Pepto Bismol?

[Rachel--24]

Hi,

My friends 10 yr. old daughter has had diarrhea for a few days now.....over 8 times already today. Is it ok for a 10 yr. old to take Pepto Bismol? The bottle provides dosage info. only for 12 and up.

If Pepto Bismol isn't ok....is there something else she can take (or eat) to help with the constant diarreah?

[SAHM2one]

I give my son the children chewable tablets, he is 2.

[Rachel--24]

Thanks.....I'm gonna tell her to look for the chewables.

I looked it up online and the chewables have a different active ingredient....its safe for ages 2 and up. The main ingredient in the regular Pepto is linked to Reye's syndrome (in kids)....so I guess thats why the bottle only has instructions for ages 12 and up.

Thanks again.

[SAHM2one]

I believe the children's is a little different. I told my son's doctor that I was using it when his stomach hurt and he said that was fine.

[Rachel--24]

Thanks, thats good to know. She's going to see the Dr. in the morning....hopefully the diarrhea will stop soon.

[home-based-mom]

Overall I think Pepto Bismol is a pretty safe product.

I remember as a kid we had a dog who ate something she shouldn't have, with predictably disastrous results. At the time we were at our cabin on a small tiny island in Puget Sound. The dog had taken her dry heaves and crawled under the cabin as inaccessible as it was possible to get. The last ferry of the weekend was due to leave and in desperation my mom crawled on her belly under the cabin and poured whatever was left in the Pepto Bismol bottle down the dog and pulled her out. No small feat - the dog was a Norwegian Elkhound.

Anyway, we got the dog back home (about a 90 minute drive) without incident, so the Pepto Bismol worked.