Medicine for Young Children

My children have been having respiratory problem lately - cough, running nose, sore throat, and even led to middle ear infection! Common oral medicines prescribed by doctors to relieve the symptoms, mostly in syrup (liquid) mode, include Diphenhydramine, Chlorpheniramine (Piriton), Bromhexine, Cetirizine (brand name Zyrtec), Rhinathiol (cough), and sometimes antibiotic Amoxycillin. Fluimucil is used to reduce phlegm.

For middle ear infection, the following antibiotic was prescribed (which can also be used for conjunctivitis) - Framycetin Eye/Ear Drop - which unfortunately did not cure my son's fever after 6 days, and he was switched to the oral antibiotic Augmentin.

The other medicines according to my experience with my children are as follows:

For fever, the most commonly used medicine is Paracetamol (Acetaminophen) (brand names Panadol, Dhamol, Uphamol, Tylenol etc.). Sometimes Voltaren suppositories (to be inserted into the rectum) may be used on very young children to reduce the temperature quickly. Voltaren is a type of NSAID (non-standard anti-inflammatory drugs) and should not be used together with other NSAIDS such as Ibuprufen (brand name Advil) and Aspirin , both oral medicines which could be prescribed for fever (however Aspirin should not be prescribed to children at all time!). Voltaren may have some side effects - patients are advised to drink a lot of water (as with all other drugs!). Other means to reduce the temperature include wiping the forehead / body with cold towel. I find some commercial products to attach cold pads on the forehead useful, although not every child may like it. My son even had an "ice-bath" when he had very high fever at the age of 3 years old.

For diarrhea, we have used Maalox, Smecta, Lacteol and Kaolin. I usually switch from milk powder to soy powder. However, for infant below 1 year old on breast milk, they often have very soft tools as they digest the breast milk very well. Normally this is nothing to worry about. Constipation is more of a headache! I used prune juice on infants to help bowel movements.

For infant colic, Colimix is common. Personally, I find Dr. Brown's milk bottle quite a good product to prevent colic, but nothing can compare to direct breastfeeding.

I believe in natural cure and try not to take medicine whenever possible but lots of time, it is not possible. Also, due to their interaction with other children from child care center, they get sick easily. Anyway, to keep your kids healthy it's important to let them exercise regularly, eat a balance diet, drink lots of water, may be take some supplements, BUT one very important key that cannot be undone is to breastfeed the baby for as much and as long as possible - breastfeed exclusively if you can, at least for the first 6 months. It will play a crucial role to your children's health and it can only be done at that point of time. In fact, for infants, breast milk is the medicine to cure most of the sickness, if any. Nothing can replace breast milk. I guess I will write another entry on breastfeeding, soon.

Disclaimer: The above are all based on my knowledge, experience and research online as a parent and is meant for your reference only. Please consult your physician for professional advice on proper drugs and dosage.