More Chinese villages continue to vanish as urbanization rapidly rises. (Photo : Reuters)
Worried about improper uses of children's medicines, industry experts recently advised parents to consult pediatricians on the proper dosage of drugs to avoid risks of overdose.
Executive vice secretary-general of the China Drug Information Association Xu Shuxiang said that misuse and overdose are the usual mistakes made by parents. He added that "some parents medicate their children based on their unprofessional experience, which may lead to misconduct."
A report by the China News Service states that 32 percent of children being treated by their parents in China is considered misconduct and 12.9 percent of poorly treated children will have a bad reaction to the medicine.
Parents in Shiqiaocun village in Henan Central Province have no understanding of child medicines, and since many villagers do not like the taste of children's medicines, they opt to make their children take adult medicines in reduced dosage.
Reports also said that even in Beijing, which is in all aspects an informed metropolis, some parents still medicated their children without physicians' instructions.
Xu is calling on all parents to consult pediatricians and regularly check the expiration dates of the contents of their medicine cabinets. Xu also advised parents to keep a vigilant watch on their children when medicines were taken, to see if any discomfort or allergies might occur.
Xu thanks the government's awareness and publicity efforts regarding proper dosage of medicines. He said that these largely reduced cases of children being deaf-mute due to improper use of drugs.
However, the lack or absence of child-specific drugs raises another concern for industry experts. China Food and Drug Administration stated that the country had 3,500 drug categories, but less than 60 of these are specifically for children. The administration further stated that 90 percent of medicine do not come with information regarding children dosage.
Wang Xiaoling, office director of Beijing Children's Hospital said that "many products do not have child dosages and in some cases adult medication can cause an overdose."
Wang further said that toddlers and babies were at great risk of harm due to improper drug dosages because their organs are still developing.
Citing a medical survey, Wang stated that in the period of 2011 to 2013, there are 1,098 types of drugs used in children's clinics but only 45 were children's medicines. All the rest are for adults and given to children in reduced dosage.
Despite the strong demand, it has been observed that drug manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies are wary of branching out to children-specific medicines due to additional costs, bureaucratic approval, and the increased risk associated with manufacturing drugs for children.
