Each year, about 50,000 children under 5 years old end up in emergency departments for poisoning after swallowing medicine they shouldn't have.
Medications are meant to improve and save lives. But when a medicine gets into the wrong hands and is taken by a child or teen, the results can be deadly. That’s why all prescription drugs, over-the-counter medicines and supplements should be stored safely and kept out of reach.
Protecting children & teens
Even small amounts of some common medicines can be deadly for babies and young children—sometimes just a pill or two. This includes opioids, heart and diabetes medications and even vitamins or supplements. And teenagers can make poor choices with pills, especially prescriptions, often with tragic results.
If your child is unconscious, not breathing, having seizures or other worrisome symptoms from possible poison contact or ingestion,
call 911 or your local emergency number. If your child has mild or no symptoms, call or email the Poison Center, 1-800-222-1222 or
PoisonHelp.org.
Just like you protect your child in your vehicle by using car seats and seat belts, you need to protect your children at home by locking up medicines and
other common household poisons. Here are some medicine safety tips for parents, grandparents and anyone who has a child or teen in their home:
Safe storage: out of reach & sight
Use medicine containers with safety caps. Remember that safety caps are child-resistant. This means it is hard for a young child to open the cap. No medicine container is fully childproof and children may be able to open child-resistant caps so keep them
out of reach and sight of children.
Store all prescription and over-the-counter medicines safely and supplements in their original packages in locked cabinets or containers. Safety latches that lock when you close a cabinet door can help keep children away from harmful products, but they do not always work.
Consider buying a small safe or lockbox to lock up all medicines and drugs.
Put medicines back into safe storage right after using them. Never leave children alone with medicines. If you have medicine open and you must do something else, like answer the phone, take the medicine with you.
Remind babysitters, grandparents and other visitors to keep purses, bags or jackets that have medicines in them away from children's reach.
Taking & giving your child medicine
When taking medicine, do it over a bathroom sink and/or away from common areas of your home in case you drop or spill it. If you spill medicine, clean it up immediately. For many opioids and other powerful painkillers, even a small amount consumed or absorbed through the skin (liquid and patches) can be life-threatening.
Never refer to medicine as "candy" or another appealing name. This can confuse or tempt a child to try other pills when you're not watching.
Be careful to give the correct dose and
measure it out exactly. This includes reading the label each time you give over-the-counter drugs like acetaminophen and ibuprofen, two popular pain and fever medicines. Giving the wrong dose of a medication by mistake is a common medication error that leads to emergency department visits.
Use a medicine syringe or dropper to measure the correct amount. Don't use regular kitchen spoons, because they are not accurate for measuring medicine. (See, "How to Use Liquid Medicines for Children.")
Be aware that some
over-the-counter medicine is adult-strength and never should be used with children. Talk about safer options with your pediatrician or pharmacist.
Give the medicine at the recommended times instructed to, based on your prescription or what your doctor told you. If you forget to give a dose, give it as soon as possible and give the next dose at the correct time following the late dose. Do not give two doses at the same time or extra doses without speaking with your doctor. If you are unsure about giving a dose, check with your doctor or pharmacist.
Get answers
Ask questions. Many parents have trouble understanding medicine instructions. Also, many medications and supplements are not recommended in children. If you are confused about how or whether to give your child a medicine, it is better to ask questions than to give the medicine incorrectly.
Ask your doctor or pharmacist to
show you how much medicine to give using the dosing tool you plan to use. Or tell your doctor or pharmacist how much you plan to give. Then
ask if what you said is correct.
Ask your doctor or pharmacist to
write down the instructions on a piece of paper for you to take home.
Ask for information in the language you prefer. Have an interpreter give you instructions in your preferred language.
Check with your child's doctor or pharmacist before mixing medicine with
food or liquid.
Avoid unnecessary medicines
Give medications that treat symptoms (such as long-lasting cough) only if your child needs it.
Over-the-counter cough or cold medicines are not recommended for children under 6 years, and they should never be used in children under 2. Over-the-counter cough and cold medicines can have serious side effects.
Cold medications often have more than one type of medicine in one bottle (a pain reliever such as acetaminophen plus a cough medicine). Do not give a medicine for fever or pain if you have already given a cold medicine that has a fever or pain medicine in it. It is usually best to avoid products with multiple medicines and give one medicine at a time.
You can give medicine to lower your child's fever if your child has a fever over 102 degrees Fahrenheit. Remember that fever is a sign that the body is fighting the infection. Medicine to bring fever down is an issue of comfort for a child. It's not necessary if your child is comfortable.
Safely dispose of medications
Safely discard all unused medications, particularly powerful drugs like opioids and heart and diabetes drugs. Read the medicine label for safe ways to get rid of old or extra medicine. Medicine patches used for pain relief should be removed, folded in half and
flushed.
Many pharmacies, poison control centers, public safety stations and doctor's offices will accept old medicines for safe disposal but call first. For more information, visit
here.
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