Calgary paramedics are warning parents to keep medication away from children, after three young students were taken to hospital Wednesday for taking prescription sleeping pills.

Three students from West Dover Elementary School were hospitalized as a precaution after taking sleeping pills.
(CBC)

When students in Grades 5 and 6 at West Dover Elementary School returned to classes after lunch at home, a principal noticed one of them behaving strangely, said Ted Flitton, spokesman for the Calgary Board of Education.

The boy was drowsy and slurring his speech. The principal found sleeping pills in the student's pocket.

"She went to speak to his brother, noticed the same symptoms," said Flitton. A third student was soon found to have taken the pills as well.

The boys were taken to the hospital and monitored for 24 hours as a precaution.

It's not clear how the children got the sleeping pills or what led to the incident, but paramedics say prescription drugs should be kept in a locked cabinet because child-proof lids don't always work.

'Some parents sometimes call medications candy, which is not really a great thing to do.'— Paul Lapointe, Calgary EMS

"One of the dangers that we see is children try to do the same things that their parents do. So if they see them taking pills or medications, they'll often do the same thing," said Calgary Emergency Medical Services spokesman Paul Lapointe.

Parents should "try not to take medications in front of their children, actually," he said. "Some parents sometimes call medications candy, which is not really a great thing to do."

The school board said teachers will talk to students over the next few days about the dangers of drugs, peer pressure, and respecting themselves.