text: One in five parents sedates their children before a long road trip, despite fears the medication can cause breathing problems. A national driving survey analysed the travel habits of 3700 Australian families which revealed four in five families use technology to deal with bored children, giving them a hand held computer game, like an iPad, while another 70 per cent said they give their kids treats to sweeten the ride. Almost 20 per cent of NSW families use a more extreme technique, admitting they have used sedatives like the antihistamine Phenergan to knock their kids out so their journey will be more pleasant. One in five NSW families have admitted to sedating their children before taking them on long car trips . The over the counter drug Phenergan is commonly used to treat allergies however it contains a sedative called promethazine which is widely known to cause breathing problems in young children. The medical community claim the sedative Phenergan should not be used on children younger than two years old as side effects like respiratory depression, more commonly known as hypoventilation, can be fatal. Warnings about the use of drugs like Phenergan on children have been around since 2006 when the US Food and Drug Administration found the medication was linked to 22 cases of respiratory depression in infants, seven of which were fatal. Westmead Children's Hospital head of general medicine Joanne Ging told Fairfax that Phenergan is far too unpredictable to use as a sedative on children. The medical community claim the sedative Phenergan should not be used on children younger than two years old as side effects like respiratory depression can be fatal. 'We would never recommend it for children on plane trips, car trips or wherever, because its side effects can trigger the exact opposite effect, including hallucinations. It's a medication that really should only ever be used for allergies.' Family therapist and child psychologist Michael Hawton condemned the trend labelling it 'extraordinary' and 'horrible'. 'The whole idea of heading off on a family holiday is to enjoy time together. There's a big difference between entertaining your children and medically straitjacketing them,' he said. 'The whole idea of heading off on a family holiday is to enjoy time together. There's a big difference between entertaining your children and medically straitjacketing them' Respiratory depression refers to a decrease in a person's ability to inhale a sufficient amount of oxygen and exhale enough carbon dioxide. Simply, the person will have difficulty in breathing. This can cause the person to appear out of breath and often lead to a tightness in the chest. The survey also revealed more than half of parents said they are 'sometimes distracted' by their kids who fight, kick the seat or intentionally interfere with the driver. Around 56 per cent of drivers admitted to turning the music up to drown the children out with a further 64 per cent of parents claiming they have threatened children that they will stop the car and leave the unruly kids behind.
target: A new national survey analysed the travel habits of Australian parents .
  The study revealed one in five NSW families sedate their kids on long trips .
  The drug commonly used is known to cause breathing difficulties in kids .
  The medical community said the practice is dangerous for children .