‘Doctors are for only major sufferings’ is the mindset of every common man around the world. Some even believe that Doctors are just to make money and due to their high fees people avoid going to them for minor illness. Then what do they do during sickness? How do they get cured if they do not consult any doctor? Can one get better by only taking rest?
The answer is ‘No’. Rest is indeed necessary when one is sick, but it can’t treat any sickness. There will be no one who would like to get sick and lay in bed for days. Each one of us needs treatments that are quick as well as effective, something that can help relieve the problem in a couple of hours or I should say minutes. We often prefer to use home remedies for common ailments. And if we are aware of any over the counter drugs, we get it from the pharmacy without any Doctor’s prescription. But have we ever thought about the duration we can take that medicine? It is harmful to take any drugs with insufficient information about its composition, dosage, and its adverse effects. One can be unaware of the content that might be allergic to them and later can cause them to suffer.
Without a prescription, any drug can be harmful to us. About 350 drugs are banned in India. Medicines like Vicks Action 500, Corex, and Phensedyltoo is involved in the banned list. To avoid misuse of these medicines and stop the harmful effects that it can cause to one’s body, the government has banned such drugs.
Doctors and Health experts of India and abroad notify the increasing use of antibiotic combination which may lead to antibiotic resistance. A Combination drug refers to a drug in which several drugs are combined. It benefits a patient to take one medicine instead of several. Combination drugs are not permitted for sale in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Japan, and Australia.The Government of India has banned around 350 fixed-dose combinations (FDC) drugs like Crocin Cold and Flu, D-Cold Total, Vicks Action 500 and other drugs that are generally used for common cold, cough, and fever.
Vicks Action 500 is an FDC drug of paracetamol, phenylephrine, and caffeine, which was banned by the Ministry of Health in a notice issued on 10th March 2016. Several companies including P&G have stopped manufacturing, selling and distributing FDC drugs. Vicks Action 500 is generally used for cold, cough, fever, headache, congestion, ear pain, toothache, joint pain, menstrual pain, etc.This is one of the common household medicines that are used for the treatment of minor illness.
Intake of Vicks action 500 relieves pain. It is helpful in reducing the temperature of the body and sweating. It improves patient illness by reducing edema tissue and nasal congestion. The patient will get relief for some time but it may cause dizziness. Some of the common side effects that may occur when taking Vicks Action 500 are shortness of breath, reddening, and itching of skin, rashes, drowsiness and dizziness, nausea, swollen facial features. This medicine can cause hypertension, liver damage, palpitation, etc. when used for a prolonged period of time.
Health experts believe that single drug is better than a combination drug. A combination drug will only cure the symptoms, rather than treating the underlying cause. They also advise that no medication should be taken without a prescription. Common illness like cold and cough tends to take 2-3 days to recover, and if symptoms persist consult the Doctor.
