Parabens in Infant Tylenol!!!!

[AaronsMommy]

Did you know there were parabens in infant tylenol???? I was so excited to see dye-free tylenol on the shelf at the grocery store yesterday that I bought without even looking at the ingredient label. Then, when I got home and looked at it I saw that it contains 2 types of parabens!!!!

I have always known to avoid parabens in beauty products, but I had no idea to even look for them in medicines or other things I might be ingesting. I am so frustrated, I could scream.....is nothing safe anymore??

What do you ladies give your babies for pain relief?? Can you please help me find something safer? TIA

[AddysMom]

Oh my! I use the dye free type. I never even looked at the ingredients.This really saddens me.
:.

[bstandlee]

dye free infant motrin does not have parabens. There's still some other junk but nothing as bad as parabens or high fructose corn syrup, etc. that I noticed. I'm sure it's still not great but sometimes babies need pain relief!

[moonlight mom]

Originally Posted by AaronsMommy

Did you know there were parabens in infant tylenol???? I was so excited to see dye-free tylenol on the shelf at the grocery store yesterday that I bought without even looking at the ingredient label. Then, when I got home and looked at it I saw that it contains 2 types of parabens!!!!

I have always known to avoid parabens in beauty products, but I had no idea to even look for them in medicines or other things I might be ingesting. I am so frustrated, I could scream.....is nothing safe anymore??

What do you ladies give your babies for pain relief?? Can you please help me find something safer? TIA

I just noticed this too last week and I believe it is also in the children's dye free formula. I can't believe something I am trying to avoid on my ds's skin would be ingested. It is extremely disturbing. The dye free motrin doesn't have parabans, but has an unsafe artificial sweetener. I am just going to avoid pain relief until absolutely necessary.

[Danielle13]

this may be a stupid question....but what are parabens?

[Ruthla]

I wonder how hard it would be to crush an adult sized tablet into a powder and mix it with something to hide the taste, and then give an appropriate dose to a baby. Adult tablets (not capsules or coated capsules or caplets) are generally just the drug and starch to hold it together.

I guess there's a huge chance of error and overdosage though. I've done that with preteens who needed half an adult dose, so one tablet instead of two- but never with a baby. I've also heard of parents going to compounding pharmacies and having liquid medications made up without any preservatives, synthetic colors or flavors, etc. I never did that myself as my kids learned how to swallow pills shortly after I cut synthetic colors out of our diets.

I tried to avoid giving drugs to babies anyway, and I never ever medicated for fevers. We used a lot of Hyland's teething tablets in our family! If I used a pain releiver, it was one dose at bedtime so we could all get some sleep, not 24 hour dosing for several days in a row as I've heard other parents describe. Under those circumstances, a small dose of parabens (or whatever other nasties they put in with the drugs) isn't as worrysome.

[AaronsMommy]

Originally Posted by Danielle13

this may be a stupid question....but what are parabens?

Type "what are parabens" into google and you'll get tons of information, but here is a quick explanation.

"The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in their report 'Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products in the Environment: Agents of Subtle Change?' reported that the chemical preservatives called parabens—methyl, propyl, butyl and ethyl (alkyl-p-hydroxybenzoates) — displayed estrogenic activity in several tests. This means that these chemicals mimic your body´s own hormones and can have endocrine-disrupting action when they are rubbed into your body or washed down the drain into your drinking water. These disruptors interfere with your body´s endocrine system: your hypothalamus, your ovaries, your thyroid—virtually every system in your body. The EPA also stated that "continual introduction of these benzoates (parabens) into sewage treatment systems and directly to recreational waters from the skin leads to the question of risk to aquatic organisms." Scientists in Europe found other endocrine-disrupting body care chemicals in the bodies of fish that humans are eating, and in human breast milk."

[AaronsMommy]

Originally Posted by Ruthla

I wonder how hard it would be to crush an adult sized tablet into a powder and mix it with something to hide the taste, and then give an appropriate dose to a baby. Adult tablets (not capsules or coated capsules or caplets) are generally just the drug and starch to hold it together.

I guess there's a huge chance of error and overdosage though. I've done that with preteens who needed half an adult dose, so one tablet instead of two- but never with a baby. I've also heard of parents going to compounding pharmacies and having liquid medications made up without any preservatives, synthetic colors or flavors, etc. I never did that myself as my kids learned how to swallow pills shortly after I cut synthetic colors out of our diets.

I tried to avoid giving drugs to babies anyway, and I never ever medicated for fevers. We used a lot of Hyland's teething tablets in our family! If I used a pain releiver, it was one dose at bedtime so we could all get some sleep, not 24 hour dosing for several days in a row as I've heard other parents describe. Under those circumstances, a small dose of parabens (or whatever other nasties they put in with the drugs) isn't as worrysome.

I would personally be way to scared to give adult medicine to my baby. I, too only give him tylenol very rarely (I think he has had it three times in his nine months.)

I just find it extremely frustrating that even though I am willing to pay whatever it costs and get it shipped from whereever it is made, I CANNOT find pain relievers or vitamins that don't contain dyes, flavorings, sugar, salt and dangerous chemicals!!! Companies shouldn't be allowed to put this crap in products for children, but if they do there should at least be a healthier option to choose from as well. Why can't I find it...........

[mavery]

I almost never give (or take) pain meds, but I remember I once spent an HOUR scouring the shelves for the least objectionable choice and came up with dye-free infant motrin.

The other alternative is acetaminophen (tylenol) suppositories. The downside is that you have to stick 'em up your baby's butt, but they don't contain any of the dyes or other crap, and you also don't have to spend so much energy persuading them to take the stuff. (I'd much rather stick a little thing up their butts than force something into their mouths.) Here are the ingredients on a FeverAll suppositories box:

Active Ingredients: Acetaminophen (80 mg) (Pain reliever/fever reducer)

Inactive Ingredients: Glycerol Monostearate, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, Polyoxyethylene Stearate, Polysorbate 80