It’s important to note that these homeopathic products are drugs because they are intended to treat or mitigate colds, even though some of these products might look similar to dietary supplements.
There Are No FDA-Approved Homeopathic ProductsĪt your pharmacy and online, you may see other cough and cold medicine being sold for children advertised as homeopathic. Use them-and not household spoons or tools from other medications-to measure medication.ĭon’t give children medicines that are packaged and made for adults because adult medicines may overdose a child. How can you be sure to give the correct dose? The FDA encourages drug manufacturers to provide a dosing instrument, such as a syringe or a cup, marked with the correct measurements. For example, taking both a pain reliever containing acetaminophen and cough and cold medicine containing acetaminophen. They take more than one product containing the same drug.They get more than the recommended dose or take the medicine too often.Nonprescription cough and cold products can be harmful to children if: Learn about what drugs (active ingredients) are in a product by reading the Drug Facts label. Numerous OTC cough and cold products contain many ingredients that can lead to accidental overdosing. Manufacturers voluntarily label these cough and cold products to state: “Do not use in children under 4 years of age.” The FDA doesn’t recommend OTC medicines for cough and cold symptoms in children younger than 2 because they could cause serious and potentially life-threatening side effects. Over-the-counter (OTC) medicines are available to treat cough and cold symptoms. Carefully read and follow the product’s instructions on the Drug Facts label or talk to your pharmacist or health care provider about dosage.Įncourage children to drink plenty of liquids to stay hydrated. You can use them on older children, too, but they often resist bulb syringes.Īcetaminophen or ibuprofen can be used to reduce fever, aches, and pain. Nasal suctioning with a bulb syringe or a similar product, with or without saline nose drops, works very well for children younger than a year old. Saline nose drops or sprays keep nasal passages moist and help avoid stuffiness. Do not use warm mist humidifiers because they can cause nasal passages to swell and make breathing more difficult. Food and Drug Administration offers these tips for relieving cough and cold symptoms in infants and children:Ī cool mist humidifier makes breathing easier by decreasing congestion in nasal passages. Non-drug treatments for coughs include drinking plenty of fluids, especially warm drinks to soothe the throat. Ways to Treat Colds in Infants and ChildrenĬoughs are a normal symptom of a cold and help the body clear the mucus out of the airway and protect the lungs. If you are concerned about COVID-19, talk to your child’s health care provider. These days, cold and cough symptoms can be especially worrisome, because they could be symptoms of COVID-19, the flu, or other potentially serious illness. For those reasons, it’s important to know when your child needs medication, which treatments are recommended, and when to do without medicine. In addition, some cough and cold medicines can have serious side effects, such as slowed breathing, which can be life-threatening, especially in infants and young children. But most children will get better on their own, and cough or cold medicine will not change the natural course of a cold or make it go away faster. It’s understandable that you might want to give your child medicine to treat a cold. Although most colds in children don’t cause serious complications, they can cause stress and worry in parents and caregivers.
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