Can Zantac cause gas/consipation??

[Anonymous]

The title pretty much sums up my question. Is it possible that Zantac causes constipation/gas build up? Ariella’s been on Zantac since last Thursday and since last Friday, we’ve been having a problem with bowel movements and gas. She still has 2-3 bm’s a day but for her it’s not that good since she used to go after each feeding (which is about 6 times a day). I can tell that she’s in pain b/c she pushes very hard and very often passes gas. Will adding a little bit of prune juice in her milk do the job? Also, is it ok for me to add the medicine right into the milk that I give her? If I give the medicine straight to her she spits it out (she actually learned how to do that!) and makes the face and starts crying histerically b/c she absolutely hates the taste. Thank you for your responses.

[hellbennt]

I breastfeed & I’m not one to want to introduce anything so young like prune juice or cereal or whatnot. call me a wacko purist, what the heck…

I would scour http://www.kellymom.com

and http://www.askdrsears.com as to what to do…

what are her stools like? maybe it could be something in your diet (it’s not necessarily always the case that your diet affects these little ones- I’ll be the first to admit that)?

[Anonymous]

when my son was on zantac before the PPI, i had it made without the alcohol and the peppermint flavor. alcohol is not good for babies, and my son screamed when i tried to give it to him. just the smell of that stuff made me gag!

second, i would not recommend prune juice to a baby that young. it gave my son terrible stomach cramps when he was 3 months old.

[Anonymous]

Hi Marianna! I am not sure about the zantac and gas…it was so long ago for us and we were only on it for about a month. I am wondering if you could add the gas/constipation as another reason to go ahead and start a PPI. If I remember, your ped. wanted to try it first…and if it’s not working for her then maybe it’s time for some more aggressive action!

Good luck!
Amy

[Anonymous]

Pear juice is not as harsh and can be helpful for constipation.

One thing I was not aware of (even with years of nanny experience) until I had my own was that newborns tend to poop out much of what they eat due to their immature digestive system. That’s why they can poop 8-10 times per day; generally after every feeding. As they grow and mature they are better able to digest and make use of their food and their bowel movents gradually decrease over time. All three of mine went from pooping after every feeding to just a few times a day by three or four months of age.

If her bm’s are dry and or hard then you’re probably right that she may be somewhat constipated. One of my babies (Myles) had this problem and I had to be proactive with him to keep him regular. If you think she needs some help I’d try pear juice first; maybe 1/2 ounce per day.

Lots of moms with reflux babies think that their babies are gassy or consitpated because of all the crying, and many babies will grunt or strain when they are in pain even if they aren’t consipated. They don’t know why they hurt and they are just trying to relieve their pain. So, it’s possible that she’s just not getting any relief from the Zantac and that it’s the reflux that’s bothering her. You’re the mommy of course and you should use your intuition because we moms are usually right when it comes to our babies. I’m just throwing this out there as something to consider because it can so difficult to determine what’s bothering our babies.

Also, I agree with Amy….I’d try sway the doc towards a PPI.

[Anonymous]

Thank you ladies for your responses. We are going to see another ped GI doc (this is the fourth one!!) and I’ll ask him to prescribe a PPI. If he doesn’t, then I’ll just call the pediatrician who prescribed Zantac. She told me she’d try Prevacid solutabs next if Zantac doesn’t work. Has anyone used them before? Sorry to complain, but we are SO SLEEP DEPRIVED! We want our baby to be happy already…we want to be going to bed at a decent hour and waking up in the morning (and I don’t mean 3 am). I guess it’ll pass eventually and it’s just a matter of time.

[Anonymous]

Good luck with your appointment. I used the solutabs with Myles and they were the miracle drug for us.

[hellbennt]

how about mylanta? I use it like the father in My Big Fat Greek Wedding used Windex , LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

no really, I use it for gas w/ Ari (non refluxer). I dont know if it helps but the shock of the squirt pipes him down for a moment and then the coating of it in his throat continues his silence for a few more moments, LOL…

hey & an added benefit is looser stools…

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