that he had a cough like a chain smoker. All night long he would wake up and cough until he just about threw up. Both of my girls were done with it shortly after 1 year of age and have had no futher problems. I tried the Zantac myself and it takes like Cinnamon Schnaps which is quite a strong taste for a baby. I got it at Cub for my girls and had it flavored grape and would just add it to their milk. With my foster son I don't need to flavor it but I put it in his morning and before bed cereal and he loves it. He actually likes the cereal better with the hint of peppermint :o) It does take a few days to get the full effect though so don't give up too soon.
Here are some of the symptoms my kids had:
spitting up
turning head to the side while eating because the backup was burning their throat
spicy breath if it got real bad

My daughter was put on Zantac at 8 weeeks old. She was spitting up a lot and had a lot of discomfort after eating. After some testing she was diagnosed with acid reflux. She was prescribed Zantac 2x's a day. It has made a wolrd of difference. She spit up less and if she does spit up it is not as much or as forceful as it was. The discomfort after eating virtually went away. The doctor told us it may not be a cure all, but it has worked great for us.

Talk to the doc about it, DO NOT give the baby Zantac with out doc approval.

Smaller feedings more often can help. Having him sit up right for 1/2 after feeding can help as well.

S.

Hi there. My daughter had severe acid reflux. She had to sleep on a wedge (gravity helps keep it in her tummy) and she was on prevacid and changed to Zantac. She did eventually outgrow it but the medicine helped her immensely. There is a huge difference between spitting up and acid reflux. Generally, acid reflux has a projectile vomit...meaning it, for lack of a better word, shoots out. Karah could sometimes reach up to six feet away. Definitely, if you think your child may have acid reflux get it looked into. Lots of children have it because the valve where the stomach and the esophogus has not completely developed so there is nothing to close off the opening and allow the stomach acids to properly digest the food. I hope this helps. Good luck.

A.

If you are open to natural remedies, I would use drinkable aloe vera. It heals and soothes. Just like when you have a cut or burn and put aloe on to heal, it can do the same to your insides. I used it when my daughter had her tonsils out and she takes it daily for her acid reflux (she has a prescription for Zantac). She gets it daily. It also has over 200 nutrients and helps build the immune system. It will also heal and not just treat the symptoms.

Let me know if you have any questions!

Good luck!!