Why does over the counter medications have ‘universal’ doses?

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A lot of OTC meds have a kids section and an adult or over 12 section the dosing information as if the age is the only thing that matters in terms of dosage. Why is that? Is the same dose really as effective for a 250 lb male as a 100 lb female? Why aren’t the doses broken down into more specific categories based on weight?

In: Chemistry

4 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

With medications, kidney/ liver function play a big role in terms of effectiveness. For kids 12 and under, their kidney/ liver functionality is still increasing as they age, that’s why their dosages are varied. With adults, the functioning is relatively flat across people, so there isn’t a real need to adjust dosages based on weight, as with kids.

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