In UK cough medicine has been banned for children under two as 100 remedies are taken off the shelves.

- 28 / 03 / 2008 13:52

Cough and cold remedies for children under two are to be pulled from the shelves immediately amid safety fears.

At least 100 products will be put under the counter as parents are warned about the danger of giving toddlers potentially fatal overdoses.

The dramatic move means popular medicines will effectively be banned for any youngster under the age of two and parents of all children up to six will have to ask for them.

It could signal a return to old-fashioned remedies such as honey and lemon drinks.

Best-selling brands affected include Tixylix, Robitussin, Benylin and Calpol.

The alert centres on 12 ingredients in the medicines, many of which have been used by drug firms for years.

At least five deaths of British children under two have been linked to cough and cold remedies and more than 100 serious cases of suspected adverse reactions have been reported.

A similar warning was issued in the U.S. in January.

Six products directly targeted at children under two will be removed from open sale, although they may still be supplied by a pharmacist for use with older children.

They include Boots Chesty Cough Syrup 1 Year Plus and Asda Children's Chesty Cough Syrup.

Another 59 products - authorised for use in children under two but not marketed at them - will also be taken off the shelf and sold only to parents whose children are older.

A further 58 products aimed only at children aged two to six will also be taken down.

Anyone buying any of the 117 products will be instructed on the exact dose they should give.

In the long term, manufacturers will re-label and re-package them so they can go back on normal sale.

In a simultaneous move, parents will be told to use temperature-lowering drugs such as paracetamol or ibuprofen to treat babies and toddlers suffering cold symptoms.

They will also be advised to use a simple cough syrup such as glycerol, honey or lemon, with vapour rubs for a stuffy nose.

Parents of children under two who have any of the affected products at home will be advised to take them to a pharmacist or back to where they bought them.

The Daily Mail