Karicare AR and zantac babies

[alexandra]

Hi, I was wondering if mums out there can share their experiences about karicare AR and zantac. this is going to be a long story sorry..Bubs used to be on Nan formula but because of silent reflux and 10 weeks of nonstop crying the paed told us to put him onto zantac and karicare AR. Thing is I bought the zantac straight away but still had a good half a tin of Nan and I'd thought I'd finish it and then buy Karicare AR otherwise it'd be a waste. So while bubs was on Nan and Zantac I noticed the change in him almost immediately he was such a happy bubs. Then I bought the Karicare and he's been upset ever since. He seems to be in pain like when he was on Nan alone. I want to hear other mums experiences on karicare AR combined with zantac. So In summary what I found was.
Nan alone_ tummy upsets, cramps, colics, reflux, regurgitation and choking.
Nan and zantac_ Very good from what I could see in three days.
Karicare AR and zantac_ A nightmare is beginning again.

We're seeing the paed again for a follow up in ten days, should I stick it out 'till then? Don't know what to do? Could it be just his little digestive system getting used to the thicker formula?
HELP

[Mrs Little]

HI There...

My DS has silent reflux and is on Zantac. We put him on Karicare AR and it made other things a whole heap worse.

I was told my DS has an immature bowel and poor digestive system. I know he has serious issues with wind. The thickened formula seemed to sit in his tummy and his bowels and made it a lot more painful to pass wind.

So we took him off the AR formula. If your son was fine with zantac and normal formula...why change it? He will grow out of the reflux as he grows older and you introduce more solids.

So.....i guess your son sounds like he has similar issues to mine.....silent reflux and poor digestive system. I wouldn't be putting thickened formula in the mix if i didn't have too.

Mrs Little & Son.

[Caitlin's Mum]

My DS had reflux and is lactose intolerant so I was using Zantac and a lactose free formula (which is not thickened). I used a thickener in the formula but this really made no difference. I'd say stick with the Nan formula if that was working. My DS's reflux stopped at 6 months.

[Kade's Mummy]

Hi everyone

Mrs Little - I think we have the same son! Kade has all the same issues, and until today has been on Zantax and Karicare AR. The AR formula certainly meant he chucked heaps less, but he is still in pain a lot and now the health nurse thinks he is allergic to cow's milk. He has just has his first soy formula bottle so time will tell...

Alexandra - I feel for you and know EXACTLY what you are going through. If you want to vent further, feel free to PM me. I will say when Kade first went on Zantac (0.5mls three times a day) he was a different baby for 3 days. My paed calls this the 'honeymoon period' with new medications. So it may have been the Nan working (no harm giving it and the Zantac another go), but it also may have been that honeymoon stage.

Kade is now on 1ml of Zantac three times a day, and the pain associated with his reflux seems to have improved greatly. However, his little digestive system is still struggling with something (be it the thickener or cow's milk, who knows) so we will try this soy formula and see how he goes. Mind you he just chucked most of it up again so I may have to introduce Gaviscon to thicken it up.

Anyway, good luck! It's all trial and error...

[techno74]

my son has tried just about every formula ( lactose free, Ar, gold, every brand) after every health professional telling me he just had colic. He cries 90% of the time when he is awake and groans and squirms in his sleep he cries passing wind or when doing a number 2. He is still on 3 hour feeds. Finally someone suggested zantac because it looked like he was tasting something in his mouth all time and they thought it was silent reflux. He has been on it for a week and i havent seen any change but im wondering if thats because he is also on the karicare AR formula. After reading this post i have since changed him to nan ha im crossing my fingers this works i dont know what else could be causing all this pain and crying or how much longer i can cope with it. If this doesnt work i may try goat formula but im thinking if it was a food allergy he would show other signs runny nappies, rash etc... i truly dont believe its colic i have had a child with that before and colic generally is at a certain time of day, he cries all day when awake always uncomfortable oh i have also tried every wind , colic product and dr brown bottles...i think half the time doctors and nurses throw colic at you because they dont know what else it could be. Anyone have any other suggestions im desperate to hear them.

[TripleTime]

My son has been on Losec since he was 3 months old, Zantac since he was 10 months, his now 14 months & still on Zantac.

Swapping in changing formula's frequently can cause more issues than you can poke a stick at. You need to give them at least a week before you may notice any difference. Zantac generally takes up to a before it kicks in completely but can take longer. If he does have reflux you may find that he need something stronger like Losec.

[techno74]

yep i went back to doctor today and he changed to losec i pick up from chemist tomorrow im crossing my fingers that this will help unfortunatley he had his immunisation while i was there and that didnt go well he has been screaming for the last 3 hours he has finally fallen asleep oh can it get any worse lol.

[techno74]

Swapping in changing formula's frequently can cause more issues than you can poke a stick at. You need to give them at least a week before you may notice any difference..

yep i always give a full week when i have changed his formula even if i can see a bad reaction straight away he started the changes while still in hospital he spent the first 8 weeks in hospital in scn.
Funny thing is now he is on the nan he is taking less formula then when he was on the AR you would think he would take less of the thickened formula.

[Pregnor]

Nan is a HA formula, which means that the cows mild proteins in it are partially broken down already. So HA formulas can sometimes be better for colicy, refluxy babies as they are easier to digest

My son was a refluxer, but zantac didnt agree with him, so he went onto nexium - similar to losec. We found the best formula for him, which they unfortunately discontinued when DS was 11 months, was Karicare HA AR. Which means that the proteins are partially broken down, and it is thickened.

An option for you is to put him back on the Nan, and add some karicare thickner to his feeds. I wouldnt get caught up on wasting formula, I had to chuck many a half tin of things that just didnt agree with DS

please be aware that thickners can create more problems for reflux bubs, as they can cause constipation, which puts more pressure on their tummy, makes colicy symptoms worse, and pushing food back up a bit more too. Also if bub is continuing to chuck, the thickner can make it stick in their throat and so it sits there and burns.

I hope this info helps. figuring out what works best for your reflux bub can be really hard!
Good luck