Giving Medicine to My 5YO That's "Yucky"

As a pharmacist, I can tell you that the best thing to do is get it flavored by a pharmacy - genuardis will do it for you - just make sure you tell them how many doses you have used so they flavor it correctly. You can also put it in applesauce. One person responded to put it in choc. milk. As a rule, you should NEVER mix medications with milk especially some antibiotics b/c this will decrease the efficacy of the antibiotic. If you have any more questions regarding this please feel free to contact me.

Hi K.
Going through the EXACT same thing right now with my 4.5 year old! The only way I can get him to take it is by providing a yummy "chaser". I give him a handful of sweettarts or a lollipop to hold and tell him he has to hurry up and take his yucky medicine and then quickly take a yummy medicine to get rid of the taste. I also have my husband help me...he is great with the positive reinforcement and my son really responds well to that and to the praise from his Daddy. If all else fails we make like we are going to have to hold him down and shove it in and the prospect of this makes him want to finally take it. But we try not to make it a stressful thing if we can help it...the chasers help keep it really positive and almost like a game.

I am not sure that I could handle taking that stuff either...it is discgusting! The orange flavor is vile...they should at least put another flavor into it.

Hang in there.

Hi K., Well my daughter is almost 7 and has hated taking meds for as long as I can remember. She gages on it and throws up GROSS!!! We have tired so many things the list goes on but I did find something that does work. I was able to ask what flavor they could make it taste like and I choses one that goes well with chocolate. I put a tablespoon on choc. pudding in a small bowl and then put the meds in it I stir it till it is well blended and she takes it like that. She still doesn't like it but it does go down and less of everything else. So maybe see if that could work for you. Good Luck!! R. C

Check with the Pharmacy. They may be able to add a flavor that might reduce the smell or have another solution.

The other option is have your son hold his nose.

Give him a syringe! It can just be shot into his mouth so it done. My 8 year old just had to take his Z-pack this way and it just works (for us)

Augmentin? It's not the yummy pink stuff (amoxycillin) most kids get for ear infections. he's taking something stronger, and it tastes HORRIBLE. We had to give our kids something really gross once because they'd been exposed to whooping cough at day care. We each took one, sat on the floor for leverage and we force fed it to them for 10 days. the younger one caught on faster, that if she got it down, easter candy would follow. So I highly recommend making the best of the Halloween candy treasure trove, and let your husband do it. he'll catch on that a treat follows, and soon it'll go down with less struggle.

At 6, he might be able to learn to swallow pills. Try using mini-m&m's for practice -- and if he can do it, then try a regular m&m or two. If he can do it, then you can get drugs in pill form next time. That's TONS easier -- but be prepared to practice swallowing with M&M's or something that will melt in his throat before he chokes. :-) And follow up the meds with yummy rewards. :-)

My son has to take medications that are in pill form but he is 4 so we crush them up. you can imagine how bad they taste. We were told to mix them in liquids, applesauce, pudding, etc to help hide the taste. My son prefers to have his meds mixed in really strong lemonade or fruit punch (we make it from a powder mix like Koolaid). Occassionally he will take it mixed with snow cone syrup We use an oral medicine syringe to dispense it. I hope you find something that works for him.

keeping it in the fridgerator helps, sometimes it being very cold, you dont get much taste. My son takes a drink before takeing the medicine and one right after. Ask the pharmacy where you got the meds for a baby syringe, they usually keep a large box full and will give you one for free, right past the tastebuds and down his throat :-) And your little guy might enjoy pushing the syringe to give himself the meds. Good Luck, K.

Hi K.. It's good that the meds aren't yummy...that can help keep kids out of the medicine cabinate! At age 5 it's time for a little reality. Everything in life that is good for you doesn't always taste/feel good. He is old enough now to understand that he has to take his medicine x times a day for x number of days. Use stickers to mark it off on the calander so that he knows when he will be done with it. Good luck!

Hi K.,

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Hope this helps. D.

My son used to take Biaxin for his ear infections (he was allergic to every other liquid antibiotic), and that stuff tastes and smells disgusting. My husband and I would give him a fruit snack (the chewy ones) after each dose. He loved the fruit snacks, so it was an incentive to get the medicine down quickly.

Good luck.

Try a reward. Pick up a bag of hershey kisses or some other candy he likes. Everytime he takes the medecine give him the candy to get rid of the taste (Augmentin is one of the worst from what I have been able to tell with my own experience with my three kids).

He is old enough to understand getting a reward for taking his medecine. I know this is bribing but in the case of getting him healthy, I think it is worth it. But that's also why I recommended kisses. They are small and it means that you are not totally screwing up his diet with the reward.

Anyhow, best of luck.

Hello ~ My 3 yr. old takes that & omnicef for ear infections, he helps me add a little bit of ginger ale to it to take it. It makes it fun (he loves how it bubbles) and he's apart of it. Hope this is helpful. Blessings ~ J.

i use a syringe and I don't compromise or bribe. I tell them the worse it tastes the better it works.

The only bribe is if really really bad I say fine, we go to pediatrician and you can get shot in the butt each day instead, never failed me and I have 5 kids.

I had this exact problem a month ago. I put it in chocolate milk. We also mixed it in juice. Both worked, although augmentin is so thick that you have to mix really well. BTW - I checked with the pharmacist first, and he said that augmentin was fine to mix with milk or juice.

There are pharmacies such as CVS, Rite Aid, etc. that you can bring the medicine to them and they can put a flavor in it. There are about 10 flavors to choose from and perhaps ask your son which one he would like to have. They charge you about $2.00 for the flavor but maybe this will help. Some flavors my son has liked others he has not but ask them which seems to be the most popular and doesn't taste as bad. Good luck!