I know someone whose child was on an allergy medicine since they were two-years-old. Six years later the child was still taking it. When the child was taken off the medicine, children in this child’s class noticed a difference in the child’s personality. The child wasn’t as aggressive or irritable. Their mother noticed this too. The child actually told their mother that they felt happy in the mornings now and not crabby. This made me wonder about the behavioral side affects of prescription medicine, especially allergy medicine. I asked a Licensed Pharmacist, Treza, the following questions. I hope you find them useful.

Question 1) When you read the information about the side effects on your child’s prescription medicine you might see- can cause headaches, nausea, dry mouth, but what about behavioral effects

Answer: Behavioral side effects are important to look for, especially for children. This is their time to form personalities, grow up healthy, etc.

2) How common are behavioral effects in medicine

Answer: It depends on what kind of medicine it is. In the case of XXX (an allergy medicine) behavior side effects are listed under less common side effects. It means it occurs less than the other side effects but it could still happen to your child.

3) What are the most common behavioral side effects

Answer: In XXX (allergy medicine)- Mood changes, agitation, aggressive behavior, bad/livid dreams, depression, feeling anxious, hallucinations, irritable, restless, tremor, trouble sleeping.

4) What questions should a parent ask their doctor about their child’s prescription medicine

Answer: a) What is the medicine for (b) How to take (c) How to store it (d) Possible side effects (e) When to stop taking (f) Possible monitoring aspects, lab tests, etc (g) What are signs of allergic reaction (h) Is there reading information about the medicine (i) What do I do in case of a side effect (j) When to talk to doctor with questions to ask pertaining to medicine

5) What should parents be aware of when giving their child medicine

Answer: (a) When to start and stop medicine. (b) How often should the child be monitored by doctor. (c) Acute vs. chronic medications.

6) Should parents ask their doctor about slowly introducing a new medicine

Answer: This is sometimes used in a clinical setting to desensitize a certain condition. It really depends on the condition and the practitioner.

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