It doesn’t take an academy of family physician in Malaysia to know that your child, like an adult, needs medicines too. However, in their case, giving them meds may be different than adults as you have to be sure that the dosage and medicines are correct and safely consumed.
Your child doesn’t usually need medicines for minor illnesses such as coughs and colds. If you can, use home remedies to treat them since they are easy to acquire and use. If you have to provide them with meds, make sure that you take them to a doctor first so you have a better idea on the prescriptions of said meds for your child.
If you are looking up the Internet, ensure that you are only reading from trusted, official websites of recognized medical organizations or establishments.
Ibuprofen and paracetamol
Your child, whether they are a baby or a toddler, is safe to take ibuprofen or paracetamol should they feel pain and a high body temperature. As both are available as liquid medicines, take those. Make sure that it is sugar free or your child’s teeth can be affected by too much sugar, just like if they eat too many sweets.
Your child should be two months of age or older if they are to take paracetamol. Three months if they are taking ibuprofen. Regarding aspirins, never give your child any when they are under 16 since it can lead to a rare but dangerous disease called Reye’s syndrome.
Antibiotics
If you are wondering whether your child should take antibiotics, the answer is unnecessary. Literally. Unless prescribed by the doctor, childhood illnesses are caused more by viruses than bacterias. If they have to take them, it is best to finish the whole course even when they are better so every harmful bacteria is eliminated.
The reason for this is because not only the infection may come back to inhabit inside your child again, but the bacteria will also already be taking lessons on resisting antibiotics like a tank. Thus, you should keep reminding yourself to give your child their antibiotics so they wouldn’t miss the dosage.
Liquid medicine
Earlier, it was mentioned that you should feed your child with ibuprofen and paracetamol that appear as liquid medicines. This is because it is easy for you to feed and for your child to swallow. You might see pictures, advertisements or videos of liquid medicines being fed with a spoon.
Avoid this since you might inaccurately measure the volume, and thus the prescribed dosage, of the medicine. Furthermore, not all spoons are made with the same exact sizes, which is something to factor into when measuring your medicine.
Even if you could use a small, medical measuring cup to read the volumes and pour it onto your spoon, it is best if you do not bother with this method at all.
Instead, use medical oral syringes. They have unit measurements that you can use to read the volume with precision, and they are much easier to feed your child with.
If you think you can try to mix the medicine with a small amount of juice or water to hide the bitter taste, ask your doctor or pharmacist first. Follow their instructions and make sure that your child drinks all of the fluids.