![]() This is because a small measuring error in dosing for a child can lead to an overdose and children can easily ingest the amount of medication that can be toxic. While both adults and children can experience side effects from diphenhydramine, children are particularly at risk for serious complications. It adds those reports were not assessed by the agency, and that it's "not possible to determine whether an adverse reaction reported to Health Canada is a result of using a specific health product." Jennifer Gerdts, executive director of Food Allergy Canada, says that when her twin boys with food allergies were growing up, she believed Benadryl was a treatment option, but it's now clear that it should not be. ![]() Since 1965, the agency has received more than 1,700 reports of "serious adverse reactions suspected to be linked to products containing diphenhydramine," which include fatigue, fevers, headaches and drowsiness. The federal regulator said it is aware of safety concerns regarding the use of diphenhydramine-containing products in children. Health Canada said last week it is assessing the CSACI position paper "to determine whether further risk mitigation measures for diphenhydramine-containing products are required." ![]() The company said the products are approved by Health Canada and "when used as directed, are safe and effective." In a statement to The Canadian Press, Benadryl's maker, Johnson & Johnson, said, "Benadryl products have been trusted by doctors and moms for more than 60 years to provide effective symptom relief from allergies and allergic reactions." Overdose danger for childrenīenadryl and Children's Benadryl are available in pharmacies and stores without a prescription and marketed in Canada for many different symptoms including sneezing, runny nose, itchy eyes, insect bites, hives and other rashes. Children can have paradoxical reactions that make them hyper, while elderly people can get delirious, she added. Anne Ellis, an allergist and professor at Queen's University. One of the biggest differences is that the newer medications cause much less, or no sedation.Įven at prescribed doses, medications like Benadryl are associated with sedation, cognitive impairment, and memory problems, said Dr. In comparison, Fischer says newer generation H1 antihistamines - such as Reactine, Claritin and Aerius, which make liquids or tablets for children as well as adult products - are safer, more effective and work more quickly. Convenience stores 'shocked' by ban on sale of certain medications.There is also the potential for fatal heart rhythm disturbances when combined with other medications. Other reported side effects from an overdose of first-generation H1 antihistamines include breathing problems, coma, and seizures, according to the CSACI statement. The medicinal ingredient in Benadryl, diphenhydramine hydrochloride, "makes you drowsy and irritable and if you take too high a dose or an overdose, you will end up in hospital," Fischer said. Diphenhydramine is found in several brand-name and generic medicines for allergies or cold symptoms in North America, of which Benadryl is the best-known. H1 refers to the type of cell receptors it works on in the brain, while first-generation means it's an older classification of drugs that can cross into other parts of the body, leading to many other reactions apart from its intended antihistamine effects. ![]() The statement recommends against the use of first-generation H1 antihistamines, including Benadryl, which were introduced in the 1940s "before current licensing standards." David Fischer, a clinical allergist in Barrie, Ont., and an author of the CSACI position statement. "It dumbfounds us that people still want to use it," said Dr. Health Canada is reviewing the statement, in which the group of doctors say the medication is over-used because of its easy availability and that it should be restricted to behind-the-counter access in pharmacies. For decades, Benadryl has been used as a go-to allergy drug to treat everything from bee stings to mysterious toddler hives, but a growing number of doctors now say the antihistamine is less effective and less safe than newer alternatives - and they're calling its over-the-counter availability into question.Ī recent position statement from the Canadian Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (CSACI) warns against Benadryl as a first-line treatment for hay fever and hives in adults and children. ![]()
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