February is usually associated with hearts, lovers, and Valentine’s Day. It’s fitting, therefore, that February is also observed in many countries – including the Philippines – as Heart Month. In this month, where the aim is to promote heart disease awareness and overall wellness, let’s show some love in the home by taking care and preparing an important health tool: the family medicine kit.
Here are a few top tips:
1. Check all medications to ensure that they’re all still up-to-date and safe to consume. – Throw away those that have expired already. It might feel like a waste, but taking pills past their expiration dates is never a good idea. Set a regular schedule for doing this to prevent further wastage. Hey, doing this step also shows love to the family budget! 😉
2. Trust only medicine, food, or drink that are prescribed by your child’s pediatrician – It’s so tempting to self-medicate, what with all these information readily available at our fingertips (hello Google!). It’s still best to consult medical and nutrition matters with trusted experts, though. They know your child’s unique issues and can offer the best professional advice. For example, for food/medicine, our pediatrician advised… And for my kids’ water needs, we use only Wilkins distilled water because I keep me at ease and I know that the water she takes in is safe and clean. Feel free to ask them any concerns you might have about your child’s health as well.
3. Make sure you know how your child’s medications interact with each other. – Some kids need to take more several medications on a regular basis that it becomes hard to keep up with the dosages and indications of each. More so if new medications have been added to the mix. If this is the case with your child, then you might want to gather all his/her prescription medications, OTCs, and multivitamins in a bag to show during his/her next medical appointment. This will enable the healthcare professional to screen the medications for potential duplication of therapies, side effects, or interactions.
It pays to know what your body is absorbing. I am very particular about this and I really want my family to take only the safest and the trusted brands, like Wilkins for water. Do you have any other tips to share? Feel free to join us in our conversation at the Wilkins Facebook page. Talk to you there!
