Adderall Dosage Criteria | ADHD Information

Okay I did a quick search and everything I found said do not take antacids with adderall. I would be scared that it could be dangerous!

Thanks

My dd has been on adderall Xr for 4 years. She started at 10mg and every so often we upped her meds by 5 mg b/c her current dose wasn't providing the same effects. Over the course of 2 years she evetually reached adderall XR 30 mg which is where she is now and has been for 2 full school years. We do give her most of the summer off but again her meds are not providing enough coverage right now. Ever since she began taking meds I have noticed a big difference in the effectiveness of her meds depending on what she eats in the morning. She is mildly allergic to milk and if she has any milk in the morning it's almost like she hasn't taken her meds. I wonder if one tums could help her absorb her meds better. I wonder if that is safe????????? Could you give her a tums a night just hoping to produce a higher ph level in her stomach?

Thanks so much for the information. I am going to look into it. Where did you find this out?

P.S. DD's pediatricain had even mentioned tums as calcium supplements for her since she doesn't eat/drink milk products.

Well, I would imagine if someone took antacids WITH adderall it wouldn't be recommended or smart for that matter. I bet some people take both on an empty stomach just to get the strongest affect. Makes me shudder thinking about it.

But, if an antacid is necessary after (or before) a small meal because of indigestion or acid reflux one would think it wouldn't be a problem. I imagine some people who take Adderall are able to do this without ill affects. I think it's all about balance. But that's just my opinion. Certainly ask your doctor

Originally I started this post this morning but ran out of time and had to leave before I could finish it. So, considering this subject I thought I'd try this today. For lunch I stuffed myself with an In-&-Out Burger (heaven) came home and took about a 45 minute nap - think I'm getting a cold. Anyway, afterward I took a Tums (1). It was about 3:00 at the time.

It's now 3:40ish and 15 minutes ago I took my adderall and I will report back with the results! Talk to you soon!

Incidentally, since it's a bit late in the afternoon, I took only 22 mgs of Adderall.

Pearogrlz39346.6578240741

Hi All,

What is the criteria that determines the dosage of Adderall for an individual? Is is weight? This is what my psych says. I also recently started Remeron anti-depressant and have gained about 14 lbs. I am female and weigh about 138 lbs. He said 30mgs a day is all I am allowed. Period.

So then how is it that kids who weigh much less than I are taking more than 30 mgs? I'm constantly reading about this and it confuses me.

My psych is very conservative and I would like to ask for a slightly higher dose as 30 mgs doesn't work for me as well anymore. But I'm afraid he'll be suspect of my request. - WHATEVER - I don't know. I just have that feeling about him. I do not have a history of abuse so he has no reason to be suspect.

Any input would be appreciated.

There are many factors at play here. Weight is one factor, but in reality weight is insignificant compared to other factors. The main factor that comes in to play is your individual body chemistry, everyone has slightly different body chemistry and thus everyone absorbs the drug at different rates.

For instance, when you take an adderall, only some of it is metabolized and used by your body and the rest of it will be excreted unused in your urine or sweat. The absorption of amphetamine-based stimulants such as adderall is highly effected by the pH level of your stomach, they are absorbed much more effectively in a high pH environment (low acidity). Since everyone's stomach acid naturally has a different pH level, this means that some people's bodies will effectively use more of the substance and waste less, while others would need to take a higher dose to achieve the same effective amount. This is why it is important with this kind of drug to experiment with different dosages and see how your body reacts (under your doctors supervision, of course).

Be aware though that the stomach's pH level is also effected by what you eat, this is why the drug information sheets that come with your adderall prescription warn against taking vitamin C or drinking orange juice or other fruit juices, because these are acidic in nature and will decrease your ability to absorb the drug. It also warns against taking antacids like tums for the opposite reason, they reduce the acidity of your stomach and cause you to absorb more of the drug than you normally would, which could potentially be dangerous if you are on a high dose.

That said, your body will also build tolerance to the drug over time and you will need more to achieve the same effects. One way to counteract this is to use the drug only when you really *need* it to do work, and take days off when you can. This will reduce your tolerance and allow you to use a lower dose for a longer amount of time, thus reducing the greater risk of negative side effects associated with higher dosages.

Hope that helps.

t4ngent

Both of my kids are on adderall and what you said coinsides with our experiences. Is there any way to raise the ph and lower the acid in your stomach safely? My dd has some mild food allergies and is sensitive to what is in her stomach as to how her meds are absorbed maybe b/c her stomach produces more acid if she eats something she is sensitive to.

Thanks for the info!

thanks t4ngent.

I do try to take the occasional drug holidays as I am aware of when my body starts to require additional medication for the same affect. I'm also aware of the ph information although I may not monitor everything I eat that closely.

During my next appointment I'll discuss this with him to see what his response is then go from there.

Thanks again for the very informative response.

Adderall is dosed by symtpom, not weight, but there is a max dose.

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t4ngent

Thanks for the info!

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Any form of over-the-counter antacid will do, extra strength tums works well and is a good calcium supplement too. It doesn't really matter how many of the tums you take (as long as you don't go over the max recommended on its packaging). If I recall correctly the average person metabolizes somewhere around 50-75% of the stated dosage, so you could potentially increase the amount that your body is able to metabolize by 25-50%. This should be perfectly safe unless you are new to the drug or you just switched from a lower dose to a very high dose.

Hi Again,

I've been busy this weekend but I wanted to report my "findings" yesterday when I did my little experiment. Basically I felt exactly the same effects of the medication as usual regardless of taking the tums. Actually a little less as I only took about 22mgs.

I know everyone is different but I'd imagine, under similar circumstances that I 'experimented' with, I don't think the Tums make a difference. Or at least with me I didn't notice anything different.

I might try it again earlier in the day, eat a little less, take 2 Tums then the Adderall and see what happens.

Maybe sometime next week. Hope everyone's having a good weekend.