Sip a lemon and feel not much better (Lemsip)

Member Name: claireislafrazer

Product:	Lemsip
Date:	20/10/08 (64 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Better than nothing when u are ill

Disadvantages: Doesnt help colds much for me

Lemsip seems to be the first thing you think of when you feel ill. Have a cold? Have a lemsip! You know what I think is the best thing about them, the fact that they are a warm drink! I actually think that any warm drink (something with honey in perhaps for a sore throat) will make you feel as good as a lemsip will.

Im the type of person though that when I have a cold I will take anything that says itll make me feel better so I have suffered through colds while having taking lemsips that made me feel no better knowing that I couldnt take anything else as id be over the paracetemol limit.

Basically paracetemol is the main ingredient of lemsips. The max strength one I have here contains 1000mg of paracetemol per sachet ( the original strength has 500mg) as well as 12.2mg of phenylephrine. They come in both lemon and blackcurrant flavours.

Paracetemol is supposed to relieve you of headache, sore throats, fever, and body aches when you have a cold and phenylephrine is a decongestant to relieve your blocked nose.

One dose of lempsip is contained in a paper sachet which you tear open to reveal a yellow lemoney smelling powder. I think this flavour is added but the powder also contains some vitamin c (doesnt say how much ) as apparantly the levels are reduced in the body when you are fighting an infection.

You make the drink the same as any powdered drink. Pour the contents into a cup, add hot water and stir til dissolved. You can then add sugar if you want or honey as it is quite bitter, especially the bits of paracetemol left at the bottom. I dont usually add any though and get it down me as fast as possible.

It is only for adults and children over 12, I presume paracetemol is harmful to younger children.
You can have 1 drink every 4-6 hours but no more than 4 in 24 hours and you must not take anything else containing paracetemol.


Something I hadnt noticed before til now. The pack is kinda christmas-y to fit in with illnesses at that time of year im sure ha. The top of the box is green and the bottom is red. It also has an explosion of yellow like a burning fire at the bottom where it says it is lemon flavour.

The box I have in the house has 10 sachets but I think you can get bigger boxes. Each sachet is green and red like the box, and contains the information on doseage and directions of use on the back. 10 sachets would last you 2.5 days which I guess is the peak of a cold.. hmm dont they say 3 days to come, 3 to stay and 3 days to go.

My colds never seem to be like that though, I always get a REALLY sore throat for a day then really intense running nose for a day (sometimes 12 hours even) and then a day of aching muscles and shivering and then it slowly diminishes.

Lets start with the sore throat - possibly the worst part of a cold for me. Lemsip doesnt help AT ALL.
Runny/blocked nose - the decongestant doesnt help AT ALL.
Headaches- well I dont usually have one so possibly
Aches and shivers - doesnt help AT ALL.

My solution and what I use now is this, paracetemol and codeine tablets that disolve put into a warm orange drink with honey. Cheaper and much more effective. Now it doesnt help with the sore throat and the nose, they I just have to put up with (several packets of fishermans friends non stop can keep throat at bay). What it does do is stop the aches and shivers and make me feel less groggy and miserable which is much more than what lemsip does.

Lemsip also do tablets as well but I think at least they have the comforting effect of having a warm drink if you get the sachets, otherwise you may as well just take a paracetemol tablet, it would be cheaper too! 16 of the 1000mg max strength tablets are 2.50.

Like I say they dont work too well for me but they are better than taking nothing when you are feeling ill.

The prices are different depending on the amount of paracetemol the sachets contains. The original stregth (500mg) are around 2 pounds for 10sachets while the max strength (1000mg) are around 3.50.

Summary: Its a last resort for me