Parents know how difficult it can be to get their youngsters to take medicine and keep it down. This is especially true of infants and small children. Commercially available drugs are not always the right solution when a child becomes ill, but there is another option: custom medications.
Prior to the 1950s and the rise of the corporate pharmaceutical industry, individualizing prescriptions for each patient was the the norm. With commercialization, this individualization fell out of favor. Today, compounding pharmacies are experiencing a revival. When a parent presents a doctor's prescription to the compounding pharmacy, the prescription will be prepared specifically for the child it is written for, taking into account the child's weight, ability to metabolize the medication and ability to take the prescribed dosage.
Pills, tablets and capsules are often too large and too difficult for children to swallow. Sometimes children must take multiple medications several times a day, as is the case for chronic illness or an extended course of antibiotics. This routine stresses the child and the family and can become a major battleground. The services of a compounding pharmacy can help immeasurably. By simply changing the way the medication is administered, a great deal of stress between parent and child is reduced. Presenting the remedy in the easy-to-eat form of freezer pops, gummis or lollipops makes taking the required dosage much more palatable.
While parents could attempt to mask the flavor, crush the pills or modify the dosage for their children, this is not advisable. Some foods, beverages, dietary supplements and other drugs should not be mixed. Doing so could cause changes that make the drug more or less effective, or produce side effects that are more pronounced and potentially dangerous. For example, antibiotics should be taken on an empty stomach, so masking the flavor with food is out of the question. Some capsules or tablets, particularly those that are time-released, cannot be crushed. Caffeine in chocolate can increase the effect of Ritalin, a stimulant. The wisest course is to leave compounding to the experts. The compounding pharmacist will ensure that all of the flavorings and alterations to the medication are compatible with one another.
In addition to creating treatments customized for dosage or flavor preferences, these pharmacists also prepare drugs for infants who may be intolerant of certain ingredients found in commercially available medications, such as gluten or dyes. Creating medications without these ingredients ensures the child gets the needed treatment without any potentially dangerous side effects.
Compounding pharmacies can be found in every major metropolitan area. These pharmacies can be an invaluable resource to parents whose children are not able to tolerate taking their prescriptions in a standard form. Using a compounding pharmacy to make customized medications ensures that they are safe and will make an already miserable, sick child less distraught about the idea of taking his or her medicine.
Author Resource:-
Stephen Daniels is an acclaimed SEO 2.0 researcher of best practices, products and services for a wide variety of industries. If you are in need of a Los Angeles pharmacy that can formulate custom compounded medications according to your needs, he highly recommends Advanced Compounding Pharmacy.
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