Taking the Medicine: A Short History of Medicine’s Beautiful Idea, and our Difficulty Swallowing It

Product Information

Levothyroxine does not affect any types of contraception, including the combined pill or emergency contraception. Please note that we might not be able to give advice to parents of children not currently being treated at GOSH. Health and social care commissioners and providers should review their local governance arrangements to ensure that it is clear who is accountable and responsible for providing medicines support.

When social care providers have responsibilities for medicines support, they should have a documented medicines policy based on current legislation and best available evidence. Care workers must not give, or make the decision to give, medicines by covert administration, unless there is clear authorisation and instructions to do this in the provider's care plan, in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005.If you're breastfeeding, it's important that you continue to take levothyroxine, as this is replacing what your body would normally be making. Engage with the person (and their family members or carers if this has been agreed with the person) when assessing a person's medicines support needs. If you take contraceptive pills and you have severe diarrhoea for over 24 hours, your contraception may not protect you from pregnancy.

People living in residential or nursing care homes are covered by NICE's guideline on managing medicines in care homes. However, if you have side effects such as headaches, flushing or sweating with levothyroxine, alcohol may make these worse.

Health and social care providers should ensure that people and/or their family members or carers, and care workers know how to report adverse effects of medicines, including using the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency's yellow card scheme.