Monday, January 19, 2009

Early babies "exposed to toxins"

Some medicines routinely given to premature babies expose them to potentially harmful levels of chemicals, British research suggests.
Some contained chemicals linked to nerve damage, they wrote in Archives of Disease in Childhood.However, premature baby charity Bliss said that such medicines could be "vital" in saving the baby's life. Although prescription medicines need to be rigorously tested before being licensed for use in the UK, this does not necessarily mean they have been tested with children, or babies, in mind. Instead, doctors must often use their judgment to work out the safe dose for a tiny baby of a medicine designed for an adult or a much older child.

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