Several children have died from overdosing on these over-the-counter remedies, usually because parents have combined them, not realizing that most have common ingredients.

In America, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has warned parents not to give these over-the-counter remedies to children younger than two years, and they should also follow all the guidelines when they give them to older children.

The FDA has reminded parents that the remedies treat only the symptoms of the common cold, and that children recover without the need for medications.

(Source: Journal of the American Medical Association, 2007; 298: 1151).