{"id":1288,"date":"2026-08-04T12:00:40","date_gmt":"2026-08-04T12:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/2026\/08\/04\/feeling-unwell-after-taking-medicine-heres-how-to-report-it\/"},"modified":"2026-08-04T12:00:40","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T12:00:40","slug":"feeling-unwell-after-taking-medicine-heres-how-to-report-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/2026\/08\/04\/feeling-unwell-after-taking-medicine-heres-how-to-report-it\/","title":{"rendered":"\u200bFeeling unwell after taking medicine? Here\u2019s how to report it"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/span> VH-studio\/Shutterstock.com<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Take a medicine and start feeling a bit off, and it\u2019s easy to assume you\u2019re imagining it. Sometimes you\u2019re not. <\/p>\n

It could be a known side-effect<\/a> \u2013 the sort of thing listed on the leaflet in the packaging. Or it could be something known as an adverse drug reaction<\/a>, or ADR.<\/p>\n

The terms get used interchangeably, but they\u2019re not quite the same thing. An ADR is an effect<\/a> that\u2019s new, unexpected, or more severe than anyone anticipated \u2013 and it can strike when you start a medicine, when your dose changes, or even after you\u2019ve stopped taking it.<\/p>\n

ADRs can happen for many reasons<\/a>. We all process medicines differently. Your age, your genes and your underlying health can all shape how your body reacts.<\/p>\n

Sometimes the dose is simply too strong for you. Or it could be caused by a clash between two medicines, or a medicine and food, or a medicine and a supplement.<\/p>\n

And very occasionally, the culprit is the medicine itself: a defective or fake product containing the wrong ingredients, or none at all.<\/p>\n

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\n Read more:
\n One in ten medicines worldwide could be fake or substandard \u2013 here\u2019s how to protect yourself<\/a>
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Healthcare professionals sort ADRs into several categories<\/a>, but two matter most.<\/p>\n

Type A reactions are the most common. They happen when a medicine\u2019s normal effects simply become too strong \u2013 blood thinners like warfarin<\/a> causing bleeding, for instance, or painkillers like morphine<\/a> and codeine causing drowsiness or slowed breathing.<\/p>\n

These are usually predictable and tied to the dose. The same category covers side-effects that come from how a drug works in the body but aren\u2019t part of its actual job \u2013 the dry mouth caused by tricyclic antidepressants<\/a>, for example.<\/p>\n

Type B<\/a> reactions are rarer and much harder to anticipate. Allergic reactions fall into this category \u2013 rashes, swelling, breathing trouble \u2013 such as those sometimes triggered by penicillin antibiotics<\/a>.<\/p>\n

These can happen even when you\u2019ve taken the medicine exactly as prescribed.<\/p>\n

There are other types of ADR<\/a> too, and some take much longer to show up. Type C reactions build slowly, sometimes over months or years. Long-term steroid use thinning the bones<\/a> is one example.<\/p>\n

Type D reactions can appear long after you\u2019ve stopped taking a medicine. Some cancer treatments, for instance, can cause heart problems that only emerge years later<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Type E reactions happen when you stop a medicine and your body reacts to its absence. These are withdrawal effects<\/a>, and they\u2019re linked to antidepressants, sleeping tablets and epilepsy medicines. <\/p>\n

The symptoms themselves can range from mild to serious. Headaches, nausea and rashes sit at one end. Severe allergic reactions, breathing difficulties, fainting and sudden changes in mood or behaviour sit at the other. If something feels unusual, severe, or turns up soon after starting a new medicine, it\u2019s worth taking seriously.<\/p>\n

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\n Some medicines might cause an allergic reaction.<\/span>
\n Kmpzzz\/Shutterstock.com<\/a><\/span>
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Don\u2019t just ignore it. If the symptoms are mild, check the patient information leaflet first to see whether it\u2019s already a known reaction.<\/p>\n

Many common side-effects fade after a few days \u2013 diarrhoea with metformin<\/a> is a good example. But if symptoms persist, get worse, or worry you, talk to a pharmacist or doctor.<\/p>\n

They can tell you whether to keep taking the medicine, adjust the dose, or try something else. And if you experience symptoms<\/a> such as difficulty breathing, a swollen face or throat, chest pain, a rapidly spreading rash<\/a>, or severe dizziness, get emergency help straight away.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s worth keeping a simple record too. Note down when symptoms started, what medicines you\u2019re taking, and anything that\u2019s recently changed \u2013 it all helps a doctor or pharmacist work out what\u2019s going on.<\/p>\n

Where to report them<\/h2>\n

In the UK, anyone can report a suspected ADR through the Yellow Card scheme<\/a>, run by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). You don\u2019t need to be a healthcare professional, and you don\u2019t even need to be certain the medicine caused it.<\/p>\n

You can report reactions to prescription medicines, vaccines, herbal products and homeopathic remedies. You can also flag defective or fake medicines.<\/p>\n

Reporting matters more than you might think. ADRs are a major cause of hospital admissions, especially for older people juggling several medicines at once, which piles extra pressure on the NHS.<\/p>\n

Up to 16.5% of hospital admissions are linked to ADRs, according to one study<\/a>. Another review<\/a>, drawing on data from more than 1.5 million people in primary care, found that around 8% had experienced an ADR. Researchers believe that almost a quarter of those could have been prevented.<\/p>\n

Heart medicines were the biggest culprits, especially treatments for high blood pressure, heart rhythm problems and blood thinners.<\/p>\n

There are simple ways to cut your own risk. Read the patient information leaflet, ask your pharmacist about possible interactions, and keep an up-to-date list of everything you take, including supplements. Don\u2019t share your medicine with other people. And if something feels wrong, report it.<\/p>\n

Medicines keep us well, but they\u2019re not risk free. Knowing what to watch for and what to do about it protects you and everyone else too.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Dipa Kamdar does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

VH-studio\/Shutterstock.com Take a medicine and start feeling a bit off, and it\u2019s easy to assume you\u2019re imagining it. Sometimes you\u2019re not. It could be a known side-effect \u2013 the sort of thing listed on the leaflet in the packaging. Or it could be something known as an adverse drug reaction, or ADR. The terms get […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1288","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1288","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1288"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1288\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1288"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1288"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1288"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}