Is it right to give babies/children alcohol or other drugs to make them sleep at night?

Wait until the schools force you to geive them Ritlin....you have no choice. But then again, they don't have to waste their time teaching if the kids are "stoned"...simple truth....they like to push it you know. No drugs is always beter, but there are times, my oldest grandaughter was required to have ear tubes, to drain her ears all the time, at times they really bothered her, esp. if she had an cold. she got an fever reducer...and pain reliever..she needed it. You have no idea how heart rendering it is to hear an little girl quietly sobbing out of pain. Then the dentists got ahold of her mouth, she can barely "eat", she"s as skinny as an rail... for her medically, there's abeen an lot of suffering in her life so far...I spent two years ago with them mostly out of school from being sick 2 months..some kind flu bug going around. Perhaps making up for all the nurses in the family. My great aunt's dying words was we would always "have to" work in the meidcal society...or be subjected to it...and the world's ailments. Sad, sad, and sad. Brittany catches the school bus with my grandson, having miissed an entire year of school last year...but she's now an cancer survior. Such an young age. Nice to know it was stopped and hope it remains that way, for the rest of her life...particularly when they tell you this is an disease that suggests depression for lack of lifestyle desires...so says my 2,000 year old Oriental medical book..    

When I was a young child, I suffered from regular bouts with the croup, which causes breathing difficulties and an extremely painful barking cough. During my worst bouts, my mother (a southern mountain woman from NE Georgia) used to give me a spoonful of sour mash whisky mixed with sugar before bed. This little concoction used to immediately open my throat and put a damper on my coughing. Seems it was a very old family remedy for croup and swollen throats caused by diphtheria. While I don't advocate giving alcohol to children, sometimes old folk remedies can be useful when nothing else seems to help or ease the condition. Ma used this particular remedy very sparingly.

Wow Shirley thats so sad;-(

 Rob--I have heard of this to I am from Alabama so I know all about the Moon shine;-)))lol   My mother has given us what she always called Hottie Totties I think it had like just a small amount of bourbon and melted pepermint sticks and honey and maybe something else but it sure helped ease a cold or chest congestion,,LOL

Rob, I can remeber that, it wasn't until the early 50's we had cough drops, so we had an bit of honey and horehound (Herb) or whiskey and honey...if it was an baddie.

Ron,...Ritlin is an drug that helps hyperactive people focus better...many schools like to give it saying the child is ADHD...attention deficient and suffers from Hyperactivity..... 60 minutes....the TV documentary showed one classroom where over 25 of the students were on Ritlin. They said also that it was these students whom were on it, were being academically ignored for the most part. they are like they are "stoned" and receive all that is said on command for the most part by the teacher, but it has an ungly side also, if the teacher can brain-wash them, so can anyone else. They said my child was one of them, I came to understand they are the "free" thinkers of the world in general..those known to of been one are Howard Hughes, John F. Kennedy, Thomas Jefferson, and such people. They are the true "businessman" that needs an secretary or two for the organization part of life. They said it could of been an break-down in the family genes of diabetes...but in the end they felt it was the school discriminating. His medical doctor told me I could count on him if I wanted to "sue".. the head shrink told me it was better to pull him out and into an different school maybe then to try to fight the system...why waste your money. Both said that when the school said after an couple years of constant medications and counseling, that the school was wrong entirely when they said they never noticed an thing in his treatment. He was not the only sudent on it either, there were considerable more of them. I dont' think this is the issue that it use to be though..as kids can now be home schooled...or change to other schools if they want. Schools are still bustin their butts to comply with Bush's "no child left behind" act. A LOT of them still can't pass it yet...sad to say. So the school doesn't get it's federal grant money either to operate. My son went through an trade school that got him his graduation certificate anyway. The school they wanted me to send him to, that I refused, was closed down for some of the teachers raping the female students there. This one kid my son knew, his parents were college professors, the things she use to tell me. Education sure isn't like it was when I went to school...at least we came out with educations enough to support ourselves back then..but these are the times of today I guess. In some cases the more learned can't find jobs to support themselves any more.

I would never give drugs or alcohol to get the children to sleep - it is lazy parenting and dangerous as others have pointed out.

I know what Rob means though about alcoholic drinks used properly being a good medicine. My Mom was a good Methodist and never drunk alcohol for pleasure but if we had a bad tummy she always gave us a drop of brandy in hot water with sugar, headache whisky the same way and women's problems gin!