How risky is it to medicate your children with cold medicine?

When children fall ill the first thing we want to do is make them feel better.

But is medicating them with over-the-counter remedies the answer?

Over-the-counter cough and cold medicines don’t effectively treat the underlying cause of a child’s cold, and won’t cure a child’s cold or make it go away any sooner. These medications also have potentially serious side effects, including rapid heart rate and convulsions. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) discourages use of cough and cold medicines for children younger than age 2.

Antibiotic use is another issue.

Read on for some answers to the most often asked questions.