SOUTH BEND — The FDA issued a new warning Thursday for parents with small children. They say over the counter cold medicine is too dangerous for children under 2 years old.

This isn't the first time parents have been warned. Last fall, the FDA urged parents not to use the cold medicine for preschoolers. Now, the government is worried parents haven't gotten the message.

"You want to read the book, too?" new mom Stephanie Reynolds asked her daughter.

Reading is something Reynolds does a lot of ... especially when she's deciding what cold medicine to give her 18-month-old daughter Jenna.

"She is my only child and I am more of a concerned parent," said Reynolds.

Because we're right in the middle of cold season shopping for over the counter medicine is something a lot of parents are doing this time of year.

"There's 25 million colds per year," said St. Joseph Regional Medical Center Dr. Tom Sweeney.

But before you reach for the box, you may want to think twice. The FDA warns it could cause potentially life threatening side-effects for children under 2.

"They'll get a tachycardia, a rapid heart rate and then they realize something's wrong with their child and it was because of the medication they were giving them," explained Dr. Sweeney.

"You think you can trust things that are the shelves at the pharmacy and if you can't, what are we supposed to do? It is sad that you can't rely on that anymore," said Reynolds.

Doctors also say giving small children cold medicine is simply a waste.
That's because in many cases it doesn't even work.

"They just don't work. I don't why they don't work, but they don't," said Dr. Sweeney.

That's why many doctors are now staying away from medicine. Instead they urge parents to let the cold run its course.

"We can't treat everything. It's as simple as that,” said Dr. Sweeney.

If your child has a high fever or is having trouble breathing, contact your pediatrician.