My husband didn't know Lemsip has paracetamol in it..

[bbcessex]

HUGE HUGE apologies to a reasonably recent OP who posted about paracetamol .

I did not think there was anyone out there who didn't know about the risks of taking too much / medicines that contained paracetamol but seems I should have looked closer to home.

P.S. I cannot fathom automatically taking two without ever trying whether one would work.

It's not a Buy-One, Get-One-Free offer on toilet tissue. It's medication, and there is a benefit to restricting yourself to the minimum effective dose.

I overheard a mum in the playground say "I've heard calpol contains paracetamol"

P.S. I cannot fathom automatically taking two without ever trying whether one would work.

It's not a Buy-One, Get-One-Free offer on toilet tissue. It's medication, and there is a benefit to restricting yourself to the minimum effective dose.

I don't really get the analogy, but taking 1g would be more effective for pain relief than 500mg. That's how analgesia works. I take it so rarely that I'd rather take the maximum safe dose to give it the best chance to take away the pain.
I'd consider it pointless to use it for any piffly pain that 500mg paracetamol would deal with. It wouldn't be worth opening the packet for.

I've always known about lemsip but dm had it drummed into me. Never understand people that don't read medication labels. I am neurotic about it. Atm I'm on two different painkillers for my back, a ppi for my stomach and antibiotics for an infection. All of them get written down every day in a book with the times beside them. I do the same with the dc when they aren't well.

It could be called, as its brand name, Lemsip With Paracetamol and the word Paracetamol could be in the same sized letters as Lemsip.

You'd still get people complaining that it's not called 'paracetamol Lemsip with paracetamol. Contains paracetamol.' Because if people can't see the fact that paracetamol is written twice on the front of the box, then there not much hope for them. There's no prescription for stupid.

Let's not even begin with people taking NSAIDs like Ibuprofen. You really, really need to read the labels with those. They interact with so much other medication; many blood pressure tablets and antidepressants among others.

Yes the supermarkets should flag any medication containing paracetamol bags including lemsip.
I too work in pharmacy and it astounds me every day that people don't understand that different things contain the same drugs. Most cold and flu medicines contain paracetamol as standard.
The other thing that really bugs me is night nurse, it's a powerful medication and people drink it like it's going out of fashion.

I'd consider it pointless to use it for any piffly pain that 500mg paracetamol would deal with. It wouldn't be worth opening the packet for.

We have very different physiologies then, as I find 500mg deals with non-piffly pain.

While adults really should be capable of understanding that purchases made in the medicines aisle are medicines generally people are stupid.

I'd support making all medicines pharmacy purchases only. As myself and other pps have said its NOT just paracetamol its NSAIDs, decongestants, antiseptics (which over use of by the way is contributing to the same problems associated with over prescription of antibiotics), laxatives all sorts.

As I said my particular concern is codeine as its so addictive.

If pharmacies/pharmacy counters in shops were the only retailers of medicines
over use
patients not addressing symptoms (continuing to self treat even though even throat sweets say 'if symptoms continue for x days see a dr)

medicine use facilitating illness ( eg laxatives and eating disorders)

Would more likely be picked up on and assessed.

If you buy paracetamol and lemsip in a single purchase it is flagged but there are ways around it (separate purchases using different shops) which is never a loophole you can truly close completely but as with the limit on the amount of paracetamol you can buy it would I think massively improve things.

Madamginger God yes bloody night nurse!

I'm gonna risk a flaming and say I think night nurse and codeine should be prescription only. Strong meds that people become addicted to (yes I know the components in night nurse aren't so much chemically addictive but people get addicted to/reliant on the effects).

I've a couple friends that are pharmacists they're highly qualified professional conscientious people and through both them and pharmacists I've worked with I think they're hugely undervalued and dismissed. Not just by customers but by medics too.

It is the placebo effect; there's only 650mg paracetamol in 'normal' Lemsip.

You keep saying this. That's more than one 500mg tablet and you are supposed to take one or two tablets!

But MotherFuckingChainsaw was talking about Lemsip vs other OTC analgesics, including taking the individual components of Lemsip separately. This must mean that they are experiencing some kind of extra therapeutic effect, because paracetamol is paracetamol.

Personally paracetamol alone has no effect on me might as well take tic tacs! But taken with my prescription painkillers makes the prescription ones work better.

In my experience pharmacists are also better at knowing how different meds interact especially if you're on a lot of different ones ( like me. I'm on 5 different regular meds if I get an illness requiring eg antibiotics I check with the pharmacist before taking, a couple times they've said to me 'that combination is gonna make you throw up' or something and I've gone back to dr to get a different prescription. Not that these were bad Drs just they're very busy, don't always notice what else you're on or aren't as well informed on combination problems. Pharmacists it's their area of expertise).

Regarding lemsip v tablets/caps those posters might find soluble paracetamol works better - it might be the delivery that's makin the difference.

I too hate the taste of lemsip (Far too sweet) so do my own version of lemon, ginger, honey, cinnamon and hot water and take my painkillers and decongestants separately. I find eucalyptus oil a better decongestant anyway usually plus it doesn't have the rebound effect some chemical decongestants can cause.

This must mean that they are experiencing some kind of extra therapeutic effect, because paracetamol is paracetamol

The placebo effect is a real
phenomenon; it doesn't mean that people are imagining the benefit at all.

Absolutely the brain is a powerful organ in controlling the body.

I'm gonna risk a flaming and say I think night nurse and codeine should be prescription only

I agree; codeine should be prescription only. It's far too addictive.

I didn't know this either :S

However if I had ever used it I would have read it...so I guess my ignorance is ok as I don't use the stuff

CockacidalManiac

Yes Cockacidal, I know and agree.

How many people know that they should be very wary of eating grapefruit or drinking grapefruit juice when they are taking medication? The list of affected medication is huge and diverse.

This one I do know. Only because my painkillers often aren't strong enough and I drink grapefruit to make them more effective :S Some OTC medications can be used to do this also.

I only know vaguely about grapefruit juice as DH has sternly banned it from the house.

I didn't know myself until just now.

It is not a placebo .. 650mg paracetamol is enough to have an effect - the max dose at any one time is roughly 1g but that's a limit, not a target. Because it's powdered and dissolved it absorbs a little faster and in conjunction with the decongestant it can make a significant difference to symptoms for a few hours.

It's pretty obvious it has paracetamol in it. You can easily overdose- paracetamol is unusual as an otc drug in that the gap between a therapeutic dose and a lethal dose is very narrow.

Jesus, dont do that wankingmonkey!

It was suggested to me by the pain clinic! Apparently my meds couldn't be raised but I could do 'some things' to make them more effective

even if u werent sure its stockked with other medicines its not down the juice aisle