According to the report published by the journal considered a reference on pharmaceutical subjects, dozens of drugs available in France are “more dangerous than useful”. There is, for example, domperidone against vomiting (Motilium) or even Smecta.
Prescribe has drawn up its annual report. The magazine has sifted through the drugs to be banned in 2025, and highlights 88 treatments sold in France that it considers too risky to use for treatment. Medications that provide insufficient or no benefit, and may sometimes be accompanied by serious side effects. The objective of the publication is “to help choose quality care and avoid disproportionate harm to patients”.
For example, antiemetics used to treat nausea and vomiting, such as domperidone (Motilium) or metopimazine (Vogalene) are affected. According to Prescribethese medications can cause heart rhythm disturbances or even sudden death. There is also the case of medicated clays such as Smecta or Rennieliquo, not recommended in particular for children in the context of acute diarrhea due to their lead contamination.
In the antidepressant category, the journal Prescrire lists tianeptine (Stablon) as the“effectiveness not demonstrated beyond that of a placebo” Who “exposes to hepatitis, serious skin damage, sometimes fatal, including bullous eruptions, and drug addiction”.
In total, the publication advises banning 106 drugs, some of which are not marketed in France. This assessment covers “on all medicines analyzed by Prescrire between 2010 and 2024 and with a French or European marketing authorization (AMM).
Honey rather than Toplexil
Prescrire therefore recommends safer or more effective alternatives. Instead of medicated clays, for example, it is advisable to take clay-free antacids or omeprazole. For wet coughs, honey is suggested to treat it, rather than cough suppressants like oxomemazine (Toplexil) and its sedative effect.
If phloroglucinol – the generic form of Spasfon – is not included in the list of 88 drugs marketed in France to be excluded, Prescribe falls under the “adverse effects” as “allergic reactions, including rare Lyell syndromes”, and highlights a “symptomatic effectiveness on recurrent benign intestinal disorders is uncertain.” “In clinical situations, whether urinary, gynecological, biliary or digestive, there is nothing to expect from phloroglucinol beyond the effectiveness of a placebo”specifies the magazine. For women who are pregnant or who wish to become pregnant, the review considers that phloroglucinol “should be ruled out whatever the clinical situation”.
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