Allergy Medication Use

For many children, spring and fall means allergies and allergy medications. Many parents turn to allergy meds to lessen their children’s symptoms: runny nose, congestion, sneezing, itchy eyes, and coughing. C. S. Mott recently polled the parents of children six to twelve years old, asking how and when they use allergy medications for their children.

•    55% of parents gave their children an allergy medication in the previous year. 91% of them gave the medicine to treat symptoms and half also used the drugs to prevent symptoms.

•    89% used allergy medicines labeled for children. 15% admitted to using adult allergy meds; 31% gave their children an adult dose and 65% a partial dose.

•    When seeking advice on giving allergy medicine, 65% asked their doctor, 38% a pharmacist, and 32% a friend or family member. Some sought advice from more than one source.

•    Only 21% of the parents surveyed knew that the over-the-counter allergy medicines contain the same ingredients as over-the-counter cold medicines.

It’s important to remember that allergy medicines only treat the symptoms of an allergy and not the underlying cause. Parents should be aware that they may be overdosing their children if they give them both an allergy medicine and a cold medicine. That’s one important reason to know the contents of all medicines given to children.

C. S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll, 4/17