Unfortunately, giving a toddler medicine is often not that easy. There are very few children who swallow pills without stamping their feet, writhing or crying. Unfortunately, this applies to both the youngest and the few-year-olds who are already tired of the disease and unwilling to cooperate. Such additional worry on the parent’s head during illness is a real challenge…
Fortunately, there are ways to convince our rebel to take the preparation.
How to deal with babies and toddlers
Of course, keeping calm. It is known that our irritation can grow to a considerable size when we try to give the child a medicine again and his well-being continues to deteriorate. However, it is patience (as well as in the whole process of upbringing) that will be crucial here.
- Form – most medicines for children at this age have a liquid form – drops, suspensions, syrups. They are usually sweet in taste, fragrant, colorful. They can tempt with the aroma of oranges or raspberries. It is best to take the trial and error method, so try different preparations (of course not at once …) and choose the one that will appeal to your baby the most. This method will work mainly with antipyretics, of which there are many.
- Preparation prescribed by a doctor – if a specialist orders us to use a special pharmaceutical, the matter is different. First of all, you need to check if the drug is available in different forms, perhaps we will find the most appropriate one for our child. Such a decision should be consulted with a doctor, ask about the forms in which the product is available.
- Tablets – before giving to the youngest children, they should be crushed and preferably mixed with milk, yoghurt or any other liquid the child likes (however, this form should also be consulted with a doctor).
- Caution – currently in pharmacies we can find many preparations in various forms: for sucking, which are willingly taken by children, or in the form of a tasty syrup. It should be remembered that the medicine must be adapted to the age of our little one!
The Old Man’s Manual
The truth is that the older the child, the more difficult it will be to get them used to swallowing pills whole. And it’s important to convince your child of this when the need arises, because the older they are, the more age-appropriate medicines come in the form of tablets, not syrups. Some children “catch” the swallowing mechanism already at the age of several years, others need more time. This skill is worth training – preferably in a stress-free form, not on medications, but, for example, on swallowing finely chopped pieces of boiled carrot.
The tablets must not be administered with milk or citrus juices. The safest is water and given after swallowing a treat. Always read the leaflet carefully when administering the medicine.