Getting an 18 Month to Taking Oral Antibiotics

Hi!
Have you tried putting the liquid medicine in a milkshake, like milk a bit of ice cream and a banana.?

What about getting 'baby tablets, if they make them, and crush them with a spoon, put in liquid chocolate over ice cream, OR in peanut butter, on bread or crackers?
Maybe put on a favorite video or song while you dose the baby........
Just a try,
N.

I had the same problem with my daughter. Does the antibiotic come in a chewable tablet or pill form? My daughter would take the chewable but not the liquid. I have also had success with crushing a pill and mixing it with applesauce and ice cream - she thought it was a big treat. Good luck!

We went through the same thing with my 2 1/2 yr old last month. He decided he didn't like it and simply refused to take it. What ended up working was using a tylenol infant dropper. Since he doesn't mind taking tylenol, I put the antibiotic in the dropper and he took it fine from there on out. They can be so stubborn when they get something in their head that you have to find some way to outsmart them.
Good luck:)

You mentioned both kids have food allergies. I personally have Lyme Disease and I have to watch what I eat. Have they been tested for which foods cause these problems in the first place? I am sorry they are not feeling well. Its not easy having two sensitive systems. I personally use Namaste mixes they are as allergen free as you get. Maybe giving them some allergen free foods might help reduce some of the initial problems. I agree with the other moms that flavoring the liquid medicine at the pharmacy is a big help or crushing pills and putting them into yogurt, applesauce, peanut butter etc. Have you asked the pharmacist which medicine can put into certain foods. I think some medicines loose their potency in certain foods and/or liquids. Also Gripe Water is great for the upset tummy. She may hate the taste and how her stomach feels afterwards too. Probiotics could help with the affects of the antibiotics. Good luck with your girls :)

I would also recommend getting the medication flavored at the pharmacy, and using a syringe that she is used to. In addition to that, try "feeding" the medicine to one of her baby dolls or stuffed animals first. Let her pretend to do this. This works like a charm with my daughter when she is refusing something. Also, try to get her in a relaxed or entertained state (i.e. put a favorite TV show on to distract her), then while holding her on your lap, give her the medicine. Good luck!

ask the pharmacy to flavor the meds.. worked for my kid who does the same thing

I had a similar experience. I called the pediatrician and told them that there was no way my child was going to tolerate the taste of this medication -(some medications can get flavored at Wallgreens) - they prescribed something else. I had to sneak it into a sippy cup. I say if the taste is that bad why force it - there are plenty of other medications out there!

I got my daughter's meds at a compounding pharmacy where they were able to flavor the meds - she HATED the zyrtec and would scream and cry, until we did the flavoring.
After that - no problem!
Good luck!
E.

Try mixing it with her juice?in her sippy cup.

Hi C.
have you ever considered another alternative to the zyrtec for your daughters eczema? My daughter who is now 3 had it bad and I started using a pure and safe product on her when she was 8 months and it has never come back. I could give you some more info on it and send you a sample as well. My daughter also had chronic ear infections and was on 2 different meds and we had them flavored. The pharmacists are usually very cooperative. MY daughter has since had tubes and no more ear infections or medications. I'm not sure if you know this but babies immune systems get used to the meds and breaks down their ability to fight of colds and things. This is one of the reasons I did not want to give her anything for the eczema and searched for an alternative method.
Hope this helps and Good Luck
Happy Mothers Day
Kristina~
____@____.com

My sister-in-law gave me a medicine dispensing pacifier. You put the liquid in the cup and attach to the pacifier. That has worked for my daughter...but then she has a slight pacifier addiction. I can hand it over and she will keep it in her mouth until the medicine is gone. I think they sell them at Babies r us.

I went through the exact same thing with my one year old son. I ended up putting it into his milk every morning. He never once did not finish the entire bottle! I would try that. It saved me so much stress!!! And he got better;-) Good luck.

In our house we use m&ms. Get to eat one before or while you take the med and one right after. The real treat is you get to have it at breakfast time. Good luck!

M.

So sorry for the difficult time you are having! Just wondering if you have tried any natural alternatives - there is a lot that diet and chiropractic, among other things, can do for these conditions. We are seeing a huge uptick in these conditions, particularly in vaccinated kids. You may want to research delaying further vaccines till you get a handle on this, as it seems the child's immune system may have enough to handle for now!

Does the syringe you use for the Zyrtec look the same as the one for the antibiotic? Either try a different one or maybe try seeing if you can get her to drink it from a measuring cup or spoon. With your help a little at a time you might be able to get her to take it from that if it's something she actually doesn't mind taking. She might just have it in her head that uh oh there's that syringe with that nasty tasting stuff in it again. Good luck. It's no fun giving medicine. Oh one other thing you can talk to the pharmacist about flavoring the antibiotic. If they already have then you can ask if you can put that or rather the zyrtec in something (the antibiotic might have too strong of a taste to try to mask it in food).

M.

Hi C.,

Take your daughter to a chiropractor. The ear infections will go away and not come back so she won't need any antibiotics. Antibiotics can really harm a child's digestive system and they only help temporarily. Usually when a child take antibiotics for ear infections they end up with chronic ear infections.

Good Luck,
Allie

Meds taste better chilled so if it doesn't have to go in the fridge I would start by placing it there also the pharmacy can flavor it for you my 2 year old is great at but my oldest was terrible I was so happy when they started to offer the flavoring his favorite is the watermelon. You could also place it in a very small amount of pudding like a tablespoon of it so you make sure she gets it all and of course when all else fails you have no choice but to pin them down and squirt it in between the teeth and cheek far enough back where they have no choice but to swallow.

If she doesn't even trust the syringe you could maybe try to make her take the syringe with something yummy in it a few times. Once she trusts that it's not always something terrible then she may try to take it more often. Is she on Augmentum? If she is, that is really a tough one. Kids usually hate it. You could try to take it back to the pharmacy and have it flavored. I think it is "berry bubblegum" that worked really well for my son. If all else fails, I guess you just have to force it.
Some people will tell you not to give it because the ear infection will clear up on it's own. Do not listen. I have seen more than one child have permanent hearing loss because their parents did not give an antibiotic because they had heard that the ear infection will clear up on it's own. None of us like to give our kids antibiotics, but as much as we hate it, you just have to do it sometimes. Good luck! Hope these suggestions help :)

I have found peach juice and purple grape juice cover most tastes of medicine, my son is 6 and it is amazing how far a table spoon of medicine can make it around the room!

If you get the berry or grape flovored meds it really covers the bad taste with the grape juice