HHS ARTICLE ON GIVING SMALL CHILDREN COUGH AND COLD MEDICATIONS

FROM:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 
From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

Cough and cold medications for infants under 2 years of age have been withdrawn from the U.S. market – and labels warn against giving cough and cold meds to children under 4 years old – and it looks like children are better for it. Researchers say the number of visits by young children to emergency departments because of problems from these medications has fallen.

However, the study at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that many children still have problems from these medications. So researcher Lee Hampton advises:

“Do not give cough and cold medications to children less than 4 years old. Keep your medications stored up and away and out of sight. And properly lock child-resistant caps after every use.”

The study is in the journal Pediatrics.