For those of us lucky enough to have a child, keeping them safe and healthy is our only goal. Stopping them from crawling off the bed, slamming their fingers in a cupboard or eating dog food are just a few of the million daily challenges all parents face while keeping their children safe. We also put an amazing effort into keeping our children healthy. Every sound, movement and stool sample is analysed in detail to ensure our little bundles of joy are eating, growing and sleeping like they should be.Occasionally though, when something is wrong with our precious offspring, doctors must be consulted. Stomach and digestive tract problems can make it extremely difficult for babies to settle, get to sleep and stay asleep. Diagnosing these kinds of illnesses in babies can be quite difficult, and even if your doctor is able to diagnose a problem in this area, treating the issue can be just as difficult. Treatments that would usually be used for an adult suffering the same problem can be unsuitable for number of reasons.
These reasons range from;
Tiny Human Size Troubles – Dosage Size and Strength
Often when treating illnesses, medications have been formulated specifically for treatment of adults with the dosage size much too large for a baby or small child. This can leave parents in the difficult situation of having to estimate the dosage for the child, crushing or breaking up the adult dosage and measuring out a proportion themselves. In many cases, this is not an acceptable solution, and your doctor can consult with a compounding pharmacist to tailor a custom solution for the child with the correct dosage size and strength.
Many medications are created for adults and are unsuitable for infants and small children
Lollipop Pills? – Dosage Form
Not only can the dosage size be unsuitable, so can the form of the medication, whether it be bulky pills or capsules that are not compatible with tiny mouthes, throats and stomachs. In the compounding process, we can alleviate this problem, producing your child’s medicine in a form that won’t send them running out the door in fear of medicine time. Lollipops, chewable lozenges, syrups, suspensions, ice blocks, transdermal gels and even pacifier dosages for infants are all possible when compounding a medicine for your child.
Allergies and Sensitivities
As all parents know, food allergies and food sensitivities have become increasingly common in children, and the world of treatments and medications are no different. The multitude of drug sensitivities present in children these days mean that the mass produced treatments for your child may be unsuitable due to drug allergies or sensitivities, and this is where compounding pharmacists can help. In collaboration with your doctor, we can compound a solution that will suit your child’s needs.
It just tastes so bad Mum – Unpalatability
Are your kids fussy about food? Imagine a yucky tasting medicine. No chance!
Another simple but tricky problem to solve can be the awful taste of some medications, which we can also take care of with compounding expertise. Because we are actually creating your medication from scratch, we can add or take away whatever is needed to make the medication palatable for your little ones.
The Right Stuff – Preservatives and Dyes
Another aspect of some mass produced medications that can prove unsuitable for some children are the preservatives and dyes used by large drug companies. If your child is not able to have certain preservatives, but the only available medication is chock full of that preservative, what’s a parent to do? Talk to your doctor and consult with an expert compounding pharmacist, that’s what!
Well folks, we hope you enjoyed our discussion of compounding for babies, we hope it helps when you need other medication options for your children. Call us our lab on 08 9272 8726 if you need any help or would like to discuss any of the above, or send us an email at [email protected]. Take care and we will see you next time at Mckenzie’s Chemist in Mt Lawley for all your compounding needs.