Paracetamol, the most sold and consumed drug in the world, is out of stock. The ANSM reacts against the risk of shortage.
France, with 250 million boxes sold, is no exception to the rule. Paracetamol is the most consumed drug in our country, even more so since the information campaigns that made it the only real treatment for Covid.
But success has setbacks. The drug is now in danger of running out. Also, the National Medicines Safety Agency (ANSM) recommends in particular that pharmacies favor prescription delivery and limit to two boxes for patients without a prescription. “To date, there are delays in the supply of oral forms and suppositories of paracetamol”, explains the Agency, which however foresees a return to normal after the summer.
It must be said that in addition to its performance, the drug was at the center of the controversy over the relocation of our industrial flagships. It has long been the emblem of our flourishing pharmaceutical industries… before Asia took over its mass manufacture. Upsa, which is packaging this drug again in its Agen factory, confirms that the situation is completely under control. But the recent episode of out of stock during the first wave of Covid in March 2020 has left its mark…
An essential drug, but which remains potentially dangerous
Aspirin has long been the greatest drug discovery, but faced with its problems of toxicity, medical research has offered the parade with paracetamol which has almost the same advantages as aspirin on pain and fever. Medicine therefore has a drug that is apparently less dangerous, except that liver specialists quickly realized that beyond a certain daily dose, the damage to this organ becomes irreparable. It is indeed absolutely imperative never to exceed 4 grams per day for adults, and 60 milligrams per kilo per day for children. And that, provided you have a liver in perfect condition.
It is therefore worth remembering that a drug is not taken by considering only the form, that is to say the number of tablets, but by adding the actual doses administered. A simple addition will allow you to check whether your doctor’s prescription is respected. This will avoid the consequences of an often innocuous gesture because the relief provided by these exceptional products is indisputable, which explains their tremendous success.
