GP won’t prescribe hayfever medication for child

[HelloSunshine100]

Single parent, working, receive universal credit, no child maintenance
child 8 years old has bad hayfever- needing to have piriton twice a day. One bottle of piriton lasts for 7 days at cost of £6. Will have to buy throughout the pollen season however long it lasts. Likely will need some nasal spray as well
Gp won’t prescribe antihistamines or any medication for hayfever for a child
i understand adults have to buy their own antihistamines, hayfever relief medication etc but was kind of hoping they would prescribe for a child?

My 7 year old has half a tablet, less than £1 from most places if you buy own brand

You could ask the pharmacist for a cheaper generic product. They are unbranded but have the same ingredients and work just as fine.

Thank you for this! Will speak to the pharmacy

It may come under the minor ailments scheme if you ask in the pharmacy.

Have you tried generic own brand medicine? Normally cheaper.

Also, look at his weight and calculate the dose of a once a day tablet...you can buy own brand of those for around 50p a pack in Aldi etc . I think the Loritadine can be taken from 6.

www.nhs.uk/medicines/loratadine/how-and-when-to-take-loratadine/

Look up if Pharmacy First is a thing in your area - pharmacies give out free medication (non-branded, and only certain types) to people in receipt of UC.

Unfortunately cannot swallow tablets yet 🙈

Actually I was thinking of this! Minor Ailments / Pharmacy First - I get the two mixed up.

Piriton is chlorephemamine (sp?) so you can ask for generic unbranded bottle of that.

Or try citirizine or loratadine which are once a day medicines and also come unbranded and so are cheaper.

I take citirizine tablets and a months supply cost me about £1!

Hayfever tablets are tiny. Easy to hide in some yogurt or chocolate spread.

The NHS is on its kness. They can't prescribe OTC medications to children. Would you expect the GP to prescribe paracetamol to a child? It's the same thing.

You could save yourself some money by buying a generic antihistamine instead of the brandname. Boots sell the generic for £3.49 for 30 tablets.

They're tiny, like a thick grain of rice. Now is the time to practice, it would save you a fortune and he would only need one a day

https://www.what0-18.nhs.uk/parentscarers/worried-your-child-unwell/teaching-your-child-swallow-tablets

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/problems-swallowing-pills/

If your child can’t take a pill, just buy a pill crusher. I use one to give my DC half a hayfever pill, it’s a pill splitter at one end and a crusher at the other.

But the hayfever pills are tiny, half of one of those may be doable without crushing it.

I would have been practicing it long before now then!

As others have said, they are very small and could be hidden in peanut butter, jam, yoghurt etc.

This is what I did with my almost 8 year old!

Teach them to swallow tablets. It’s a life skill.

Teach them to swallow tablets. Hayfever tablets are so tiny. My 3yo figured out much larger anti malarial tablets! Bit of bribery they'll soon work it out.

Your child is 8. They can swallow a tablet. And one a day allergy tablets are teeny tiny. They probably wouldn’t even notice it.

Buy generic tablets, and just get them to practice. After a few days, they’ll swallow it no problem.

Like others have said you can get non brand name ones for pennies, the nhs can't be expected to pay for every single basic medicine, there's no money for it

Packet of 30 hay-fever tablets from B&M cost 79p.

How bizarre. DD has been prescribed antihistamines for years. Admittedly the one she gets (fexofenadine) wasn’t an OTC medicine back then but itnis now and she still gets a free prescription.

regarding swallowing tablets - my 11 year old always struggled with his daily ADHD meds. Had to empty them in to yoghurt

So we practiced using tic-tacs as they don't taste nasty, small enough not to get stuck, and if they didn't go down he didn't panic and could just eat it.

3 days later and hey presto.

This is worrying. I was about to ask GP to prescribe piriton because school won't give it unless it's prescribed. Daughter is 5.

My DS just gives them a bit of a chew then swallows them down with a swig of water.