Consumer Medicine Information
Please read this leaflet carefully before taking your medicine. If you have any questions or are not sure about anything, ask your doctor or pharmacist.
What is this medicine?
This medicine is Movicol Flavour Free. Each sachet contains:
- Macrogol 3350 – 13.125 g
- Sodium chloride – 350.8 mg
- Sodium bicarbonate – 178.6 mg
- Potassium chloride – 50.2 mg
When it is made into a drink with 125 mL of water, each sachet gives the equivalent of:
- Sodium – 65 mmol/L
- Chloride – 53 mmol/L
- Bicarbonate – 17 mmol/L
- Potassium – 5.4 mmol/L
Each sachet contains 13.7 grams of powder. You add water to the powder to make a drink.
What is Movicol Flavour Free used for?
This medicine helps you to have a comfortable bowel movement even if you have been constipated for a long time. It also works in faecal impaction (as determined by your doctor).
Before you take Movicol Flavour Free
Do not take this medicine if your doctor has told you that you have:
- an obstruction in your intestine (gut)
- a perforated gut wall
- severe inflammatory bowel disease, like ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, or toxic megacolon
- paralysis of the bowel
- an allergy to macrogol.
Pregnancy and breast feeding
If you are pregnant, talk to your doctor before you take MOVICOL Flavour Free.
Movicol Flavour Free can be taken whilst breast feeding.
Other Medications
Laxative products such as Movicol Flavour Free have the potential to interact with other medications, by altering their absorption. Close monitoring of the effects of your medications may be necessary when you commence or cease to take Movicol Flavour Free regularly. It is important that you should discuss this with your doctor.
How to take Movicol Flavour Free
Constipation: The recommended dose is 1 sachet a day.
This can be increased to 2 or 3 sachets daily if necessary.
Faecal impaction: The dose is 8 sachets a day taken within 6 hours. You may need to take this dose for up to 3 days. If you have a heart condition do not take more than two sachets in any one hour.
Open the sachet and pour contents into a glass. Add about 125 mL of water into the glass. Stir well until all the powder has dissolved and the Movicol Flavour Free solution is clear, or slightly hazy, then drink it. If you like, you can add a flavour such as orange squash to the drink.
If you are taking Movicol Flavour Free for faecal impaction, it may be easier to dissolve 8 sachets in 1 litre of water.
Drink plenty of water. Increase fibre in diet, except in cases of medication-induced constipation. Prolonged use of laxatives is undesirable and may lead to dependence. If symptoms persist seek medical advice. In some circumstances, prolonged use may be necessary but should only be under medical supervision.
If you take too much Movicol Flavour Free and get bad diarrhoea, stop taking it until it clears. If constipation recurs, you should check with your doctor or pharmacist before taking a new course of Movicol Flavour Free. If you are worried, contact your doctor or pharmacist.
What about side effects?
Sometimes people have stomach ache or rumbles, or an allergic reaction, or feel bloated or sick. You may have diarrhoea especially when starting to take Movicol Flavour Free. If you feel weak, breathless, very thirsty with a headache, or get puffy ankles stop taking MOVICOL Flavour Free and tell your doctor. Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you think MOVICOL Flavour Free is causing you any problem.
How to store MOVICOL Flavour Free
Store your medicine at room temperature (below 30ºC). Do not use it after the expiry date on the label. Once you have made up Movicol Flavour Free in water put it in the fridge (2-8ºC) and keep it covered. Throw away any solution not used within a 24 hour period.
Keep all medicines away from children.
AUST R 181834
Date: 1 April 2015
Norgine Pty Limited,
3/14 Rodborough Road,
Frenchs Forest NSW 2086
1800 766 936
MOVICOL is a registered trademarks of the Norgine group of companies.
Published by MIMS March 2016
