Quit battling your little one while feeding them meds when they are sick. If you are wondering how, read on!
Children typically despise gulping tablets—especially toddlers—they dread it. When administering medicines to toddlers, you might have noticed that most toddler meds are in fluid form (syrup)—but if your paediatrician prescribes antibiotics, they are most likely going to be in tablet form.
Toddlers—when sick—already feel irritated, and making them take bitter medicines is a challenging task for the parents to perform. If your fussy toddler throws tantrums while taking medicines—here are some easy tricks you can try.
Since the main issue lies in the taste buds of your child, which helps them identify the bitter taste of meds, the best remedy is to place the medicine in the back of their cheek, away from the tongue. This trick will make it easier for your toddler to swallow the medicine easily—without getting a taste of the overwhelming flavour.
Most of the time, children’s medications come with a tiny cup only. These cups and even spoons cause the issue associated with overwhelming flavour. Instead of using a cup or a spoon, get a syringe from the local grocery or pharmacy—to effectively feed their medication!
Remember when Mary Poppins said, “A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down”? If your toddler’s meds have an unpleasant flavour—and administering it to the back of their cheek also doesn’t help—consider mixing your child’s meds with some yoghurt or chocolate syrup. The sweetness will help tone down the bitter taste, and your toddler will most likely be unable to resist it.
You may also allow your child to have a flavourful drink in between two or more doses of medication. It can help mask the bitterness, making the task less challenging for the parents and also the kids.
There is no better way of making your toddler take their medicines than camouflaging them. Pick any food or treat your child loves and hide the tablets in. You could hide it in an ice cream, a muffin or even put it in their juice. This trick will help your child take their dose without creating any fuss.
Another effective hack for making it simpler for your toddler to gulp down medicines is crushing them. You may either snap a big tablet in two parts or crush it until it is powdery. Powdered medicine will still be bitter—but it can easily glide down their throat—with some water.
A harmless bribery might work wonders. You may promise your toddler a small reward if they take their medicine without any fuss. You could get them stickers, a candy they love, or allow them to watch their favourite cartoon before bed. You must deliver what you promised—or this trick will never work in the future again.
You can empower your toddler by allowing them to choose between different colours or flavours of medicine—in case there are options. That way, your child will realise they have some control over what they are consuming.
You may even consider asking them to pick between a medicine cup or syringe—if your pharmacist has provided you with both.
Making your toddler take their meds is a daunting task but the good news is—this phase will not last for a lifetime. Once they develop the habit of gulping medicines — when they are older — the process will be less frustrating.
