Linkas cough syrup for children: instructions for use

In the treatment of cough are widely used various herbal remedies, which are based healing herbs that have a positive effect on the respiratory system. One of these drugs is a product of the Pakistani company Herbion called "Linkas". The manufacturer calls this medicine a tool for the whole family, so it can be given to both parents and kids.

The cough preparation “Linkas” is a syrup, which has a brown color, a sweet taste and a characteristic aroma, inherent in the solution due to plant raw materials. It is sold in glass brown bottles, to which a 5 ml measuring cap is sometimes attached. One bottle can hold 90 or 120 ml of syrup.

There are also other forms of medicine, but to distinguish them from syrup, the second word is present in their names. For example, “Linkas Lor” is a round sweet lozenges, which have an orange, lemon-honey or mint smell. Their composition differs from syrup by a smaller number of plant extracts and their dose. In addition, these candies are not used in childhood (in the list of contraindications, in addition to hypersensitivity, the age is under 18 years).

You can also find Linkas Balm on sale. This ointment based on natural ingredients has irritant and antiseptic properties. She is discharged not only for dry cough or runny nose, but also for muscle pain. However, it is possible to use this remedy in children only as prescribed by a doctor. In addition, granules "Linkas ORVI", packaged in portion bags, are produced. This medicine is also contraindicated up to 18 years.

Unlike numerous analogues, liquid Linkas contains not one but ten plant extracts at once. So, from 10 ml of syrup the patient receives:

• 600 mg extracts from leaflets adatody;
• 100 mg each of extracts obtained from long pepper (from the roots of this plant and its fruits), fruits of zizifus, flowers of Althea, fruits of cordia, flowers and leaves of onosma;
• 75 mg extract from licorice roots;
• 50 mg of extracts of alpine roots and hyssop leaves;
• 25 mg of violet flower extract.

Auxiliary ingredients of the medicine are clove and mint oil, as well as purified water, propylene glycol and sucrose. In addition, the composition of the "Linkas" is citric acid, glycerin, propyl and methyl parahydroxybenzoate.

The ingredients of the syrup act on the organs of the respiratory system in a complex manner, while the main therapeutic effect of taking Linkas is expectorant. Under the influence of plant extracts, the productivity of cough increases, sputum becomes less thick and is better excreted from the bronchi. As a result, the cough becomes less pronounced and soon passes. The drug also has some anti-inflammatory effect.

Lincas are used as symptomatic therapy for various inflammatory and infectious diseases of the respiratory organs, if the patient has a cough and the sputum is removed with difficulty. The drug is prescribed to children with:

• viral acute respiratory disease;
• flu;
• tracheitis;
• tracheobronchitis;
• inflammation of the bronchi;
• pneumonia and so on.

Although the box containing the bottle with 90 ml of syrup is written in large colored letters “for children”, the 120-ml packaging of liquid “Linkas” is also used in childhood. This medicine can be given even to infants, as in contraindications only an age of up to 6 months is noted.

"Linkas" should not be used in children with hypersensitivity to any of the ingredients of the syrup - as a plant extract, and to the inactive components of the drug. If the patient is diagnosed with diabetes, the use of Linkas must be agreed with the doctor, since 10 ml of the medicine contains 7 g of sucrose.

Due to herbal components, Linkas can cause allergies, such as skin rash or angioedema. In this situation, the drug is immediately canceled, and the child must be shown to the doctor. Other side effects during treatment, "Linkas" usually do not mark. If, after starting the syrup, any ailments have occurred, medical consultation and the selection of an age-matched analogue with a similar effect on the bronchi is required.

Syrup is often given from a regular teaspoon or from a measuring cap, if present in the package. The child can drink a sweet solution with clean water. So that the drug does not affect the appetite, it is advised to give it after meals, but in general, the diet does not affect the effect of such a medicine.

Only the child's age affects single doses and the frequency of taking Linkas during the day.

• The smallest patients, who are more than 6 months old but not yet three years old, are given 2.5 ml of medication per reception, that is, half a teaspoonful. Take the syrup at the specified age during the day must be three times.
• If the child is from 3 to 8 years old, then a single dosage of the drug is increased to 5 ml. This patient is given a teaspoonful of syrup three times a day.
• For children older than 8 years, a single dose of Linkas remains the same, that is, 5 ml of syrup per reception. In this case, the frequency of reception increases to four times during the day.

There were no cases of the negative effect of a large dose of Linkas, but if the baby accidentally drinks a lot of syrup, it can provoke abdominal pain, vomiting, allergic rash and other negative symptoms. In such a situation, it is worthwhile to seek medical help so that the doctor examines the child and prescribes symptomatic remedies that will eliminate the effects of overdose.

Like any other vegetable expectorant, Linkas should not be used with drugs that reduce the production of sputum or inhibit the cough reflex. With the simultaneous use of such drugs, the child’s condition may worsen. It is possible to combine syrup with drugs of other groups, for example, with antibiotics.

“Linkas” are classified as over-the-counter drugs, therefore, it is not necessary to take a prescription from a doctor to buy such a syrup. But if the medicine is bought for a child, consultation with a specialist, despite the herbal composition, is still necessary. On average, one bottle of syrup costs 160 rubles.

No special conditions are required for the storage of Linkas at home.It is not necessary to put the medicine bottle in the refrigerator, as the drug does not deteriorate at room temperature. But since the medicine is sweet, in order to reduce the risk of an overdose, the bottle should be hidden away from the reach of children.

About the treatment of "Linkas" children there are mostly positive reviews. According to the parents, this syrup helps to make a wet cough less intense, it is good at combating inflammation, it helps to eliminate sputum. The advantages of the drug also include its pleasant taste and the absence of ethyl alcohol in the composition. The cost of the drug, most mothers consider acceptable, and among the shortcomings only occasionally mention an allergic reaction or lack of a positive effect with a strong cough.

On the packaging of such a syrup, you can see the inscription "without sugar", and this is the main difference of this drug from the usual "Linkass". Means marked "BSU" also includes ten plant extracts in the same dosages, and therefore is prescribed for the same diseases. It is available in bottles of 120 ml of syrup, the average price of which is also 160 rubles.

The composition of the auxiliary ingredients "Linkas BSS" is also no ethyl alcohol. The list of inactive substances in this syrup almost coincides with the composition of the usual “Linkas”, but the sucrose is replaced with 70% sorbitol and sodium saccharinate. Although the contraindications to taking this medication are marked up to the age of 18, the doctor may prescribe such syrup to a child older than one year if he has diabetes or there is another reason to avoid sucrose.

If the use of Linkas is impossible for any reason, this syrup may be replaced by another expectorant, the effect of which is also due to plant extracts. These drugs include:

• «Herbion». Under this name, KRKA produces three syrups. One of them contains primrose extract, the second - ivy, the third - plantain. Any of these drugs can be given to a child older than two years.

• "Evkabal." As part of this medication there is a combination of two liquid extracts - from thyme and from psyllium. It is prescribed to children older than a year. In addition to the syrup, there is also "Evkabal Balsam C", approved for use in babies from 2 months of age. Such a drug based on oils of pine and eucalyptus is used for inhalation, rubbing and baths.

• «Bronhikum». The action of this syrup provides extract of thyme. Such a liquid preparation, as well as "Linkas", can be applied from six months of age. Instead, children older than a year can be given an elixir called Bronhikum TP. It is characterized by the presence of another active substance - primrose extract. In addition, the Bronhikum C lozenges are on sale, which can be given to children from 6 years of age.

• "Altea syrup". This yellow-brown sweet medicine is used in children older than a year. Althea extract present in it helps not only with coughing, but also for some diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.

• Gedelix. The advantages of such a herbal expectorant drug are a pleasant taste and the possibility of use from birth. This syrup contains ivy extract and can be replaced with Prospan syrup, which has the same active substance.

• "Bronchipret". This drug acts on sputum due to a combination of extracts from ivy and thyme, but, unlike "Lincas", it contains ethanol. In syrup, the drug can be used from 3 months of age, and in drops due to a higher dose - from six years.

For the treatment of cough with expectorant drugs, see the following video.