Children's allergies cause parents to worry, struggle to find means of relief

New Delhi: Parents around the world have a hard time when their children fall ill owing to allergies due to change in weather dynamics. The case as it is now, with the air full of seasonal allergies, it calls for requisite measures to keep your kids safe.

That said, parents do tend to worry for their kids and resort to stocking up on over-the-counter medications, which would help treat kids for flu symptoms like coughing, sneezing and congestion.

According to a report from the CS Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health, dosing, labelling and a seemingly endless range of allergy medication options can make picking the right medicine a complicated task for some parents.

"Parents often face an overwhelming selection of allergy medicine without clear guidelines on how to choose the right one for their child," said poll co-director and paediatrician Gary Freed.

"Some parents may be picking allergy medication based on their interpretation of different advice they've heard, which may not always be accurate," he added.

The Mott poll report is based on responses from a national sample of 1,066 parents of children ages 6-12 who were asked about experiences with giving children over-the-counter allergy medicines. Over half had given allergy medicine to their school-aged child in the past year.

85% parents who gave children allergy medicine used medication they already had in the house, with one in five (18%) not checking the expiration date first.

"While outdated medicines are unlikely to be dangerous, they may have lost some of their effectiveness," Freed noted.

Most parents used allergy medicines labelled for children, but one in seven (15%) have given their child over-the-counter allergy medicine labelled for adults. A third of those using adult medications gave their child the dose recommended for adults while two-thirds gave a partial adult dose.

Medicines meant for adults often contain the same ingredients as those meant for kids, however, they often do not carry paediatric dosing instructions.

"If taken as directed, over-the-counter allergy medicines are safe and effective for children, but parents should be very careful to give their child the correct dose. Doses greater than recommended for children can result in more severe side effects," Freed continued.

Freed advises parents to read the ingredients on the box to help them shop for the best priced option that fits their child's needs. A good rule of thumb is to match a child's symptoms to the medicine included in the product. For example, antihistamines can help with runny nose and itchy eyes while decongestants help with a stuffy nose.

Doctors are parents' top source for advice about allergy medicine (61%) but almost a third of parents (32%) say they turn to a friend or family member and 38% ask a pharmacist. Overall, 21% of parents report that it is hard to figure out the right dose of allergy medicine for their child.

"If parents are unsure how to navigate allergy medication choices, they should always check with their child's health care provider," Freed concluded.

(With ANI inputs)