# E104



## Brian G Turner (Aug 21, 2003)

Hannah's had a silly tickly cough for a month or so now - so Julie took her to the doctor, who considered that there may be a minor throat infection, and proscribed the antibiotic amoxycillin.

As soon as Hannah took it the change in her was immediate. She sometimes gets hyperactive as it is - maybe once a day she'd go wild. But after taking the anitbiotic she was like that _all day_. That meant she was being constantly naughty, constantly punished (losing stories, chocolate buttons, and access to the Playstation), yet she'd still be flying.

We both figured it had to be the antibiotic causing it, and Julie found that one of the ingredients was E104.

I tracked down a referecence to this e number no the internet:



> E104 - Quinoline Yellow
> 
> The disodium salt of disulphonic acid. A synthetic 'coal tar' dye varying in colour between a dull yellow and greenish-yellow. Found in ices, scotch eggs and smoked haddock.
> 
> ...



What's amazing is that here is an antibiotic that contains a _useless_ food colouring - that is known to cause hyperactivity in children, and is even banned in the US and other countries. Really, the mind boggles.

Anyway, suffice to say, after a phone call to the doctors explaining the situation to them, Hannah will be on a different
antibiotic today - erythromycin - a mild antibiotic she's had before without any ill effects.

Really still amazed E104 is being used in proscribed children's medicines in this country. Maybe it's time for me to write to my MP?


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## Foxbat (Aug 21, 2003)

I love Smoked Haddock but buy mine from a guy that smokes them, in the old traditional way. They are actually more of a grey colour and taste amazingly fantastic when poached in milk and egg. To put this muck(E104) in our food is bad enough but to give it to kids!!


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## Linman (Feb 6, 2007)

Hi there,

I am so glad to have found someone else who has had the same experience!
My 3 year old child Jonny had a chest infection and was given amoxycillin.  The very day he began taking it he started having temper tantrums, and he is normally a really happy easy going child.  I suspected it was the anti-biotics, and the day I stopped giving them to him, the tantrums stopped.

I have tried to get advice from both my doctor and phamacist about what to do should he need anti-biotics again, but they both think I am being stupid.  Neither of them can suggest an alternative, not seeming to know which kids anti-biotics contain e numbers and which do not.  I was interested to see that you gave your daughter ethromycin, does it have any e numbers at all? or does it just contain safe ones?

regards,

Lucy


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## clairehnc (Aug 23, 2009)

Hi, My daughter has got a chest infection and she has been prescribed Amoxycillin by the doctor.  Since she started taking it, she has been uncontrollable, bad tempered, naughty beond belief and constantly hyper.  I am having to go back to the doctors (whilst on holiday) to get them to change it to the Erythromycin that someone on here said was better.  I hope this does the trick.  She is normally a lovely girl that is polite and generally complimented about her good behviour where ever we go.  Today though she has been awful, its been such a shock, lol.  I am now investigating this further and looking into drinks etc to make sure that this E104 and E211 (sodium benzonate that is also in amoxycillin) is removed completely from her diet.  I think it is appauling that this country continues to put these chemicals in our childrens medicine when it is banned in several other countries around the world. Head in the sand attitude I think.


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## mygoditsraining (Aug 25, 2009)

brian said:


> Really still amazed E104 is being used in proscribed children's medicines in this country. Maybe it's time for me to write to my MP?



NICE or the RPSGB are probably better candidates for an initial letter.  They at least will be able to advise on who else to contact for any required follow up.


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## Nik (Aug 25, 2009)

Slightly OT, but I remember some-one ringing our complaints desk to rant about the strange 'E' in one of our pharmaceutical multi-vitamins causing ghastly side-effects...

Took a while to sieve sense, but eventually we explained that the 'E' in question was Vitamin C, aka Ascorbic Acid...

Ouch.

When she unbent enough to describe *all* her symptoms, it became apparent that she had a galloping gastric ulcer, a classic P-bacter nest, and she'd been self-medicating inappropriately with a monster mix of mega-vitamins. The stress and near-hysteria could not have helped, either.

We advised her to seek a competent medical professional ASAP, heed to the letter, and be aware that reducing her mega-vitamins incautiously could prompt a rebound and scurvy (!!)...

Um, one big problem is that many *pharmaceutical* meds have colours, adjuvants and stabilisers set as if 'in stone' by original 'registration' process, so changing the least detail takes vast amounts of documentation, clinical trials, several years of comparative stability testing and scant economic benefit.

This is where 'parallel importers' and 'food supplement' manufacturers, with their lesser or minimal regulation, used to profit at our expense. They were not subject to a 3~~5 year product introduction / variation cycle and *grim* regulatory over-view....

If a colour or other 'E' is actually banned / restricted, the industry may sigh, make the changes and write off incurred costs to 'force majeur'...


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