Cold and flu season is here—and it looks different
Cold and flu season is back, but it looks a little bit different this year. COVID-19 is still circulating in our communities, and there has been an increase in respiratory viruses in BC, including Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV).
The shortage of cold and flu medicine in Canada has been frustrating for everyone. It can be especially worrying for parents with young kids at home.
Acetaminophen (common brand name: Tylenol) and ibuprofen (Advil) comes in baby, child, and adult versions. These medications are used to treat fever and pain. Ibuprofen can also help reduce swelling, bruising, pain, and redness following an injury. Giving adult medication to a child without talking to a doctor first can put them at risk for poisoning and overdose.
More than half of all poisonings in BC involve young children, with children between one and three years of age at the highest risk. Cough and cold medicines and pain and fever medicine are common reasons for poisoning in children.
So if your child has come down with a virus, know what to do to prevent a trip to the emergency department:
- Most healthy children can fight respiratory infections with rest and good hydration without needing to go to a hospital or see a doctor.
- Medications such as Tylenol can temporarily lower a temperature and make a child more comfortable. It does not treat the underlying cause of fever.
- Medication is not always needed to reduce a child’s temperature. You can try to make your child more comfortable by using a cool cloth on their face and body, and by offering plenty of fluids.
- DO NOT give children under 12-years-old adult pain and fever medication without consulting a health care professional. There is a high risk of poisoning and overdose.
- Don’t purchase fever and pain medication from third parties or other unknown sources.
- The average normal body temperature is around 37°C (98.6°F). Fever is the body’s way of naturally fighting infection.
- Normal temperature can vary, depending on how the temperature is taken (orally, rectally, armpit, ear). Learn more about taking temperature.
Does my child need to go to emergency?
You might not need to take your child to the emergency department. Fever-related reasons why your child could need emergency care are:
- Fever of over 38 degrees and is less than 3 months old
- Children who experience seizures due to a rapid increase in temperatures
- Children with a fever for more than three days
- Children whose temperature repeatedly rises above 40°C
- High fever or lethargy, without improvement with acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil)
- Loss of consciousness
- They seem dehydrated, diarrhea and vomiting, lack of tears or urine over several hours
- Blue lips or skin, or appears very pale
- Excessively cranky, fussy or irritable
- Has difficulty breathing
- Has severe abdominal or chest pain/pressure
- Is excessively sleepy, lethargic or does not respond
- Has ingested a toxic chemical, including a suspected drug overdose
Still have questions?
- If you have any questions or concerns that your child may have taken or been given too much of a pain or fever-reducing medicine, please contact the BC Drug and Poison Information Centre at 1-800-567-8911 or 604-682-5050.
- Review tips from BC Children’s Hospital on when to take your child to the emergency department.
- Phone HealthLinkBC at 8-1-1 to get your questions answered by a health care professional.
1 BC Drug and Poison Information Centre. British Columbia Poison Control Centre Fact Sheet. Available from http://www.dpic.org/bc-dpic-fact-sheets/british-columbia-poison-control-centre-fact-sheet
2 Nationwide Children’s Hospital. Acetaminophen vs. Ibuprofen: What’s the Difference? Available from https://www.nationwidechildrens.org/family-resources-education/700childrens/2022/02/acetaminophen-vs-ibuprofen-difference
3 Caring for Kids. Fever and temperature taking. Available from https://caringforkids.cps.ca/handouts/health-conditions-and-treatments/fever_and_temperature_taking
4 BC Children’s Hospital. When to bring your child to the emergency department. Available from http://www.bcchildrens.ca/about/news-stories/stories/when-to-bring-your-child-to-the-emergency-department
5 Health Canada. Children’s ibuprofen/acetaminophen shortage: What you should know and do. Available from https://recalls-rappels.canada.ca/en/alert-recall/children-s-ibuprofenacetaminophen-shortage-what-you-should-know-and-do
6 CTV News. (November 7, 2022). Tylenol shortage contributing to kids’ hospital crush: ER nurse. Available from https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/tylenol-shortage-contributing-to-kids-hospital-crush-er-nurse-1.6141778
7 BCCDC. It’s respiratory illness season. Available from http://www.bccdc.ca/about/news-stories/stories/2022/respiratory-illness-season
8 Fraser Health. (November 10, 2022.) Should I bring my child to the emergency room? Available from https://www.fraserhealth.ca/news/2017/Feb/parents-guide-to-using-the-er-wisely#.Y3UwDOzMIYs
- distress when a child was in pain and when a family was grieving; and
- sadness in the event they were not able to save a child in their care.
- concern for the injured child and the child’s family;
Particularly traumatic events, such as those involving vivid sights and sounds (e.g., families holding each other and having extreme reactions), stuck with the practitioners, having long-lasting impressions on them and causing them to re-live these events in the years following their exposure.
Even after their shift was over, practitioners said that they changed how they approached parenting and how they perceived safety during play as a result of witnessing these traumatic events. They reported having more knowledge of the causes and consequences of severe injuries, such as those that require hospitalization or emergency care. For example, practitioners were more likely to enforce boundaries around where their children could play, such as by forbidding their child to play near busy streets. They also were more likely to tell their child about safe play environments and equipment, and put this equipment on their child before play, such as explaining the benefits of using helmets while riding bikes.
Practitioners were more likely to enforce boundaries around where their children could play, and use safety equipment, such as bike helmets.
Practitioners also described being concerned about their children’s play near open windows, around large bodies of water unsupervised, and in environments where firearms were present. They also expressed worry about their children’s play on trampolines and on motorized vehicles, such as ATVs. Findings related to trampoline play safety concerns were published in the journal Injury Prevention.
Observing family grief due to child injury or death affected the mental well-being of health care practitioners, drawing attention to the need for mental health supports for those involved in caring for severely injured and dying patients.
"Raise more resilient children through play...watch and see how your child handles challenging tasks without intervening right away." —Dr. Michelle Bauer
Building resilience through play
How can parents help their children build resilience? By letting them play!
The experiences that practitioners witnessed encouraged them to support their children in building resilience through play; specifically, by supporting children in learning to cope with failure, overcome fear, build self-confidence, develop distress tolerance, and regulate negative emotions. Findings related to building resilience through play were published in the journal Child: Care, Health, and Development.
Parents fostered resilience in their kids by:
- helping their kids get back on bikes after they fell off and wanted to try again;
- sitting on their hands so they did not instinctively reach for their children when their children fell down; and
- encouraging participation in challenging and thrilling activities in forests and water while safety equipment was used.
"There are a few ways that parents can raise more resilient children through play that are supported by literature and our study findings," said Dr. Bauer. "One: watch and see how your child handles challenging tasks without intervening right away."
"Two: Ask your child how they want you to help—let them tell you what makes them feel safe and happy during play. Let them lead. And three: make play both safe and exciting by encouraging risk-taking, teaching them how to avoid hazards, and using safety equipment.”
This research was supported through Drs. Bauer’s and Gilley’s receipt of a clinical and translational research seed grant from the BC Children’s Hospital Research Institute (BCCHR), Dr. Bauer’s BCCHR postdoctoral fellowship award, and additional training provided to Dr. Bauer through her participation in the Programs and Institutions Looking to Launch Academic Researchers (PILLAR) program through ENRICH, a national organization training perinatal and child health researchers.
Learn more about the study through two infographic posters:
Graphics and posters by Milica Radosavljevic
