Parental Filter

As adults we are told to take the full course of our medication until it is finished, does the same apply for babies/children, because I am thinking, why continue to medicate even after they are ok, their little bodies can take so much and no more.

Usually with an antibiotic, the Dr will tell you to continue the course of treatment. I will usually ask the Dr how long they should take the meds.

yes ask the doctor if you are in doubt. This morning there was a news segment about bad side effect of cough medicine for children. Apparently some parents give their kids more then the recommended dosage. That sounds very scary to me.

When it comes to antibiotics I always make sure that the boys finish them. I have had strep come back before because I didn't finish them out.

Of course, with antibiotics I always make sure that they finish the whole course as prescribed by the pediatrician. If you do not plan on making them finish, you might not as well get them started at all because it is only going to do more harm than good.

Even if they seem better already, there are still bacterias that are left behind and if you stop with the antibiotics prematurely, these bacterias are only going to regain their strength and having encountered with the specific antibiotic already these bacterias will then have developed immunities against the certain med, and this time when the sickness reoccurs it is only going to be so much worse.

Our pediatricians know what they are doing, it is their job to know, and unless you are absolutely very sure that they are prescribing your child with some sort of poison for a prolonged time and dosage, I think you should learn to trust them.

I think everyone agree with your thinkings.Antibiotics should be finished even though you already get better. You sounds like a doctor, are you one? The reasons you put up there are exactly what my doctor told me. You two must be graduated from the same university.

But for other medicines, such as those for fever, I think we can stop them once we feel better as taking them can make us very weak and sleepy.

Fever is caused by the bacteria that antibiotics destroy, so I'd keep giving fever medicine until it's all gone in that case.

If the child broke a bone or something and was given some kind of pain medication, that's when the bottle will say "as needed" and those don't need to be finished if the doctor says to take them just when needed for pain, headache, etc.

Take medicine as prescribed by your doctor, it is especially important that you always take the full course of antibiotics.

Yes, you should follow your doctor's advice. He/she is better qualified than you to know what medication is right for your child.