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Thursday, January 8, 2026
TopicCommon cold

Topic: common cold

Indians are obsessed with cough syrups. Are they really needed?

Parents in rural areas insist on medicine for every cough, and doctors are pressured by both expectations and pharmaceutical marketing and end up obliging.

How is Cold and Cough Treated in Kids?

Young children are particularly susceptible to colds and coughs due to their developing immune systems and frequent exposure to viruses at schools, playgrounds, and daycare centres.

Calls for caution over phenylephrine’s efficacy, as FDA panel deems decongestant ineffective

Panel report notes that oral phenylephrine is no better than placebo for relieving nasal congestion. In India, phenylephrine is widely used in cough and cold medicines.

After WHO alert, drug controller general warns against use of cough syrups containing pholcodine

Pholcodine is used to treat dry cough. WHO had flagged risk of anaphylactic reactions in those who took remedies containing Pholcodine at least 12 months prior to surgery.

On Camera

Budget 2026 must signal rail reform. End cross-subsidies, privatise operations & services

Rail reform must be politically and socially sustainable. Infrastructure ownership should remain sovereign, while privatisation should be limited to new services and assets.

500% tariffs ahead for India? Trump’s lined up a big bad Bill for countries buying Russian oil

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham says bill will be 'well-timed, as Ukraine is making concessions for peace and Putin is all talk, continuing to kill the innocent'.

India’s defence sky gets a solar boost: Army orders iDEX solar-electric drone 

Indian Army has inducted loitering munitions, kamikaze and surveillance drones for over Rs 5,000 crore post Operation Sindoor from various domestic firms.

A year-end Mea Culpa in National Interest—The Army-Islam combo doesn’t kill democracy

Many of you might think I got something so wrong in National Interest pieces written this year. I might disagree! But some deserve a Mea Culpa. I’d deal with the most recent this week.