The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) states that children under 4 should not be given over-the-counter cough medicines.
As stated on the WebMD site, “the cold medicines in question include four different categories of drugs:
• Cough suppressants (dextromethorphan or DM)
• Cough expectorants (guaifenesin)
• Decongestants (pseudoephedrine and phenylephrine)
• Antihistamines (such as brompheniramine, chlorpheniramine maleate, diphenhydramine [Benadryl] and others)
You might not recognize these drugs by name. But they are the active ingredients in many brands of kids’ cold and cough medicines.†These types of medicines are dangerous, as they may cause extreme drowsiness, and there have been cases of parents accidentally overdosing their children on them.
Vikki Sloviter, in the article, Cough Medicine Dangers, states that “in 2004-2005, more than 1,500 children under age two were treated in U.S. emergency rooms for problems caused by cough and cold medications, and in 2005 three infants ages one month, three months and six months died as a result of being given too much cough and cold medicine.â€
A visit to the Tylenol.com website confirms that there have been problems with these medications, as the company states “we are voluntarily withdrawing the following concentrated cough and cold medicines from the market (for children under 2):
• Concentrated TYLENOL® Infants’ Drops Plus Cold
• Concentrated TYLENOL® Infants’ Drops Plus Cold & Cough
• PediaCare® Infant Dropper Decongestant
• PediaCare® Infant Dropper Long-Acting Cough
• PediaCare® Infant Drops Decongestant (containing pseudoephedrine)
• PediaCare® Infant Dropper Decongestant & Cough”
In addition to cough medicine, a young child should never be given aspirin when they have cold/flu symptoms. Doing this may lead to a serious condition known as Reyes syndrome. This rare illness causes brain and liver damage. Scientists don’t know exactly why, but children given aspirin when ill with a fever and a cough develop this dangerous complication at a greater rate.
Finally, cough drops should be avoided. As you can imagine, they present a choking hazard. (If you do decide to use cough drops in your much older child, he or she should be educated on correct lozenge use, which includes never running or jumping with a cough drop in the mouth. They should also never sleep with a cough drop in the mouth).
Doctors recommend these ways to help your young child deal with the symptoms of a cold or flu. Offer plenty of liquids. These will help keep the throat hydrated and the phlegm loose; however, don’t offer caffeinated drinks. You can also place a humidifier in your child’s bedroom while he or she sleeps. This keeps the air moist, which helps to calm a cough. If your child feels well enough, he or she may benefit from a warm shower. The steam created helps the throat much like the humidifier. Finally, chicken soup (if the child is old enough) does really help ease cold/flu symptoms.
If these remedies do not work, contact your child’s physician for advice.
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