Spring-clean your medicine cabinet to safeguard kids

WHEN you learn that just one in five Americans locks up prescription drugs, it’s not surprising to hear that thousands of children are treated for accidental medication overdoses each year.

A new Consumer Reports survey of more than 1,000 adults also found that more than onequarter of Americans hang on to unused drugs “until they’re used up.” This ups the odds for misuse, too.

“People may not realise how dangerous certain medications can be for a child,” said Lisa Gill, deputy editor of Consumer Reports Best Buy Drugs.

“Pills within easy reach can be as dangerous as a loaded gun, particularly narcotic painkillers, such as OxyContin, Percocet and Vicodin,” she said.

The bottom line: “If you have these pills at home, and you have children around, we urge you to lock them up,” Gill said.

The magazine staff also recommends cleaning out your medicine cabinet once a year to reduce the risk of medication misuse.

Don’t assume that prescription drugs such as sedatives and opioid painkillers are the only drugs on your bathroom shelves that can potentially cause harm.

“Acetaminophen, used as a fever and pain-reducer and found in Tylenol and hundreds of other products, is the most common accidentally ingested (over-the- counter drug),” Gill said.

A child who takes too much acetaminophen can develop liver damage or liver failure, she noted.

About 60,000 preschoolers are rushed to hospitals each year after accidentally swallowing medicine, whether prescription or over-the- counter, the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention says.