ZITHROMAX tablets and oral suspension can be taken with or without food.
Patients should also be cautioned not to take aluminum- and magnesium-containing antacids and azithromycin simultaneously.
Posted by trueblue (Member # 7348) on :
Also, Zith stays in your system a very long time.
Too lazy to read the rest of that PDF file right now but I believe the half life is somewhere around 3 days.
In my experience it builds up fairly quickly in your system and also takes a while to clear. (For the same reason.)
If you're starting out at a lower dose and planning to raise it don't be in too much of a hurry. That's just my wimpy opinion. Posted by sometimesdilly (Member # 9982) on :
hi DLL-
for me, it hasn't mattered with or without food. actually, i usually take it without in the AM, because the zith itself is making me less hungry and I often forget to eat til noon or later.
the stuff is kicking my derriere more than anything else i've been on. i kick-started the dose by taking 2/3rds of the 750mg a day the first day out, then wimped out for a month before going all the way.
i'm glad i waited until after xmas. the first week at full dose was dreadful. tremendous emotional/mental herxing (1st time in 7 months of tx), nausea, intensified neuropathies and insomnia, and MAJOR abdominal pain.
I'm just beginning to get my bearings again, staying at full dose. It is a mean drug for sure... may it help kill your Bb's dead.
dilly
Posted by leogrl54 (Member # 10770) on :
i like liver!!
i herxed on rocephin. sooo about 2 mos ago ,i was started on 125mg zithro/d- but broke the tablet in half. tolerated it well for 2 weeks. then tried 125mg iv every day. that lasted 3.5 weeks(longest i've been able to tolerate any iv antibiotic) before i started herxing.
stopped for 2 weeks, then tried 125mg iv every other day.
to made a boring story short. i am now on 50mg zithro every other day. been on 2.5 wks and i believe i am starting to herx again. very frustrating!!!
just trying to be patient
Posted by Gabrielle (Member # 5329) on :
I never take abx on an empty stomach - no matter which one. Tried it with Tetracyclines (not Doxy which I always take after food) and they nearly killed my stomach.
The doctor who's protocol I'm doing right now says ALWAYS to take ANY abx with food - no matter which one or what the pharmacist or the manufacturer says.
I took Zithro after food and it worked well - herxed hard in the beginning. Always when I started Zithro I got a diarrhea for the first two days - then I was fine.
It helped me a lot the first time - the second time I felt it had lost its "bite".
Take care,
Gabrielle
Posted by humanbeing (Member # 8572) on :
I was on zith IV 500mg infused for 1 hour...I got instantly deathly ill...diarrea, nausea, dizzyness...so after the second day I stopped and swore I would never try zith again.
Then after a week off it, I couldn't get my doc on the phone so I decided to try it again but I infused after dinner and did over a three hour timeframe.
Now 10 days into it, I am tolerating it but am herxin (taking w/mepron too)
From what I hear zith can get at bartonella and lyme...
Posted by ESG (Member # 4816) on :
I cannot take any meds on an empty stomach; I asked my LLMD and was told to always take my antibiotics with food, including when I took Zithromax. A previous doctor went further to explain to me that need to take the meds in the middle of the food intake - not before or after, but with food so the food surrounded the medication as it passed through the stomach. Another thing is to drink a glass of fluids with the meds (any meds) - this dilutes them in the stomach hence making then gentler to the stomach. My daughter and I eventually had to start taking Nexium, due to Zythro for her & due to Tindamax for me.
ESG
Posted by NP40 (Member # 6711) on :
My son did IV zith at 1000mg p-day for two months. Absolutely kicked butt. He improved more after 2 weeks of IV zith than 3 months of IV rocephin.
The flushing, dizzyness, nausea was common with my son's infusions. He use to lay down before taking them. It does get better.
Posted by Boomerang (Member # 7979) on :
My husband takes Zith three times a week..along with mino.
He always takes ABX after a meal, and away from supplements.
He doesn't have any stomach problems from it.
Hope it works good for you.
Posted by dontlikeliver (Member # 4749) on :
Everyone,
Thank you for your replies.
With food it is.
DLL
Posted by Geneal (Member # 10375) on :
Morning.
I am on zithromax 500 mg a day. Capsule form. The pharmacist said take with or without food.
I take it after dinner. It does cause me stomach pain, but this subsides in about 1 hour.
Does cause me terrible bouts of diarrea. About every two or three days.
Good luck. I had less stomach issues with doxy. but I'm going after the babs.
I should add I also take 1000 mg of malarone daily too.
Geneal
Posted by happygranny (Member # 8779) on :
I just finished 3 months of Mepron/Zith. My LLMD told me to stop as there was no improvement in my Hot sweats etc and we are thinking there is another cause for them besides Babesiosis.
Too bad I subjected my body to those drugs, and thank goodness my insurance covered the costs.
I took Zith after a meal and was told to take it with some kind of fat (peanut butter etc).
The bad thing about Zith for me was that it increased my tinnitus and made my ears feel plugged. I was told the tinnitus would improve after a while..... boy that noise is annoying!
I had the ringing in the ears for a couple days, then lost hearing in my left ear completely. I stopped taking it before I could get ahold of my LLMD, after about 5 months the hearing in my left ear is improving.
It also gave me horrible headaches.
Posted by luvdogs (Member # 9507) on :
Zith helped me a lot, esp when I took wiht mepron. Hell of a herx though!
IV helped a lot also, but started to make me go deaf. I had to stop before course of tx was up. I wish I could have stayed on.
I think it is a great abx., personally.
Good luck!
Posted by Lauren M. (Member # 10868) on :
My pharmacist told me Zith can be taken with food, but CAN NOT be taken with food or liquid containing calcium. The calcium interacts with it and lessens its absorbtion into the blood stream.
I usually take mine with bread, or with potato chips.
Posted by bpeck (Member # 3235) on :
AP:
WAs this a toxicity issue? Has your hearing been restored?
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