Cold Medicines Dangerous For Infants And Toddlers

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is warning not to give over-the-counter cold and cough medicines to children 2 years of age or under without consulting with one's doctor.

This warning is the result of research that was conducted in response to the deaths of three infants in 2005; all of them were found to have dangerous levels of pseudoephedrine, a nasal decongestant, in their systems.

In total, the study found that 1,519 toddlers and babies ended up in hospital emergency rooms after experiencing bad reactions to cough or cold medicine from 2004 to 2005.

What exactly is pseudoephedrine? It is a drug that causes the autonomic nervous system to constrict blood vessels throughout the body.

When a person experiences nasal congestion with a cold or with seasonal allergies, the congestion is usually due to swollen blood vessels in the mucosal lining of the nasal passageway. Taking pseudoephedrine can effectively constrict these swollen blood vessels and make it easier to breathe. Unfortunately, because pseudoephedrine acts on the entire autonomic nervous system and does not know to effect only the nasal passageway, it invariably causes a number of physiological changes throughout the body. Some would call these changes side effects. The informed know that they are just effects.

The CDC reports that they are not sure how much pseudoephedrine can cause illness or death in infants and toddlers, as the Food and Drug Administration does not have a recommended dosage for children who are 2 years of age or younger.

To learn several natural methods that can be used to prevent and treat nasal congestion, view the Related section below.