The Food and Drug Administration posted on website on Wednesday that it is evaluating all the cough and cold medicines for children that contain codeine. An advisory committee will be formed to discuss the safety issues as well.

The FDA said, “Parents and caregivers who notice any signs of slow or shallow breathing, difficult or noisy breathing, confusion, or unusual sleepiness in their child should stop giving their child codeine and seek medical attention immediately”.

The announcement has come after the European Medicines Agency announced in April that such medications should not be given to treat cough and cold to children below 12 years of age. In fact, the agency has also asked not to give these medicines to children aged between 12 and 18. These medicines could lead to slow or difficult breathing.

Since 1977, the American Academy of Pediatrics has warned not to prescribe codeine to children. Codeine is an opioid that is prescribed for pain relief. Experts said that some children are not able to metabolize the drug and they require an extra dose of it and on the other hand, some are able to metabolize it at a rate above their age.

Both the situations can prove harmful for children. Dr. Vandana Bhide said that there many natural medications that can be given to treat cough. Earlier as well, the FDA has warned the use of codeine children’s medicines.

In 2013, the FDA warned against prescribing codeine after surgery of tonsils’ removal or adenoids in children.