Mums beware! Combiflam and D Cold Total have been deemed substandard!

Most of us resort to popping pills and turning to Allopathic medicine even for the slightest of headaches. And two medicines that are quite popular in India are Combiflam and D Cold Total.

You may have heard of them or taken them a few times yourself. But it's time to stop!

Yes, you read that right.

Combiflam and D Cold Total substandard!

Popular medicines Combiflam, which is a combination of ibuprofen and paracetamol as well as D Cold Total have reportedly been deemed substandard by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO).

While the former is a common pain reliever, the latter is consumed to counter cold and cough, and therefore, not surprisingly, are found in most households. Sometimes parents even give these to young kids due to their quick action.

But with this revelation, it seems time is right to throw out their stocks.

Is it just one batch or should you never buy them again?

The tests were conducted last month and the companies that manufacture them (Combiflam by Sanofi India and D Cold Total by Reckitt Benckiser Healthcare India) insist that this information was true only for some batches.

However, that's not the reality.

A Sanofi India spokesperson told a leading daily, "Certain batches of Combiflam manufactured in 2015 were deemed substandard because the tablets showed a delay in the disintegration time. Essentially, there are several pharmaceutical parameters that are routinely assessed, one of which is to check the breakdown of a tablet in the human body. The batch identified by the CDSCO in March 2017 was also manufactured in 2015. Once we receive the official notice, we will ascertain the finding and take appropriate action.”

But the fact is that three batches of Combiflam were found to be substandard just last year.

The other companies that failed the test (including RB) haven't yet responded to the revelation, but it is quite clear that parents need to stay away from these medicines till they are given a quality green signal.

Avoid self-medication in severe cases

Meanwhile, if your child has contracted cold or cough or suffers from regular body aches or headaches, then it's perhaps a good idea to take him to a doctor as opposed to wait it out or self-medicate through allopathy. So here's when you should rush your kid to a doctor:

• If the cold has become prolonged (a week or more)
• If the fever reoccurs or is more than 100 F
• If cough persists for more than 2-3 days take your kid to a doctor
• If the medical condition reoccurs
• if home-remedies do not work

These are just basic guidelines, but as parents you know best when to rush your kid to your doctor. The only advise we can give you is to not wait out a medical problem and be as expeditious as possible.

Read: 5 fast-acting home remedies for cold and cough

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