OTC drugs harmful in common colds and coughs

John G. Sherman points out the inefficacy and harm caused by OTC drugs and syrups when we catch the common cold.

Now is the time of year that we start to spend more time indoors, after a summer of fresh air. Our children are back in the classrooms and the adults are back at work.

This is when the germs come out of hiding and start being passed around; when the first colds of the season start.

Viruses cause most coughs and colds. Many different viruses can infect the nose and throat.

They are passed on by coughing and sneezing the virus into the air and by touching toys or other things an infected person has touched.

An average primary school child has six to eight coughs or colds per year.

A child who lives with smokers has an increased risk of developing coughs and colds with complications.

As for the treatment, according to a recent study by the Penn State College of Medicine, children’s cough syrups do not necessarily stop children’s coughs.

In fact, two of the most common active ingredients worked about as well as a placebo.

The drugs like dextromethorphan, a cough suppressant and diphenhydramine, an antihistamine are the two most infamous ingredients in many cough medicines.

These drugs came on the market before most of the newer FDA regulations went into effect.

In recent years, doctors have become so suspicious of them that the American Academy of Pediatrics stopped endorsing over-the-counter (OTC) cough medicines for the treatment of children’s coughs.

Just because a product on the drug store shelf says it is safe and effective, does not mean it does not have any side effects.

A common misconception about OTC cough medicines such as Vicks Formula 44, Drixoral Cough Liquid Caps, Sucrets Cough Control, Benylin DM, Robitussin products and so on, in whatever form, is that they will make you or your child better faster; unfortunately, this is not the case. In fact, you could be causing more harm to your child than you can imagine.

According to the FDA, overuse of these OTC preparations can lead to serious adverse events such as brain damage, loss of consciousness, irregular heartbeat, seizures and death.

These types of side effects seem to be very frequent in OTC medicines; another example would be the public health advisory warnings that were issued in November 2000 about phenylpropanolamine (PPA), another ingredient that used to be found in many over-the-counter cold medications. This ingredient was linked to causing strokes and brain hemorrhage in some patients. I would rather have the cold, thank you very much.

This type of medicating does not really make sense.

Why would you want to take the chance of life-threatening

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