What to Expect the Toddler Years (210 page)

OUT-OF-DATE MEDICATIONS

A medication that has expired has likely lost its potency; worse still, it may have become dangerous. The following guidelines will help you assure that the medication you give your toddler is fresh:

Check expiration dates when purchasing over-the-counter medications. If you don’t think you will use the entire contents before the expiration date, look for a smaller quantity or another package with a later expiration date. Cough syrups and suppositories, in general, have shorter shelf lives than other products.

Prescription medications are not always dated; if a medication is prescribed for your child for a chronic health problem and there is no expiration date on the container, ask the pharmacist for the date and note it on the label.

Keep in mind that most liquid antibiotics maintain their potency for a very short time after the pharmacist prepares them—many are nothing more than an inert, sugary syrup 2 weeks after purchase.

Don’t save any leftovers from a prescribed course of antibiotics “for next time.” Most, if not all, should have been used, anyway, unless the medication was stopped mid-course because of an adverse reaction. (Occasionally, when a child has a chronic problem, a medication may be prescribed in bulk, to be used as needed. In such a case, it’s fine to save the balance of the medication—just be sure to check the expiration date with each future use.)

Protect the shelf life of any medications you purchase by storing them properly. Most medications deteriorate when stored at high temperatures or in high humidity—which means that the bathroom medicine cabinet is not the ideal place to store them. Set up a medicine storage area in a cool, dark kitchen cabinet or in a bedroom closet instead.
Wherever
you store medications (including vitamin/mineral supplements), they should be completely inaccessible to your toddler (see page 641).

Some medications must be refrigerated or stored at cool temperatures; follow such instructions. If you’re traveling with a liquid medication that must be kept cool, chill it with an ice pack. If you expect to be on the road a great deal, you may be able to get such a prescription switched to a chewable tablet (that can be crushed and fed to your child in a spoonful of applesauce or crushed fruit).

Periodically weed expired medications from your medicine storage area. If a product isn’t dated, a change in appearance should clue you in to deterioration. Dispose of liquids that have changed color, gotten cloudy, or whose contents have separated; ointments that have hardened or separated; capsules that have melted or stuck together; and tablets that have crumbled, changed color, or give off an odor they didn’t have when fresh. Also discard any prescription products that have been around for a year or more.

Flush expired or deteriorating medications down the toilet; don’t throw them in the trash basket, where your toddler could retrieve them.