What Parents Should Know About Administering Medicine to Children

Administering medicine to a sick child can be a frustrating experience for parents, with children often resisting medication necessary to help them feel better. According to a recent survey commissioned by McNeil Consumer Healthcare, a division of McNeil-PPC, Inc., and conducted by Harris Interactive, more than 65 percent of parents have experienced difficulty getting their children to take liquid suspension medication, and 62 percent of parents noted that the taste of certain medicines is their children's primary complaint.
Now, a new product aims to make the medicating experience an easier one. Children's Tylenol® (acetaminophen) with Flavor Creator is the first customizable over-the-counter medicine. With four possible flavor combinations, Children's Tylenol® with Flavor Creator makes administering medicine an easier experience for parents by reducing children's attempts to avert taking medicine due to taste. Parents can create flavor combinations that match their child's taste preferences, thereby creating a better medicating process.
"There are clear instructions that educate parents about the appropriate dose of medicine to administer to their child, but when children are resisting because of the taste, administering that appropriate dose can be a problem," said Dr. Tanya Remer Altmann, pediatrician and clinical instructor at the Mattel Children's Hospital at UCLA. "This product helps parents get their children to take the medicine they need to feel better."
Maureen Lipscomb has experienced the struggles over taking medication firsthand. As the mother of seven-year-old quadruplets, she struggles to meet the very different tastes of her four children.
"Each one of my children is different; they all have their own likes and dislikes. It's very challenging for me to get them to take medicine when they don't like the taste. Struggling with them over taking medicine when they are sick can be upsetting to all of us, so I am always looking for ways to make giving them their medicine less stressful," said Lipscomb. "Allowing them to have a say in what the flavor of their medication will be makes medicine time less challenging because they are less likely to resist taking their medicine when they need it most."
Nearly eight out of nine (85 percent) parents surveyed agree that being able to customize the flavor of their children's liquid medication based on different taste preferences would significantly improve their child's willingness to take their medicine.
Each pack of Children's Tylenol® with Flavor Creator contains one bottle of Children's Tylenol® Cherry Blast Flavor Liquid Suspension and 20 packets of sugar-free crystals in four different flavors: bubblegum, chocolate, apple and strawberry, to create great-tasting flavor combinations. As always, medication should be kept out of reach of children and administered by an adult.