Certain medicines should not be used during pregnancy or breastfeeding. However, other medicines may be safely used in pregnancy or breastfeeding providing the benefits to the mother outweigh the risks to the unborn baby. Always inform your doctor if you are pregnant or planning a pregnancy, before using any medicine. It's safe to take paracetamol regularly for many years, as long as you do not take more than the recommended dose. If you forget to take it Symptoms of paracetamol overdosage in the first 24 hours are pallor, nausea, vomiting, anorexia and abdominal pain. Liver damage may become apparent 12 to 48 hours after ingestion. Abnormalities of glucose metabolism and metabolic acidosis may occur. In severe poisoning, hepatic failure may progress to encephalopathy, haemorrhage, hypoglycaemia, cerebral oedema, and death. Acute renal failure with acute tubular necrosis, strongly suggested by loin pain, haematuria and proteinuria, may develop even in the absence of severe liver damage. Cardiac arrhythmias and pancreatitis have been reported. Treatment Epidemiological studies in human pregnancy have shown no ill effects due to paracetamol used in the recommended dosage, but patients should follow the advice of their doctor regarding its use. Phenylephrine can oppose the effects of medicines to treat high blood pressure (antihypertensives). If you are taking medicines for high blood pressure you should not take this medicine.

There have been reports of blood dyscrasias including thrombocytopenia, leucopenia, pancytopenia, neutropenia and agranulocytosis, but these were not necessarily causally related to paracetamol. The product should not be used during pregnancy unless recommended by a healthcare professional (see section 4.6). Caution should be taken when paracetamol is used concomitantly with flucloxacillin as concurrent intake has been associated with high anion gap metabolic acidosis, especially in patients with risks factors (see section 4.4) Epidemiological studies in human pregnancy have shown no ill effects due to paracetamol used in the recommended dosage. Immediate medical advice should be sought in the event of an overdose, even if the patient feels well because of the risk of delayed serious liver damage (see section 4.9).Empty the contents of the sachet into a cup. Add half a cup of hot (not boiling) water and stir to dissolve. You can add cold water and sugar if you want before drinking. This product contains 129.0mg (5.61mmol) sodium per dose – to be taken into consideration for patients on a controlled sodium diet.

If you take paracetamol in the hour before or the six hours after taking colestyramine, the paracetamol is likely to be less effective. This is because colestyramine reduces the absorption of paracetamol from the gut. You should avoid taking Lemsip cold & flu sachets one hour before or six hours after taking colestyramine. Taking this product with other paracetamol-containing medicines could lead to overdose and should therefore be avoided. If you're taking medicines for high blood pressure you shouldn't take Lemsip cold & flu sachets, because the decongestant may make your blood pressure medicine less effective. Other medicine interactions for Lemsip cold & flu related to paracetamolFor all other ages it's a maximum of three times in 24 hours at the following dosages: 1-3 years (5ml), 4-6 years (7.5ml), 7-9 years (10ml) and 10-11 years (15ml). In severe poisoning, hepatic failure may progress to encephalopathy, haemorrhage, hypoglycaemia, cerebral oedema and death. Acute renal failure with acute tubular necrosis, strongly suggested by loin pain, haematuria and proteinuria, may develop even in the absence of severe liver damage. Cardiac arrhythmias and pancreatitis have been reported. Liver damage is possible in adults who have taken 10 g or more of paracetamol. Ingestion of 5 g of more of paracetamol may lead to liver damage if the patient has risk factors (see below). Paracetamol is excreted in breast milk, but not in a clinically significant amount. Available published data do not contraindicate breast feeding.