If your child doesn't want to take capsule medicine, can you dissolve the powder in the capsule in water and give it to your child? Never do this.

gossip

"If the child doesn't want to take the capsule medicine, just dissolve the powder inside the capsule in water and eat it!"

If the capsule is too big and difficult for the child to swallow, dissolve the powder in the capsule in water and give it to the child to drink. This method works very well.

Rumor Analysis

This is not the case, don't do this.

Capsules themselves are adult dosage forms. Giving children adult medicines without a doctor's guidance is not only wrong, but may also bring other health risks.

Since there are few medicines for children on the market, when children are sick, some parents will give them adult medicines, such as capsules, without authorization. But the whole capsule is too big for children to swallow, and the dosage for children is less than that for adults. So someone suggested that we can dissolve the powder in the capsule in water and give it to children to drink. Is this operation really possible?

Let me give you the answer first: It is wrong to open the capsule, dissolve the medicine inside with water and give it to your child to drink. You cannot do this!

First of all, when a drug is made into capsule form, it means that the drug itself is not suitable for children. Giving capsules to children is risky in itself. Medicines are special commodities. When using them, you must follow the doctor's instructions and opinions. It is not recommended to use them without authorization. Children are not smaller versions of adults, and they should not be given to children at half or one-third of the adult dose.

Secondly, the reason why drugs are made into capsules is mainly due to the following reasons:

1. Improve drug stability. Some drugs are prone to weathering, moisture, and deterioration, and the capsule shell can prevent these from happening. -

2. Cover up the bad smell of the drug itself and reduce the irritation of the drug. Some drugs smell disgusting and are difficult to swallow. Using the capsule shell to block it can make the drug less difficult to swallow and reduce the irritation of the drug to a certain extent.

3. Achieve sustained release and controlled release. The surgical coating of some drugs has certain functions, which can achieve sustained release, controlled release, or even targeted release. For example, enteric-coated capsules mean that the capsule shell will not dissolve in the stomach and can enter the intestine intact to take effect. Some capsule shells can allow drugs to be released slowly, thereby achieving the effect of extending the drug release time or reducing the risk of adverse drug reactions.

From this we know that capsules sometimes not only serve as containers, but also have certain functions. Even for adults, we do not recommend opening the capsules to take them, because this may affect the efficacy of the drug and increase the risk of adverse drug reactions. For children, it is even more dangerous.

So, in general, it is not recommended to open the capsule and give it to children.

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When giving adult medicine to children in special circumstances, you need to pay attention to 3 points

But having said that, in many cases, we do face the situation that children have to take adult dosage forms due to a shortage of children's medicines. The shortage of children's medicines is not only a problem faced by our country, but also a global issue. In some special cases, we can use some adult medicines for children according to the following suggestions:

1. Be sure to use it under the recommendation and guidance of a doctor.

2. Try to choose granules, oral liquids, effervescent tablets, powders and other liquids or preparations that can be mixed into liquids, and give them to children in reduced dosages according to the dosage for children.

3. If the above dosage forms are not available, try to choose tablets with the same ingredients, which are not sustained-release or controlled-release and can be divided, and give them to your child after dissolving.

Data shows that as of December 31, 2023, the number of children's special medicines approved for marketing in my country is 1,049 (by product specifications). This means that for common diseases in children in daily life, there will be corresponding children's special medicines to choose from. As for those diseases that must be solved with adult drugs, most of them are rare diseases, and such diseases must be treated with drugs under the guidance of doctors.

Therefore, for most parents, they will hardly face such problems.

Looking in the mirror of rumors

Anything related to "medicine" is no small matter, and the use of medicine for children is a big deal among big things. Parents must be cautious.

Do not abuse drugs for children, and do not abuse adult drugs for children.

Author: Liu Ziqi, Chief Pharmacist, First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University

Reviewer: Tang Qin, Director of the Science Popularization Department of the Chinese Medical Association, National Health Science Popularization Expert