Highlight Topics: Medication for Children and Drinking Among Teens/Adolescents

Children (All Ages)

Medication

Every year, medications used to treat our children's illness cause more harm because of the way in which we give them to our children. Poison control centers receive a staggering number of calls regarding actual and possible poisonings to children from both over the counter and prescription medications. In Australia, estimates are that approximately 140,000 calls come into the poison control centers and many of those calls results in actual hospital admissions. One of the most pressing issues is the instruments we use to measure out the specified dose. Just take a few teaspoons in your house and measure the difference between what you would dispense using the spoon in your drawer versus the 5ml that is actually the correct dose for a 'teaspoon' amount. Of course, it can be even more difficult when partial doses are required, a child is given medication at home, school and a care-givers house and every parent knows about losing some valuable medication to spills and our children refusing to take the medication. Often we are in a situation where they have had 'some' but we know they did not get the correct dose. NCS strongly recommends visiting your local pharmacist and asking to purchase a special spoon like instrument that will correctly measure the dose required along with helping avoid spillage. These devices are very inexpensive and we also suggest you pick up extras so you can have one in the diaper bag, at a caregivers house and leave one at Grandma's.

Recent studies in Australia have highlighted the risks along with providing excellent tips for making sure your child receives the correct amount of medication in order that their illness/condition is treated properly and that we avoid exposing our children to possible risks. Read More.

Teens/Adolescents

More Young Women Drinking and Driving (16-24 Years of Age)

The US. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration just released finding from a study that examined alcohol related accidents over 12 years and had data from over 175,000 fatal car accidents. The accident rate dropped for men, primarily in the youngest age groups. However, among young women ages 17 to 24 years, the accident rate either stayed the same or increased. The authors cite a number of reasons for these findings along with recommending that key messaging about the risks and dangers of drinking and driving be directed specifically to young women of all age groups. http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=113408

Does Your Teen Drink Energy Drinks? If So, Talk to Them About the Consequences of Mixing Alcohol

Of course this study does not solely apply to teenagers or young adults, we all need this information but parents have a great opportunity to understand the effects of consuming the high energy drinks that contain large amounts of caffeine and then mixing them with alcohol too. In Florida, researchers asked 800 college-age individuals about their use of energy drinks and alcohol. Results showed that those who mixed the two were more likely drunk compared to individuals who only drank alcohol and were 4 times more likely to state they planned on driving within the hour. Authors explained that the state of being 'wide awake drunk' where the sleepiness caused by alcohol is off-set by the increased levels of caffeine may result in more risk behavior Click here for more

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