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Being a parent or guardian can be challenging, especially during the days of remote learning, cancelled activities, and being stuck inside the house.

 

The job of a parent or guardian is even more demanding when your child is sick or has ongoing health challenges that require daily medications – yet another daunting task that most likely falls solely to you.

 

If you have ever tried to give medication to a child – especially a very young one – you know it can often be a battle. For example, many children are picky about the taste, smell, size, or appearance of their medicine, making it difficult to convince them to consume it at all. For other children, issues with swallowing, allergies, below-average weight, or sensory challenges may further complicate your ability to administer the correct dose of standardized medications.

 

No matter what reason makes it difficult, there is an easy solution to reduce stress for both you and your child – compounding pharmacies! Compounding pharmacies work with you to create alternate delivery methods of medications that better suit your child’s unique needs.

 

Below, we explain the many ways compounding pharmacy services can help make your day-to-day life just a little bit easier.

 

 

What is a Compounding Pharmacy?

Compounding pharmacies create customized medications personalized to the unique needs of children, adults, and even pets. Essentially, compounding pharmacies take prescribed or over-the-counter drugs and adapt them. As a result, your pharmacist can utilize tools and technologies to change the size, colour, flavour, and consistency without impacting the medicinal quality or overall effectiveness of a medication.

 

Compounding pharmacies exist because some standardized or mass-produced medications simply do not match the needs of every consumer. Therefore, compounding allows pharmacies to fill a gap for people and pets who require modifications to their medicine to consume it successfully.

 

 

Why Use a Compounding Pharmacy?

There are many reasons why compounding pharmacies are popular for parents with children who struggle with standardized or mass-produced medications.

 

Standardized medications may:

 

• Provide a dose that is too high for your child’s current weight, resulting in your trying to separate pills or measure doses on your own at home.
• Only be available with an unappealing in taste or texture.
• Be difficult to swallow.
• Cause distress for children with sensory challenges.
• Contain ingredients that your child is allergic or sensitive to.

 

As a parent, we know that you simply want to ensure that your child has exactly what they need to recover from temporary illness or manage an ongoing condition. Trying to navigate prescriptions that don't suit your child's needs can be challenging, but a compounding pharmacy, like Cook’s Pharmacy, can help take away the guesswork and stress. In addition, utilizing a compounding pharmacy can help you give medications with greater confidence and peace of mind.

 

Below, we explain how a compounding pharmacy can address specific needs that may exist in your household.  

 

 

 

Pills That Exceed Your Child’s Dosage Needs

 

Have you ever been asked to cut pills in half to ensure that your child does not receive a dose too high for their current weight? Have you worried that you were not separating medications accurately or that your child would get too much one day and not enough the next? This uncertainty is a common concern for parents tasked with splitting pills at home.

 

A compounding pharmacy can make each capsule or tablet smaller so you can rest assured that each dose contains the correct amount of your child’s prescribed or over-the-counter medication.

 

 

Unappealing Flavours or Textures

 

Pharmaceutical producers do their best to make medications for children as delicious as possible, but not every formula has an ideal flavour or texture. If your child is hesitant to take their medicine because they do not enjoy the taste, a compounding pharmacy can work with you to add more desirable flavouring or find a different delivery method.

 

Your compounding pharmacy may even have the capacity to change the appearance of pills to make them more fun for kids. For example, ask for your child's favourite colour to help make taking medicine slightly more enjoyable.

 

 

Difficult to Swallow

 

If your child has difficulty swallowing larger pills without chewing them, or they experience challenges with swallowing in general, a compounding pharmacy can help by adjusting the size of the pills or finding another solution that suits your child’s needs and abilities. Lollipops, chewable gummies, creams, syrups, suppositories, and drinks are just some alternate options that may help address issues with swallowing. Ask your compounding pharmacy to go over all available options with you.

 

 

Cause Sensory Overload

 

Children with mental health or sensory challenges may be very sensitive to factors such as size, colour, and texture. Certain times of day may also be better than others for delivering medication, which may not always align with prescribed intervals. At a compounding pharmacy, alternate options exist to ensure your child receives the correct dose each day without causing unnecessary distress.

 

 

Ingredients That Cause Allergic Reactions or Sensitivities

 

Many children have special dietary needs due to allergies to milk products, corn, nuts, specific proteins, gluten, and certain dyes. Therefore, it is very common for a compounding pharmacy to work with parents to ensure over-the-counter and prescription medications are free of ingredients that can cause irritation or upset.

 

Speak with a member of our compounding pharmacy team to get advice on handling any type of dietary restrictions or allergies.

 

 

 

How a Compounding Pharmacy Can Help You Organize Multiple Daily Pills

 

If your child takes multiple medications each day, you may have noticed many have a similar look. This lack of apparent differentiation can cause you to feel nervous about keeping track of which pill is which. A compounding pharmacy can help modify the appearance of some or all your child's prescriptions by changing the size or colour. This small change can increase your confidence when administering pills and make the process more enjoyable if you choose your child's favourite colors.

 

Your compounding pharmacist may also be able to combine multiple medications into a single delivery method to reduce the number of individual medications your child needs to take each day. Your pharmacist will know which drugs can be combined safely and which should remain separated.

 

 

Are Compounding Medications Safe for My Child?

 

Yes! The compounding process is entirely safe when done by a skilled professional. The pharmacists at Cook’s compounding pharmacies are highly trained experts on drug formulations. They also have the tools, recipes, and ingredients they need to provide safe solutions to people and pets of all ages.

 

Pharmacists always remain diligent in fulfilling accurate prescriptions and age/weight appropriate doses regardless of whether they are providing standardized medications, a compounding service, or both.

 

You can rest assured that all compounded medications at Cook's Pharmacy will be tailored to your child’s unique needs. Your child’s medications will also be prepared using clean tools and compounding instruments. As usual, you can also expect our pharmacist to advise you on administering the modified over-the-counter or prescription medication(s) correctly. Your child's prescription will also include accurate and informative labels.

 

 

How to Store Your Compounds

 

Your compounds will be available to you in an appropriate container for your prescription or over-the-counter medication. Your pharmacist will also advise you on the correct storage requirements for your compounded medication.

 

Best practice is to store your containers in a cool, dry place and avoid leaving medications in your car or bathroom where they could interact with heat or humidity. In addition, always ensure all stored medications are out of reach of children and pets.

 

If you have expired prescription medication or leftover pills you no longer need at home, be sure to return them to the pharmacy so they can be disposed of safely.

 

 

Conclusion

Compounding pharmacies make it easier for parents and children who struggle with administering or consuming standardized or mass-produced over-the-counter or prescription medications.

 

Compounding pharmacies address a gap by creating smaller pills and alternate delivery methods to provide more customized solutions.

 

Parents' common concerns include the taste, size, or texture of syrups, capsules, or tablets being unappealing to their children. Other concerns may include allergies, sensory challenges, or the number of individual medications required each day.

 

No matter your concern, a compounding pharmacy can help adapt medications to make administering medications less stressful or traumatic for both you and your child. Your pharmacist will provide you with all the information you need to store and administer your child’s personalized medications correctly.

 

 

Visit Cook’s Pharmacy to Learn More About Your Compounding Options

If you think someone in your family could benefit from medication compounding, Cook’s Pharmacy is here to help! Our skilled compounding pharmacists can modify your over-the-counter and prescription medications by utilizing our in-house compounding tools and instruments.

 

Ask us about how our compounding pharmacies in Kitchener-Waterloo, Cambridge, North Dumfries, and Wellesley can provide you with:

 

• Custom made capsules and rapid dissolve tablets.
• Specially formulated suspensions for children and adults.
• Anal suppositories.
• Topical creams.
• And more!

 

Reach out to us to learn more about how Cook’s compounding pharmacy can find a customized medication solution that’s perfect for you!

 

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Any medical or pharmaceutical information on this site is provided as an information resource only and is not to be used or relied on for any diagnostic or treatment purposes. This information does not create any patient-pharmacist relationship, and should not be used as a substitute for professional diagnosis and treatment.

 

Please consult your healthcare provider before making any healthcare decisions or for guidance about a specific medical condition.

 

Cook’s Pharmacy and its subsidiaries expressly disclaim responsibility and shall have no liability, for any damages, loss, injury, or liability whatsoever suffered as a result of your reliance on the information contained in this site.