Ranitidine (Zantac) for its IL6 inhibitory properties

Amw66 said:
My daughter felt better whilst on H Pylori protocol of drugs - perhaps similar effect. GP and paediatrician both at loss.
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Being treated for H Pylori involves taking antibiotics as well as acid-blockers (ranitidine/Zantac or PPIs). It could have been the antibiotics that helped. Assuming that your daughter no longer takes the antibiotics, it should be easy enough to test whether or not it was the ranitidine/Zantac or the PPI which helped rather than the antibiotics because both drugs are available over the counter without prescription.
 
I take ranitidine. I hate having to take it. It reduces stomach acid, and the long term effects of this could be catastrophic.

1) This means, as far as I'm concerned, that I am at greater risk of getting an infection from eating something dodgy e.g. getting food poisoning.

2) Stomach acid is vital for breaking down food so that nutrients are properly extracted from food. Without sufficient stomach acid food will be inadequately broken down so nutrient deficiencies are likely to develop.

3) The small intestine is supposed to be near sterile. Reducing stomach acid increases the risk of dysbiosis.

Just do a google for "dangers of acid blockers" to find info on some highly undesirable effects of the things. For anyone who takes them, keeping duration of treatment to a minimum is a very good idea.
 
Woolie said:
No, not really. Just standard antihistamines for allergies, but I don't think that's the same thing, is it? Those have no effect on my symptoms.

My CRP is almost always quite raised (between 11 and 30), and there's a lot of accumulated evidence that IL6 plays a causal role in CRP production. So reckon there a very high chance my IL6 production is raised too.

If your CRP isn't on the high side, then it would seem unlikely IL6 is a big player for you, so you might not expect to get any benefit from any IL6 inhibition effects of Zantac.

But yes, could be worth seeing if the H2 blocking effect has some benefits for you.
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I think H1 are the standard allergy antihistamines.
 
Arnie Pye said:
I take ranitidine. I hate having to take it. It reduces stomach acid, and the long term effects of this could be catastrophic.

1) This means, as far as I'm concerned, that I am at greater risk of getting an infection from eating something dodgy e.g. getting food poisoning.

2) Stomach acid is vital for breaking down food so that nutrients are properly extracted from food. Without sufficient stomach acid food will be inadequately broken down so nutrient deficiencies are likely to develop.

3) The small intestine is supposed to be near sterile. Reducing stomach acid increases the risk of dysbiosis.

Just do a google for "dangers of acid blockers" to find info on some highly undesirable effects of the things. For anyone who takes them, keeping duration of treatment to a minimum is a very good idea.
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I am only planning on taking it as a test, 2-3 days is the described run in period, if it hasn't done anything by the end of the 3rd day, then I know it's not likely to.

If it does, then it's another short term fix thingy for when I need to be a bit more functional.

But I had assumed, being essentially an OTC antacid, that it would be fairly safe, thank you for the suggestion that it may not be.
 
Mij said:
Interesting. An Internist rx'd Zantac along with zinc for me 25 years ago. I never asked why back then or had the internet to look it up. I took it (don't remember for how long), and it was during that time I started improving. I didn't know what to make of it but now you have me thinking.

I don't know what my CRP was at that time but it was not raised 11 years later when I was tested.

I really hope it has a positive outcome for you.
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I'm updating my own post after reading all the replies. I am reminded now that at the time I took Zantac and zinc I might have had Undiagnosed h.pylori. This could be the reason I felt improvement! I did not have symptoms back then. It wasn't until 5 years later I started becoming more gut sick and was tested and treated with abxs and acid blocker.
 
Woolie said:
No, I didn't even know it existed. Looking at the symptom profile, it doesn't seem a good fit for me. Why do you think it might be relevant?
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I was just curious. I don’t show any signs of iron imbalance either.
I am heterozygous for the HFE C282Y Mutation. 50% of my MDs patients are heterozygous for a HFE gene mutation (C282Y or H63D). Roughly 10% of the population are HFE heterozygous.
 
Arnie Pye said:
I take ranitidine. I hate having to take it. It reduces stomach acid, and the long term effects of this could be catastrophic.

1) This means, as far as I'm concerned, that I am at greater risk of getting an infection from eating something dodgy e.g. getting food poisoning.

2) Stomach acid is vital for breaking down food so that nutrients are properly extracted from food. Without sufficient stomach acid food will be inadequately broken down so nutrient deficiencies are likely to develop.

3) The small intestine is supposed to be near sterile. Reducing stomach acid increases the risk of dysbiosis.

Just do a google for "dangers of acid blockers" to find info on some highly undesirable effects of the things. For anyone who takes them, keeping duration of treatment to a minimum is a very good idea.
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Thanks for the info.
I have acid issues, so does my Father. If I try them out, it would only be a short term trial.
 
Arnie Pye said:
Being treated for H Pylori involves taking antibiotics as well as acid-blockers (ranitidine/Zantac or PPIs). It could have been the antibiotics that helped. Assuming that your daughter no longer takes the antibiotics, it should be easy enough to test whether or not it was the ranitidine/Zantac or the PPI which helped rather than the antibiotics because both drugs are available over the counter without prescription.
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Yes, may try this however PPIs are no good long term.she was on omeprazole, clarithromycin and metrodiazole (?)
I think she may have felt better as she could benefit from diet and supplements- we had been feeding a large microbiota rather than her!
 
my il-6 has been tested by a research lab to be around 7. also il-8 in the quadruple digits [one of the highest in the study]. also tnf-a around 10. i think this comports with wpi's paper on cytokines and i think klimas's, but not hornig. however, my crp has been tested a few times as normal or low.

i started taking famotidine for mast cell suspicion [no subjective effect]. i seem to absolutely need it now to prevent esophagus issues. dunno if it has any il-6 effect. dunno if taking it made me require it.

@Woolie, are you willing to share your symptom profile or m.e. criteria you resonate with the most?
 
MErmaid said:
Thanks for the info.
I have acid issues, so does my Father. If I try them out, it would only be a short term trial.
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If your father has been on acid-blockers for more than a few weeks he may find that he struggles to come off them.

https://academic.oup.com/fampra/article/31/6/625/591681

https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/741721

Search for "rebound acid hypersecretion" for more info.

Coming off PPIs is painful and must be done slowly. The irony is that most people who are on acid-blockers are on them because of a misunderstanding by doctors of the causes of acid reflux. It is usually low stomach acid that causes acid reflux rather than high stomach acid. The best treatment for low acid is taking betaine HCL + Pepsin or a teaspoon or two of acidic substances like lemon juice in a glass of water or apple cider vinegar in a glass of water and sipping it just before and during a meal. None of these suggestions should be taken on an empty stomach.

For a really thorough description of why acid reflux occurs, read this linked series of articles by Chris Kresser :

1) https://chriskresser.com/what-everybody-ought-to-know-but-doesnt-about-heartburn-gerd/

2) https://chriskresser.com/the-hidden-causes-of-heartburn-and-gerd/

3) https://chriskresser.com/more-evide...-that-gerd-is-caused-by-bacterial-overgrowth/

4) https://chriskresser.com/how-your-antacid-drug-is-making-you-sick-part-a/

5) https://chriskresser.com/how-your-antacid-drug-is-making-you-sick-part-b/

6) https://chriskresser.com/get-rid-of-heartburn-and-gerd-forever-in-three-simple-steps/

Please note that people with ulcers in the gut, or who are being treated for stomach ulcers, or who take pills which damage the gut (such as NSAIDs) have to take acid-blockers whether they like it or not. :(
 
Samuel said:
@Woolie, are you willing to share your symptom profile or m.e. criteria you resonate with the most?
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Sure. I'm weird. Its important to say that. I have a lot of immune type symptoms. Flu-like. Lots of burning glands, headaches, feeling overheated. Very fluctuating pattern. If I overdo activity, I get PEM the next day (an exacerbation of all of the symptoms I just described), but I also get some immediate symptoms when I try to walk any distance - within around 10 minutes of starting. A sort of flushed sensation.

So I'm on the immune end of the spectrum.
 
Wonko said:
I've now been taking this stuff for 3 days @ 150mg a day with no noticeable effect, given it's reported it starts to act after 2 days I'm pronouncing this experiment a failure ;)

TBH this is an expected result ;)
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Maybe I'm being pedantic here but maybe supposed to take effect is not the same as you will feel the effect yet?

Unless it's causing problems it might be worth carrying on with it for another 2 or 3 days.
 
zzz said:
The standard dose is 150 mg twice a day. You might want to try that for a while before giving up on this drug, since you had such good results initially.
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?

I have not had any results with this drug, but I was under the impression the dosage was 150mg per day, not 300mg - and no one commented earlier when I said that was what I was going to try.

Given I only have 6 75mg tablets left that would mean it will be at least a week before I can restart, to allow more to arrive, if that's what i decide to do :)
 
Wonko said:
I was under the impression the dosage was 150mg per day, not 300mg
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If you buy ranitidine over the counter in the UK it comes in dosages of 75mg per pill, and I think it mentions one pill, twice a day, as the maximum dose.

If you were to be prescribed ranitidine by your doctor the usual dose is 150mg, twice a day, as the maximum dose.

I also know that some people take a prescribed dose of 300mg once a day in the evening.

For all the different dosages doctors might prescribe in the UK under various different circumstances see this link : https://bnf.nice.org.uk/drug/ranitidine.html

For info from the US see this link : https://www.drugs.com/ranitidine.html
 
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