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Cough Syrups in Crisis: The Deadly Side of India’s Pediatric Medications
• Health, Crime, Politics, India, cough syrup, child deaths, diethylene glycol, toxic, kidney failure, government investigation, drug regulation, healthcare system, urban air pollution, pediatrician, safety concerns, misuse, addiction, rural healthcare, rtwnews.com, Cough Syrups in Crisis: The Deadly Side of India’s Pediatric Medications
Recent tragedies linked to contaminated cough syrups in India have raised alarm bells about the country's healthcare system, leading to a call for better regulation and awareness.
It's happening again. In early September, a cluster of unexplained child deaths in a small town in Madhya Pradesh sent local health workers scrambling. At least 11 victims - aged one to six - had died within days of taking a common cough syrup. Officials tested everything from drinking water to mosquitoes before the truth emerged: their kidneys had failed. Weeks later, a state laboratory in Chennai confirmed the worst. The syrup in question contained 48.6% diethylene glycol, a toxic industrial solvent that should never be found in medicine. Kidney failure is common after consuming this poisonous alcohol.
The horror wasn't confined to Madhya Pradesh. In neighbouring Rajasthan, the deaths of two young children, allegedly after consuming a locally-made Dextromethorphan syrup - a cough suppressant unsafe for very young children - sparked outrage and a government investigation. For India, this brought a grim sense of déjà vu.
Over the years, diethylene glycol in Indian-made cough syrups has claimed dozens of young lives. In 2023, Indian syrups tainted with diethylene glycol were linked to the deaths of 70 children in The Gambia and 18 in Uzbekistan. Between December 2019 and January 2020, at least 12 children under five died in Jammu from cough syrup, with activists suggesting the number might have been higher. Each time, regulators promise reform, but contaminated syrups reappear, reflecting a fragmented drug market and a weak regulatory system.
Days after the latest child deaths, India's health ministry urged rational use of such medicines, effectively warning doctors to exercise more caution when prescribing them to young children. The problem runs deeper than over-prescription; it exposes a maze of weak enforcement and regulation in India's drug oversight. The Indian cough syrup market is projected to grow significantly, raising concerns about safety standards amidst rising demand.
In rural India, poor patients often turn to local chemists for advice, assuming the person behind the counter is a pharmacist, which is frequently a false assumption. This leads to the widespread and often misguided use of cough syrups for conditions that may not warrant them.
With a need for clear policy regarding cough syrup use and improved public education, experts warn about the potential risks of addiction and toxicity in children, emphasizing that the vast majority of childhood coughs are self-limiting and not necessarily treatable with syrup medications.
The horror wasn't confined to Madhya Pradesh. In neighbouring Rajasthan, the deaths of two young children, allegedly after consuming a locally-made Dextromethorphan syrup - a cough suppressant unsafe for very young children - sparked outrage and a government investigation. For India, this brought a grim sense of déjà vu.
Over the years, diethylene glycol in Indian-made cough syrups has claimed dozens of young lives. In 2023, Indian syrups tainted with diethylene glycol were linked to the deaths of 70 children in The Gambia and 18 in Uzbekistan. Between December 2019 and January 2020, at least 12 children under five died in Jammu from cough syrup, with activists suggesting the number might have been higher. Each time, regulators promise reform, but contaminated syrups reappear, reflecting a fragmented drug market and a weak regulatory system.
Days after the latest child deaths, India's health ministry urged rational use of such medicines, effectively warning doctors to exercise more caution when prescribing them to young children. The problem runs deeper than over-prescription; it exposes a maze of weak enforcement and regulation in India's drug oversight. The Indian cough syrup market is projected to grow significantly, raising concerns about safety standards amidst rising demand.
In rural India, poor patients often turn to local chemists for advice, assuming the person behind the counter is a pharmacist, which is frequently a false assumption. This leads to the widespread and often misguided use of cough syrups for conditions that may not warrant them.
With a need for clear policy regarding cough syrup use and improved public education, experts warn about the potential risks of addiction and toxicity in children, emphasizing that the vast majority of childhood coughs are self-limiting and not necessarily treatable with syrup medications.