Antitussives for children

Parents believe that the baby is sick if he starts coughing. However, a cough in itself is not an ailment, it is only a symptom, a sign that there are certain disorders in the body. Therefore, it is not worth treating it, you need to find and cure its cause. However, to alleviate the child's condition, special medications are often used to reduce the intensity of the cough. We will talk about them today.

Types of medicines

Antitussives are effective for dealing with an unproductive (dry) cough. Especially if he severely torments the child with frequent attacks, especially at night. An agonizing cough is easy to recognize - the child cannot clear his throat in any way, and the defense mechanism, which is essentially a cough, does not bring the expected relief.

All cough medicines are divided into two types:

Centrally acting drugs. They can be both narcotic, more often based on codeine, which are not used in pediatrics, with the exception of severe cases when the disease is being treated in a hospital. Usually children are prescribed non-narcotic antitussives of central action, for example, based on butamirate.
Peripheral drugs. They are not narcotic, such drugs are widely used in the treatment of children, they are not addictive, and in their effect are in no way inferior to codeine-containing ones.

Quite often we have to witness situations when parents ask the pharmacist to give "something for a child's cough." The pharmacist gives. Something. This approach is unacceptable.

Antitussive medicines cannot be picked up on their own, or even more so in absentia, without seeing the child. After all, the reasons that can cause a cough are many: bronchitis, pneumonia, whooping cough, and pharyngitis, as well as allergies, "habitual" cough caused by psychological problems, some diseases of the heart and digestive system, very dry air in the house.

Only the drug that acts on the true causes of the symptom will be effective. And it is up to the doctor to decide what kind of medicine it will be.

The modern pharmaceutical industry offers a wide range of options: products are available in the form of syrups, drops, solutions for inhalation, chewable lozenges, tablets, and topical sprays.

Contraindications

Often the creators of television advertisements confuse concepts and mislead people by offering them to buy remedies for "dry and wet cough". This is a marketing gimmick that has nothing to do with the truth. The antitussive agent is always, in 100% of cases, intended only for therapy with dry cough. Remedies that help with a wet cough are called mucolytic (expectorant). We will talk about them next time.

In no case should a child be given both drugs at the same time. After all, an antitussive agent will inhibit the coughing process itself, and if the baby is already sputum (that is, the same wet cough is observed), then such a medicine will cause stagnation of mucus in the bronchi, and the child's position will become completely unenviable. It is fraught with the development of pneumonia and other serious complications.

List of popular children's cough medicines

For newborns and children under one year old

"Sinekod" (drops). Quite pleasant to the taste drops in a bottle with a convenient dispenser. It is better for very young children to give them in the dosage indicated by the doctor. "Sinekod" should not be given to children under the age of 2 months. With great care, the medicine is prescribed for dry cough and for children under the age of two. This drug is recommended for coughs caused by various diseases, including whooping cough and pneumonia. The dosage for infants is 10 drops of "Sinekod" 4 times a day.
"Panatus" (syrup). This drug is very effective for dry and unproductive coughs caused by bronchitis, pharyngitis, whooping cough. The medicine should not be given to children under six months of age. The dosage at one time for toddlers from 6 months is 2.5 ml. The frequency of admission is 4 times a day.

For children from 1 to 3 years old

"Sinekod" (drops). This antitussive drug for this age group is also given in the form of oral drops. The dosage is determined by the doctor, the average statistical dose for children from 1 year old is 15 drops four times a day.
Stoptussin (drops). This is a combination medicine, it has shown itself to be the best for dry irritating cough, which occurs in children with infectious inflammatory processes in the upper and lower respiratory tract. The dosage of the drug is prescribed by the doctor, calculating it taking into account the weight of the baby. From 1 year old for low-weight children with a weight of up to 7 kilograms, no more than 8 drops are prescribed at a time three times a day. Children who weigh up to 12 kilograms can be given three or four times a day, 9 drops of the drug. For children under 20 kilograms, the initial single dose will be 15 drops three times a day.
"Panatus" (syrup). This medicine for babies of the indicated age is used in an initial dosage of 5 ml. The frequency of admission is no more than four times a day.
"Glycodin" (syrup). This drug is quite effective for dry cough, which accompanies both acute and chronic respiratory diseases. The syrup should not be given to children under one year old, and babies from 1 to 3 years old must consult a doctor. The doctor prescribes the dosage of the syrup individually.

For children from 3 to 5 years old

"Sinekod" (syrup). Grown-up babies can be given Sinekod in the form of a sweet syrup. It is pleasant, does not cause disgust, and is usually drunk quite easily. The dosage of the drug for children aged 3 years, 4 years, 5 years and a little older is 5 ml of syrup three times a day. If there is a desire or need (diabetes mellitus, for example) to give a child at this age, "Sinekod" in drops, then the initial dose for three years of age is 25 drops four times a day.
Omnitus (syrup). A drug that relieves dry cough with influenza and SARS is prescribed only to children who have reached the age of three. The permissible dose at the age of 3 to 5 years is 10 ml of syrup three times a day.
Codelac Neo. This syrup is considered one of the most effective treatments for dry cough in children who are three years old. It tastes pretty good. Babies from three to five are prescribed a dose not exceeding 5 ml. Syrup can be given three times a day, if the child refuses to drink it, "Codelac Neo" can be diluted with a little tea or juice. The course of treatment is five days. If the cough persists, this is a good reason to see a doctor again.
"Panatus" (syrup). This medicine is pleasant to the taste and has a neutral taste. Children of the indicated age are prescribed in a dosage of not more than 10 ml at a time. Syrup should be given 3-4 times a day.
"Alex Plus" (lozenges). This cough medicine can be given to children 4 years of age and older. The consequences of taking at an earlier age are not well understood, and therefore it is better not to risk it. Children from 4 to 6 years old are given 1 lozenge three times a day.
Bronholitin (syrup). This medicine not only suppresses dry cough, but also dilates the bronchi, which promotes a speedy recovery. This property of the drug is very useful in the treatment of bronchitis, tracheobronchitis, pneumonia. For children from 3 years of age, syrup can be given 10 ml at a time, three times.

For children aged 5 and over

"Sinekod" (syrup). The dosage of syrup for such children with dry cough is from 10 ml. of the drug 3 times a day, starting from the age of 12, the dosage should be equal to that of an adult and start from 15 ml at a time 3-4 times a day (depending on the intensity of the cough and the doctor's recommendations).
Codelac Neo (syrup). In senior preschool and primary school age, this drug is prescribed quite often. It helps with coughs caused by various causes, including whooping cough. Dosage for children from 5 to 12 years old - 10 ml of syrup three times a day. A three-fold intake is preserved as a rule for children over 12 years old, however, for them the dosage increases, and starts from 15 ml.
Omnitus (syrup). This drug is prescribed for children over five years old mainly for dry cough, which appears in a child during influenza or respiratory viral infections. The initial dose is 15 ml of syrup three times a day. For children over 10 years old, the dose is doubled, it is 30 ml.
Panatus (tablets). This solid antitussive drug is not recommended for children under 6 years of age. Starting from the age of six, the medicine is dosed in 1 tablet twice a day. After 12 years, with a dry and harsh cough, a teenager is recommended 1 tablet three times a day.
"Bronholitin" (syrup). This medicine contains ethanol in its composition, and therefore it should not be taken uncontrollably in any case. According to the doctor's prescription, "Bronholitin" is given to children from 5 years of age at a dosage of 5 ml three times a day, after 10 years a single dose doubles, however, the frequency of administration remains the same - no more than 3 times a day.
"Alex Plus" (lozenges). These lozenges can be given to children from 5 years old, provided that the child is not allergic to the components of the medicine. The dosage for this age category is no more than two lozenges at a time. They can be given 3 or 4 times a day, it all depends on the severity of the cough.

Folk remedies

Numerous folk remedies that are used to treat dry cough in children, are most effective if they are used in the early stages of the disease, before the cough turns into a lingering (up to 3 weeks) or chronic (more than 3 months).

The most popular alternative medicines are licorice, ginger, breast collection, chamomile, sage, thyme.

Aromatic procedures using pine oils are useful. Before going to bed, children with a dry, agonizing cough can be given honey with milk if the baby is not allergic to bee products. Very well soothes a night cough and green herbal tea with milk, as well as compresses with vegetable oil (you can use olive oil) and badger fat.

General recommendations

Antitussives are most effective when given to your child before meals. It is advisable that the interval between taking the drug and eating is about half an hour.
With an allergic cough, an additional intake of antihistamines is required, otherwise it will be impossible to cure the baby. As long as the allergic reaction persists, he will continue to cough.

When treating dry cough, be sure to monitor the humidity in the apartment where the child lives, humidify the air with wet towels or using special devices.
Throughout the therapy, the child needs an abundant warm drink.