Does Zyrtec cause weight gain?

[wilkeliza]

Depends on what's considered OTC. My wife has been prescribed 600 mg generic ibuprofen, which is only available with a prescription. I've asked about it, and a doctor said that 3 OTC 200 mg ibuprofen is equivalent. And it's way cheaper than the prescription version if bought in bulk. As long as it's under a doctor's recommendation it should be OK to take a larger dose. Most doctors are used to recommending large doses for short term use, but it can kill the liver if it's done long term.

Still - sometimes I've found that certain generic prescription meds retail for less than the copay. We've literally paid less than the $5 copay for many prescription meds because they were that cheap. I think we could have paid that price without insurance.

Of course dosage has to be the same but when I went on flonase on prescription it was covered but one it went OTC since the dosage matched my insurance couldn't cover it any more. The prescription stuff worked much better then the OTC even though everything was exactly the same except the bottle.

 

[DisneyOma]

Taking in more calories than you burn off creates weight gain. How many calories you burn doing a certain exercise may change due to medication. But the medication doesn't make you gain weight, unless it is one that increases water retention.

 

[bcla]

Taking in more calories than you burn off creates weight gain. How many calories you burn doing a certain exercise may change due to medication. But the medication doesn't make you gain weight, unless it is one that increases water retention.

I don't think that's necessarily the idea - that somehow there's calorie independent weight gain. However, some research seems to suggest that it might affect appetite (think THC and pot munchies).

 

[Bianca and Bernard]

Benadryl doesn't work for you? It and chlorpheniramine are supposed to be the most effective allergy meds available, but they clearly have side effects.

Not for long acting. It works for maybe 6 hours, then i start having the pain and pressure again.

 

[bcla]

Not for long acting. It works for maybe 6 hours, then i start having the pain and pressure again.

Are you looking for this for relieving allergy symptoms or for plugged sinuses? You could probably discuss this with a pharmacist. There are 8 and 12 hour versions of chlorpheniramine, and the latter is supposed to be extended release. There are also 12 hour decongestants like 12-hour or 24-hour Sudafed. I usually prefer to use different medications for each symptom. I don't like taking combined medications. If I'm sneezing but my sinuses are fine I don't want to take a decongestant. I'll also take a sedating one at night or if it's really bad and I'm not going to drive. I'll mix and match depending on my symptoms at the time.

I remember Contac used to be sold as an extended release antihistamine and decongestant medication. It was a capsule with all these little balls in different colors. Their explanation was that some of them were designed to dissolve immediately, while others were supposed to take longer to dissolve.

 

[A. Mara Ziwadie]

I almost never buy brand name though unless I can't find anything else. I've seen bottles of 100 for less than $2.50.

The one that used to work the best for me was Actifed. I didn't always need the decongestant, but as an antihistamine in it worked exceptionally well for me. They changed the formula to use chlorpheniramine instead.

I don't buy name brand either. I'd prefer to, but they're always too expensive. Chlorpheniramine does work for me, but it makes me drowsy. Funny thing is, it won't make me fall to sleep though.

 

[A. Mara Ziwadie]

Actually, no, it's not "a LOT" more than calories in/calories out, at the heart of it. Yes, of course, there are factors that can come into play. Some medicines can slow metabolism, some can speed it up. Some can cause you to be drowsy and want to do less. I agree that things like that can factor in. But my point is that generally, it is that as simple as calories in vs calories burned. It just is. If you have medicine that slows metabolism, you need to adjust nutrition.

No, I'm not a nutritionist, but DW and I are pretty into bodybuilding and DW has had many professional coaches over the years. Nutrition is a pretty big part of our lives.

I'm wondering how you know if medicine slows your metabolism. If you gain weight while taking medicine, do you assume it's slowing your metabolism? Off hand, I don't know of any medicines that have a side effect of slowing down the metabolism. I've heard of weight gain and increased hunger.

 

[javeyloveschelsi]

Oh My--I really hope that it doesn't cause weight gain. I am one of the rare women in the world who have breastfeeding hives due to hormone fluctuations, so once every 2.5-3 days I have to take a Zyrtec. The weight already has been hard enough to try to get off after having this baby (It's only been 8 weeks, but by this point with the other three I was already at or below prepregnancy weight and I still have 20 lbs to lose). I have been watching my intake, following my diet that leaves out the foods I can't take very well (except tonight--- we have 10 girls spending the night at my house ages 10 or under, plus our two little guys, so pizza and pop are a necessity for sanity reasons...). Anyway, I have noticed that sometimes it makes me super tired or doesn't affect me at all. I can't tell on appetite because the hives usually appear when baby is eating extra, so I naturally want to eat more. But, it may possibly be a reason I seem stalled in the weight loss.But, it is the only thing that will take care of the hives (we have tried everything other than a steroid shot), so until I stop breastfeeding, I guess I will just deal with it :/

 

[mom2rtk]

Oh My--I really hope that it doesn't cause weight gain. I am one of the rare women in the world who have breastfeeding hives due to hormone fluctuations, so once every 2.5-3 days I have to take a Zyrtec. The weight already has been hard enough to try to get off after having this baby (It's only been 8 weeks, but by this point with the other three I was already at or below prepregnancy weight and I still have 20 lbs to lose). I have been watching my intake, following my diet that leaves out the foods I can't take very well (except tonight--- we have 10 girls spending the night at my house ages 10 or under, plus our two little guys, so pizza and pop are a necessity for sanity reasons...). Anyway, I have noticed that sometimes it makes me super tired or doesn't affect me at all. I can't tell on appetite because the hives usually appear when baby is eating extra, so I naturally want to eat more. But, it may possibly be a reason I seem stalled in the weight loss.But, it is the only thing that will take care of the hives (we have tried everything other than a steroid shot), so until I stop breastfeeding, I guess I will just deal with it :/

Not sure if it's safe while breastfeeding, but Zan-tac was the go to choice for hives for my son for many years. It was amazing how nothing else worked and that was almost instant.

 

[javeyloveschelsi]

I've been on Zyrtec for a


Not sure if it's safe while breastfeeding, but Zan-tac was the go to choice for hives for my son for many years. It was amazing how nothing else worked and that was almost instant.

Yes, it is! When my milk first came in, I had welts and hives so bad and itchy that that I made myself bleed from scratching. It was awful! But it took a zyrtec/zantac combo to finally get them to go away. I had to take zantac most of my pregnancy so I wonder if that is why I am having issues and I need to continue or what it going on. I may try a zantac instead next time to see if it works, they just hurt so bad and show up in a random, different spots every time and the swelling is pretty intense. My biggest fear is swelling in my throat since they are so all over the place :/

 

[mom2rtk]

Yes, it is! When my milk first came in, I had welts and hives so bad and itchy that that I made myself bleed from scratching. It was awful! But it took a zyrtec/zantac combo to finally get them to go away. I had to take zantac most of my pregnancy so I wonder if that is why I am having issues and I need to continue or what it going on. I may try a zantac instead next time to see if it works, they just hurt so bad and show up in a random, different spots every time and the swelling is pretty intense. My biggest fear is swelling in my throat since they are so all over the place :/

That sounds awful! So glad the zantac worked for you.

The potential for throat swelling is the same reason we continued seeing the doctor for my son's hives outbreaks. Nobody ever figured out what caused it. I finally got him to the pediatrician fast enough once for her to see how bad the initial outbreak was and she insisted that we carry an epi-pen for a couple years after. Thankfully he seems to have aged out of it.

 

[A. Mara Ziwadie]

Zantac is an acid reducer. It helps with hives? I guess I'm dumbfounded.

 

[bcla]

Zantac is an acid reducer. It helps with hives? I guess I'm dumbfounded.

http://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/hives-treatment#1

H2 blockers: You may be told to take more than one type of antihistamine at a time for your hives. Medicines like famotidine (Pepcid) or ranitidine (Zantac) can be used together with other treatments. These drugs also ease heartburn. For your hives, they narrow blood vessels. That calms redness.

https://patient.info/health/h2-blockers​

 

[mom2rtk]

Zantac is an acid reducer. It helps with hives? I guess I'm dumbfounded.

It's actually an antihistamine that works on different receptor sites from the others. I was surprised too when the new doctor suggested it. But I was absolutely amazed at how it did the trick.

 

[A. Mara Ziwadie]

http://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/hives-treatment#1

H2 blockers: You may be told to take more than one type of antihistamine at a time for your hives. Medicines like famotidine (Pepcid) or ranitidine (Zantac) can be used together with other treatments. These drugs also ease heartburn. For your hives, they narrow blood vessels. That calms redness.

https://patient.info/health/h2-blockers​

I don't have hives, but I do take this for acid reflux. I try not to take it every day, and when I do take it, I stick to the 150 MG OTC strength, even though I can take the 300 MG prescription strength.

 

[Klayfish]

I'm wondering how you know if medicine slows your metabolism. If you gain weight while taking medicine, do you assume it's slowing your metabolism? Off hand, I don't know of any medicines that have a side effect of slowing down the metabolism. I've heard of weight gain and increased hunger.

Your doctor should be able to tell you. A lot of the medicines used for thyroid issues can have effects on metabolism.