“Are over-the-counter cough medications safe?”
My son is suffering from cough since yesterday. While it doesn't seem to be anything alarming and looks like the seasonal cough, can I give him over-the-counter cough medicines? Are these medicines safe for kids and are there side effects associated with them.
7 Answers
Recommended medication would be determined by the type of cough age of the child and severity of the cough. If there is a lot of clear nasal drainage claritin or zyrtec would help. Cough meds with DM tend to make the baby hyper. Cough meds with decongestants can make them not sleep
No, do not give him cough medications, these are not safe and have side effects. Give him warm soup and if more than one year old, honey is a good substitute for cough medicine.
Not only they are not safe, they simply do not help. They may make the child drowsy, have dry mucosa if they have pseudoephedrine(sudafed) for decongestion and camouflage certain symptoms helpful in diagnosis. Also, certain coughs are desirable as it helps expectorate or helps in diagnosis.
They are generally pretty safe, but are generally not recommended for those under 4, though many people still use them. You can try some of the natural cough medicines like zarabees. There is no great evidence that any cough medicine works. Honey is great if the child is over 1 year old.
Yes they are safe.
I like delsym 12 hour cough. Here is the dosing:
20# 1/2 tsp (2.5 ml) twice a day
40# 1 tsp
60# 1 1/2 tsp
80# 2 tsp
20# 1/2 tsp (2.5 ml) twice a day
40# 1 tsp
60# 1 1/2 tsp
80# 2 tsp
Not really approved by the Academy of Pediatrics. Honey does work, for night cough, try elevation of the head and maybe Claritin.
