 [ Symptoms ] my husband can use the va for his health care needs but i am unemployed and have no health insurance he started a new job and next month can get insurance through them which is best him using the va and me trying to get a policy on my own or should we carry it through his job for both of us [ Disease ] there are quite a few versions of alka seltzer plus products on the market each product contains a number of different active ingredients generally i would not recommend alka seltzer plus products for children first of all all over the counter medications for cough and cold are not labeled for use in children under the age of 4 if the child in question is older than age 4 you then need to consider the active ingredients in that particular product again each alka seltzer product varies but some do contain aspirin as the pain relieverfever reducer aspirin is definitely not recommended for a child under the age of 16 acetaminophen is the preferred pain relieverfever reducer and acetaminophen is found in some alka seltzer products there are other active ingredients in alka seltzer products that are not recommended for children of a certain age or for children taking certain medications i strongly encourage you to carefully read the label of the product in question to determine the active ingredients ask your local pharmacist for help in determining if that alka seltzer product may work for your child