Viruses are spreading, children are coughing almost everywhere and parents are frustrated.
“One kid gets sick and then, the next kid gets sick. And then, the first kid that got sick gets sick again and then, you call them out of school and then truancy,” said San Jose resident Rebecca Gallegos.
To top it off, clinics said that appointments are booked, hospitals are full, and medicine shelves are empty.
“Target doesn't have it, go to CVS, don't have it. So, basically were searching. Last resort is Amazon, but then, you got to wait a week sometimes,” said San Jose resident Glenn Valle.
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
It's an exhausting situation, but at least one local health expert said the remedy isn’t always in the pharmacy.
“A cough medication like that definitely should be avoided for children under the age of 6 years. For children older than that, it's something that could be utilized. Although, I think you get more benefit from using a humidifier, a steam from a shower and a teaspoon of honey and letting the body take care of symptoms,” said Dr. Ted O’Connell with Kaiser Permanente.
According to O’Connell, a dose of honey before bedtime could diminish a cough and discomfort. However, he added you shouldn’t give honey to any child under the age of 1.
“For children, either acetaminophen or ibuprofen would be appropriate to treat fever. And it could also help if there is sore throat and any other discomfort that is occurring,” he said.
O’Connell added that people should contact a physician with dosage questions and visit the ER if you notice the following symptoms.
“Significant wheezing, breathing really rapidly. Using the muscles in the chest wall to breathe, where it looks like the child is having difficulty breathing and a blue discoloration around the lips or a refusal to breastfeed, bottle feed or take in fluids,” he said.
