How should you measure children’s liquid medicine?

Your baby is feverish and whining. You want to give your little one some medication for the fever. Do you use a teaspoon or a syringe intended for that purpose?

Needleless syringes are a much better option, as they are designed to precisely measure the amount of liquid to be administered. Since household teaspoons can vary greatly in size, using them to measure liquid medicine for children could lead to both over- and underdoses.

For example, Greek and American researchers examined the teaspoons found in 25 homes. They found that the largest was three times larger than the smallest!

In addition, when the researchers asked study participants to pour five millilitres (5 mL) of medicine into a 5 mL spoon, people poured varying quantities. Therefore, even when using the same exact spoon size, different people tend to pour different amounts. When measuring with a syringe, however, the measurement is always accurate due to the shape of the tool.

For these reasons, it is recommended that parents use a needleless syringe to give liquid medicine to children. Such syringes are now included in the product packaging of certain over-the-counter medications intended for children. In cases where none is included, simply ask your pharmacist for one.