In recent years, the safety and human-centered design of children's medicines have gained increasing attention, yet research on infant medication and its packaging remains limited. Infants under three years old are in a critical developmental stage. Physiologically, their immune systems are weak, making illness common. Psychologically, they lack the understanding to recognize when they need to take medicine. As a result, administering medicine to infants becomes a challenging task for parents. How to reduce the stress on caregivers and minimize discomfort for the child through improved pharmaceutical packaging has become a pressing issue today. To address these challenges, this paper explores and enhances the packaging design of infant medications, aiming to draw more attention to the unique needs of this vulnerable group.
Inadequacies in Infant Medicines and Packaging
1. Tablets, Granules, and Powdered Medications
Administering tablets to infants is often problematic, as the dosage is typically one-third or one-quarter of a tablet. However, splitting them evenly is difficult, and once split, they must be crushed into powder and mixed with water before being given with a spoon—making the process cumbersome. Granules and powders are somewhat easier, but they still require multiple doses from a single package, which can lead to uneven distribution. They also need to be mixed with water, and some may not dissolve completely, settling at the bottom of the container. This makes it hard for the infant to consume all the medicine, reducing its effectiveness. Additionally, many infant medications are coated with sugar and come in bright colors to improve taste, which can attract the child’s curiosity. The packaging is usually in bags, requiring multiple openings to get the full dose. If not handled carefully, infants may accidentally ingest the medicine from an open package, posing serious health risks.
2. Liquid Medications
Liquid medications are generally more convenient than tablets or powders, as they can be directly administered with a small spoon. Most liquid formulations come with measuring scales, allowing for more accurate dosing. However, there are still issues with measurement accuracy, often leading to excess medicine being discarded, resulting in waste. Some packages include a dropper to help with precise dosing and direct administration into the infant’s mouth. Despite these improvements, several problems remain. First, after each use, the dropper must be cleaned, dried, and stored properly to avoid contamination. This adds extra steps to the feeding process, and busy parents may forget or misplace the dropper, rendering it unusable. Second, infants over six months may start teething, and the soft dropper can be bitten, creating a potential choking hazard. Third, as infants become more mobile, they may play with or litter the dropper after the medicine is finished, making it unsuitable for future use.
Improved Design of Infant Medicine Packaging Structure
1. Specific Improvement Design
(1) Reducing the single-dose volume of the packaging to match the needs of infants and young children. For example, granules or powdered medications are typically given in doses of 3–6 grams, while liquid medications are usually 3–6 ml per dose. Based on this, the improved pharmaceutical packaging is designed to hold approximately 8 ml, with a compact structure. The design is illustrated in Figure 1. By providing pre-measured, single-use portions, the risk of incorrect dosing and contamination is minimized, making the process safer and more efficient for both parents and infants.
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