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Children's Tylenol Gets a Time Out: The Perils Infecting Pediatric Medicines
Filed under: Health & Safety: Babies, In The News, Alerts & Recalls, Health & Safety: Toddlers & Preschoolers
An illness is lingering in the kiddie medicine aisle this flu season, but it's not feverish school kids. Blame it on Big Pharma.
There isn't any Children's Tylenol, Motrin, Benadryl or Zyrtec on the shelves and won't be until spring, according to Johnson & Johnson, the uber drugmaker that over the past year has recalled a laundry list of pediatric pills and liquids. The first recall came last January, the most recent last month.
Oh, there's nothing too toxic. Some products were stronger than usual. Some harbored an extra something-something like a musty odor traced to 2,4,6-tribromoanisole, a chemical in wooden pallets around the drug warehouse. Sounds frightening but the recalls are voluntary. No one's reported any "adverse medical events" save minor stomach upset. Hmmm. Could I be vomiting because I'm sick? No, must be that pill.
Last spring, I returned several bottles and packages of the recalled medicines to my local drugstore. Most of the items I'd already opened and used. Only a smattering of generics remained in stock and not a single dose of cetirizine hydrochloride (a.k.a. Zyrtec), not ideal with tree pollen peaking. Worried about relinquishing the Zyrtec with my kids weezing and sneezing through spring allergies I didn't return all of it. Nor did I gather up the rest of the suspect meds in my house. I didn't want to go without an emergency stash of pain relievers either. You never know when someone's going to fall from the monkey bars or wake up with a 104.5 fever. Anyhow, I'd already given the meds to my children before the recalls so I wasn't completely worried. In fact, I'd given them a lot of the antihistamines. I've used them since and maybe the others meds too. The kids seemed fine, no ill effects.
I cannot say the same for myself. No one might have been seriously sickened, but I'm sick of this mess.
Pediatric medicines are a public health nuisance, but not because they stink or cause diarrhea. Dosing remains treacherous. The microscopic dosing instructions and markings are ridiculous. Now there's official evidence that dosing materials suck. A recent study of pediatric products published by the Journal of the American Medical Association chronicled widespread problems including items sold without measuring "devices," missing or inconsistent markings on the devices, unusual units (e.g., drams) and confusing abbreviations.
Then there's the not so child-proof packaging. Remember two years ago when the FDA banned cough and cold meds for children under 2 due to safety concerns such as fatal side effects? Manufacturers agreed to a label that kids under 4 shouldn't use them. Shortly thereafter a study in the journal Pediatrics concluded that indeed the drugs were dangerous ... due to insufficient child-proofing. Most ER visits attributable to the meds involved "self-administered" overdoses mainly by preschoolers who helped themselves to the candy-colored, fruity concoctions. Most other ER visits resulted from accidental overdoses administered by adults. I can't imagine it's any different with other children's products.
So let's be honest about kiddie medicines: Their peril stems from deficiencies in dosing materials and packaging. Protracted recalls that promote a sense of alarm without any real evidence of harm don't help, either. Neither do bans that fail to stress the actual hazards (packaging, dosing).
As a psychologist who's parented through a decade of warnings and risks -- including the vaccines-autism scare -- I think about the consequences of repeated threats of danger, especially exaggerated threats.
When harm lurks everywhere, it's not only stressful, but potentially precarious. After too many false alarms, people stop paying attention to nuances or downplay risks so it's harder to distinguish serious threats from moderate or remote ones. The worst case scenario? The next thalidomide doesn't look much worse than Children's Tylenol. Then we'll all need to take two aspirin and lay down.
Correction, Dec. 15, 2010: The original version of this column erroneously reported that Johnson & Johnson is the producer of Advil. We've corrected the error.
More on recalled children's tylenol:
There isn't any Children's Tylenol, Motrin, Benadryl or Zyrtec on the shelves and won't be until spring, according to Johnson & Johnson, the uber drugmaker that over the past year has recalled a laundry list of pediatric pills and liquids. The first recall came last January, the most recent last month.
Oh, there's nothing too toxic. Some products were stronger than usual. Some harbored an extra something-something like a musty odor traced to 2,4,6-tribromoanisole, a chemical in wooden pallets around the drug warehouse. Sounds frightening but the recalls are voluntary. No one's reported any "adverse medical events" save minor stomach upset. Hmmm. Could I be vomiting because I'm sick? No, must be that pill.
Last spring, I returned several bottles and packages of the recalled medicines to my local drugstore. Most of the items I'd already opened and used. Only a smattering of generics remained in stock and not a single dose of cetirizine hydrochloride (a.k.a. Zyrtec), not ideal with tree pollen peaking. Worried about relinquishing the Zyrtec with my kids weezing and sneezing through spring allergies I didn't return all of it. Nor did I gather up the rest of the suspect meds in my house. I didn't want to go without an emergency stash of pain relievers either. You never know when someone's going to fall from the monkey bars or wake up with a 104.5 fever. Anyhow, I'd already given the meds to my children before the recalls so I wasn't completely worried. In fact, I'd given them a lot of the antihistamines. I've used them since and maybe the others meds too. The kids seemed fine, no ill effects.
I cannot say the same for myself. No one might have been seriously sickened, but I'm sick of this mess.
Pediatric medicines are a public health nuisance, but not because they stink or cause diarrhea. Dosing remains treacherous. The microscopic dosing instructions and markings are ridiculous. Now there's official evidence that dosing materials suck. A recent study of pediatric products published by the Journal of the American Medical Association chronicled widespread problems including items sold without measuring "devices," missing or inconsistent markings on the devices, unusual units (e.g., drams) and confusing abbreviations.
Then there's the not so child-proof packaging. Remember two years ago when the FDA banned cough and cold meds for children under 2 due to safety concerns such as fatal side effects? Manufacturers agreed to a label that kids under 4 shouldn't use them. Shortly thereafter a study in the journal Pediatrics concluded that indeed the drugs were dangerous ... due to insufficient child-proofing. Most ER visits attributable to the meds involved "self-administered" overdoses mainly by preschoolers who helped themselves to the candy-colored, fruity concoctions. Most other ER visits resulted from accidental overdoses administered by adults. I can't imagine it's any different with other children's products.
So let's be honest about kiddie medicines: Their peril stems from deficiencies in dosing materials and packaging. Protracted recalls that promote a sense of alarm without any real evidence of harm don't help, either. Neither do bans that fail to stress the actual hazards (packaging, dosing).
As a psychologist who's parented through a decade of warnings and risks -- including the vaccines-autism scare -- I think about the consequences of repeated threats of danger, especially exaggerated threats.
When harm lurks everywhere, it's not only stressful, but potentially precarious. After too many false alarms, people stop paying attention to nuances or downplay risks so it's harder to distinguish serious threats from moderate or remote ones. The worst case scenario? The next thalidomide doesn't look much worse than Children's Tylenol. Then we'll all need to take two aspirin and lay down.
Correction, Dec. 15, 2010: The original version of this column erroneously reported that Johnson & Johnson is the producer of Advil. We've corrected the error.
More on recalled children's tylenol:
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ReaderComments (Page 1 of 2)
12-15-2010 @ 3:51PM
Rebecca Walters said...I believe you have one inaccuracy in your article. I think you should have said Motrin instead of Advil. Tylenol, Motrin, Benadryl, and Zyrtec are all owned by McNeil. Advil is put out by Pfizer.
It's hard to know but is there anyway to find out of the generic brands are "safe" since the major brands are apparently not?
Reply
12-15-2010 @ 5:00PM
Susan Avery said...Thanks, Rebecca. We've corrected the error. Much appreciated.
12-19-2010 @ 12:45AM
mdmomma said...Drugging your children???? Get real! We are talking about Tylenol right??When your 2 year old has a fever of 102 are you saying just let them have their febrile seizure, then give em some tea and honey? Tylenol serves a purpose, use it correctly, only when needed, at the proper dose. Use some common sense, which unfortunately these days is not that common. For the person who recommended "old fashioned" aspirin. Any doctor ( or smart parent) knows you should never give aspirin to a child!
12-16-2010 @ 8:37PM
Green mama said...I will never give my children any of those products. The fact is that they are filled with so many things that are not good for children. Instead try to give them something all natural? We eat healthy and no junk food. We rarely ever go to the doctor because were never sick. One bottle of organic unfiltered apple cider vinegar is all you need. Add some honey if your throat hurts and add elderberry if your throat is inflamed. Hot chamomile tea is your best friend. Come on people quit drugging up your children. Those med's only mask the symptoms and don't fix them.
Reply
12-17-2010 @ 4:31AM
Crystal said...The only problem with that is that people do not fully understand how to do this. So they end up giving their child something that is, yes natural but also could be harmful for the child because they don't understand how the whole homeopathic thing works. I mean don't get me wrong.....I love natural, organic stuff.....but just like any other remedy, people need to be educated about it and follow instructions accurately.
12-17-2010 @ 11:22AM
JennyJen said...My husband & I are constantly debating about this. He wants to medicate the kids for every little thing, & I prefer to use natural methods first, like steamy showers for congestion. I only use tylenol/motrin for fevers over 101, but he wants to give it to them as soon as they start getting the sniffles & give cold meds to them. My oldest is on Flonase, because he has chronic congestion (so much that at one point it was effecting his hearing because there was so much fluid behind his tympanic membrane). I hate it & have been trying to improve air quality & such in our home. We buy the highest quality air filters & use humidifiers, it is helping. I just learned about use honey or corn syrup for coughs, but haven't tried it yet.
12-17-2010 @ 9:57AM
teresa said...thank you so much for writing this! i have wondered "what the deal was" with this. i have always given my son,(now almost four), tylenol,etc. since birth, and he has NEVER had any side effects! i just figured that the government might of had them pulled due to it works/ and i am sure the company makes a lot of money,; maybe more than the government likes them to have. i have seen that done before.
Reply
12-16-2010 @ 9:15PM
J V L said...My mother and grandmother dosed us with Saint Joseph's Aspirin for Children. We never developed the string of deathly side effects that the tylenol manufacturer's warned us of.
Mercurochrome and merthiolate were the topical medicines of choice for skinned knees, cuts, and cat scratches. We survived.
Thantis losenges were sucked on to relieve a sore throat. Vick's cough drops for a cough.
Bed rest for just about any ailment.
Hot toddies to break a fever (yes, I still use the recipe and damn! it works like a charm---oh wait, it IS a charm).
Bring back the oldies but goodies and tell the pharmaceutical companies to pound sand.
Reply
12-16-2010 @ 9:51PM
Anger Burns said...All these "medicines" are toxins. Poisons that should be avoided. This report is bogus. Remember when we all learned that drugs are bad? These are drugs and are bad for you!
Reply
12-17-2010 @ 6:47AM
iamkiroc said...Why would this author be allowed to write this article. How dangerous if any parents actually provide the above medicines to their kids. The problem was not "Dosing" but the fact that there was not an accurate way to determine what the correct dosage should be for kids, depending on their age.
If this author had done their research about the original Pediatric warnings, they would have discovered that the concern is about the long term effects of giving medicine that has not been tested for long-term affects.
All I can say is I suspect this author was either paid a large sum of money by Johnson & Johnson, or she is completely ignorant about what she's talking about.
Reply
12-17-2010 @ 4:50AM
Crystal said...Ok first of all the dosage for children is not based off age. It is based off weight. But I do somewhat agree with you about the fact that she shouldn't have been allowed to publish this article that way it was written. Now some parents who believe everything that they read online about medical stuff are going to say, "well her kids have not had a problem with these meds. so my kids should be ok". I only use generic meds. but only with I absolutly have to. Over the counter medication should be taken for relief. They should not however be taken to cure a sickness. If someone is looking to cure a bacterial infection that they might have then going to the doctor is the best choice.
12-19-2010 @ 7:53AM
Susan Avery said...This author was not paid by any pharmaceutical firm to write this. She is an independent Ph.D. researcher and the only payment she received for this article was from ParentDish. Period.
12-17-2010 @ 12:19AM
Sonya said...OTC medications are of if used in moderation and given by an intelligent adult. Children's cold medicine like Triaminic Nightime Cold & Cough or Motrin. They make a huge difference between a cranky toddler that is too congested to sleep, or a child miserable with fever.
The problem is that some adults are either too stupid or unable to read the dosages (yes, the type is too small!), maybe they think if a teaspoon will help the cough, then half the bottle will get rid of it!!
Most of the hype is caused by the handful of idiots that misuse the product, or carelessly leave it for an adventurous toddler to easily reach it.
Reply
12-17-2010 @ 12:24AM
SunShineBabe1678 said...I have a 16 month old daughter and I had to bring her to her dr the other day,he told me to use Tylenol and Advil. What is wrong with these meds if my daughter's dr told me to give them to her. He would NEVER give her anything to hurt at all so,please if you don't like them don't use them but,when a DOCTOR puts you on them they must NOT BE ANYTHING WRONG WITH THEM!!!!! I will keep using these meds as long as my daughter's dr and my dr tells me they are safe...... HOW MANY DOCTORS GETS ON THIS SITE ANYWAY!!!!
Reply
12-17-2010 @ 3:42AM
LoveYou! said...SunShine, doctors are often too busy to stay abreast of the latest drug warnings & research, and most depend on a drug rep (aka, drug salesperson) to give them the latest and greatest info...how do you spell 'bias'?.
Just because a doctor told you it's ok, doesn't mean it is! "M.D." doesn't stand for 'Medical Deity'...doctors are human and make errors in judgement just like the rest of us, and you'd be foolish to believe otherwise.
What about all the doctors who ignorantly ignored the research and prescribed the following? The FDA recalled several of these already, and all are inexplicably linked to fatal side-effects!:
~Darvon/Darvocet is linked to fatal abnormal heart rhythms
~Meridia to heart attacks and strokes
~Paxil, Zoloft, and Lexapro to birth defects
~Yaz to blood clots and strokes
~Vioxx to heart attacks, and don't forget Celebrex!
Do your homework, girlfriend, and trust your own common sense...don't give away your personal power by having blind faith in doctors. They do their best, but are not demi-Gods...
12-17-2010 @ 8:10AM
gracefullyjaded said...Hmm... I see the debate between the experienced mom's and the Mommies who take their children to the doctor for every little sniffle... It's good to be concerned like this for your child, however, when you do this, their body's natural immune system never gets the chance to develop which leads to confused illnesses such as "Allergies" etc.The real issue is, There were a few parents who decided to be idiots and use these meds to counteract the hyperactive effect from all the sugar they feed their children with sleepy-making night-time meds, their kids built up a tolerance, so they gave them more and more until they ended up overdosed. There were also the idiotic parents who left these meds out for their children to access easily and yes, of course they taste good so they are too tempting for the children to resist. So that now when our children actually NEED a good working medicine, we can't get it thanks to these moronic mothers of the world who shouldn't have children to begin with...Childrens medicines are fine in the ACTUAL recommended doses (which you can get from your local pharmacist, along with a CORRECT dosing apparatus) Here's my issue. I'm so sick of all these Socialite mommies who freak out at their child's first sneeze of the season and rush them to the doctor right away to get them all hooked up on Antibiotics and prescription meds. God forbid you let your child's body fight the cold like it is INTENTED to do so they can build up antibodies and fight off a cold without having to be drugged. I got lucky. My Pediatrician recommended to me with my first child to wait two weeks, if the cold is not gone, then come back for a recheck. Amazingly, my daughter was fine within 3 days. I have only once, ever had to give my three children antibiotics, (and yes my oldest is a teenager now) and that was for an ear infection. Any time my children are sick, i give them Motrin if they have a fever, in a half dose size and rub good old fashioned Vicks on their chests id they have congestion/cough. They have never had a cold last more than three days and rarely even get sick. My suggestion, go get some good old-fashioned parenting advice from Grandma and stop ruining your child's immune system and body by drugging them up all the time for every little sniffle.
12-17-2010 @ 10:24AM
Alicia said...The only problem Yaz has had with its "side effects" is not listing them in the commercial. It's hormonal birth control and anyone with half a brain knows that all hormonal birth control methods put you at risk for blood clots, heart attack and stroke.
12-17-2010 @ 9:09AM
gracefullyjaded said...Another issue in children that seems to be spreading like wildfire that I just don't understand (and yes I have read millions of reports and claims on this epidemic and still just don't get it) This new-found "Illness" that seems to be spreading throughout our nation. ( I mean seriously, are there any reports of this in any other countries?) I'll give the medical findings, then my opinions on these findings. Agree or disagree, but at least think about it and feel free to share or "Inform" me as I'm sure all the defensive mothers of the world will do (haha) This Lovely little bit is on ADD/ADHD..ok first off, think about what those little letters stand for.."ADD-ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER" ok now, go get a good old dictionary and look up those words..."Attention deficit" hmm got it yet? (for our slow mommies out there..it converts to "lack of needed attention) Children thrive on attention and approval from their parents. When Mommy and Daddy are too damn busy trying to keep up with the Jones' or chatting online or playing the latest WOW game..to take two seconds and look down at your child beaming with pride because they aced their spelling test...that's just plain sad. Ok now here are the symptoms of ADD as stated in multiple reports...
Inattention symptoms:
# Fails to give close attention to details or makes careless mistakes in schoolwork
# Difficulty sustaining attention in tasks or play
# Does not seem to listen when spoken to directly
# Does not follow through on instructions and fails to finish schoolwork, chores, or duties in the workplace
# Difficulty organizing tasks and activities
# Avoids or dislikes tasks that require sustained mental effort (such as schoolwork)
# Often loses toys, assignments, pencils, books, or tools needed for tasks or activities
# Easily distracted
# Often forgetful in daily activities
Hyperactivity symptoms:
# Fidgets with hands or feet or squirms in seat
# Leaves seat when remaining seated is expected
# Runs about or climbs in inappropriate situations
# Difficulty playing quietly
# Often "on the go," acts as if "driven by a motor," talks excessively
Impulsivity symptoms:
# Blurts out answers before questions have been completed
# Difficulty awaiting turn
# Interrupts or intrudes on others (butts into conversations or games)
Uhh....is it just me or isn't this just a description of normal child behavior? (who has had maybe too much sugar, soda pop, lack of good parenting to enforce good behavior?) CHILDREN ARE SUPPOSED TO BE PLAYFUL, EXCITED, AND HAPPY!!! THEY ARE SUPPOSED TO RUN AROUND AND PLAY AND BE LOUD AND HAVE FUN!!! THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO LOSE THINGS AND FORGET THINGS, AFTER ALL WE TEACH THEM WHAT THEY KNOW!!! I mean SERIOUSLY COME ON?!?! Yet mommies and daddy's of the world think because they don't sit there vegging on the tv quietly or ace their homework or get what the teacher is talking about right away, or listen to their parents (uh..since when do kids do that automatically?) that there's something wrong with them, take them to a doctor to get the latest child doping scam from their money hungry family doctor and bam..perfect child who ends up with 9000 other health and behavior issues because they're doped up for what I like to call "Ignorant Parent Disease" I watched my next door neighbor go through this with her son for years. When his teacher sent home a letter to his mother stating her son was ADHD and needed medication..i was Shocked. This boy spent 50% of his time at my house playing with my kids..he seemed like a normal child to me. A little hyper maybe, but his mother also let him drink Pepsi religiously and eat candy whenever he wanted. They took him to the doctor, got him on the recommended treatment (yet still allowed him the pepsi and candy and kool-aid) and look a zombie child is born...I sat and had a good long talk with this mother. Yes she was offended, but eventually I talked her into thinking and researching further. Her child is now only having maybe one soda a week, limited candy treats and sugar free kool-aid. We also came up with some behaviors to look for (ie talking back, throwing fits etc) and established consequences for these bad behaviors (like taking away the DS for a day etc) He is off the medications for two years now and is a straight A student. He pays attention, He completes his chores and tasks, and participates in schools sports/activities. Now I have not concluded yet that this new-found epidemic is actually a bunch of bull made up by lazy mothers and greedy doctors of the world...but any parent I or this mother have talked to with a child with this illness, have tried what she tried with 100% success...You think about it...
Reply
12-17-2010 @ 11:14AM
JennyJen said...Holy Crap, Gracefullyjaded!
2-01-2011 @ 10:55PM
Cammy said...Very very nice. I also agree that people are ready to slap a label on a kid especially the add or adhd. Give me a damn break that's a kid and if you want your child to listen all the time and to be perfect, don't have kids.