Pharmacists in the UK and US are warning of shortages of cold and flu medicines, with an increase in respiratory infections in early winter leaving manufacturers struggling to keep up with demand.

Some pharmacies are finding it difficult to order over-the-counter medicines such as cough syrups and pain relievers, restricting what customers can buy, while some wholesalers are rationing available medicines.

Leila Hanbeck, chief executive of the UK’s Independent Multiplex Pharmacy Association, said shortages – along with other frustrations such as not being able to use their family doctor – mean frontline pharmacists are dealing with a rise in abuse and violence from patients.

She called on the UK government to bring stakeholders together and tackle problems in the supply chain. “We’re running out of essential medicines for colds and flu. Once the demand for something goes up, we fall flat on our faces. Supply can’t meet demand,” she said.

Those infected are buying medicines to treat symptoms of Covid-19, the flu and other conditions, including Strep-A and RSV, which have seen a resurgence after winters of lockdown. Supply problems come on top of global shortages Antibiotics This led the UK to issue a protocol for a serious shortage of infant formula last month.

Adrian van den Hoeven, general manager of Medicines Europe, which represents generic drug companies, said they expected an increase in demand compared to two years ago, but did not expect it to come before the normal cold and flu season.

He said governments must share more data on infection rates – beyond what’s already been collected on Covid-19 and influenza – so manufacturers can adjust supply chains, which takes several months.

We are not epidemiologists. We don’t know exactly what it will look like: will 2022-2023 be a year away, or will the next five years look like this? ” He said.

In the UK, pharmaceutical industry associations have reported shortages of treatments including Lemsip, Haleon Beechams and Day and Night Nurse.

Superdrug, one of the UK’s largest pharmacy chains, confirmed that the shortage was a “national problem”, saying there had been a “huge peak in demand for branded and proprietary cold and flu products”. The company said demand for Superdrug-branded remedies was above its highest levels in the acute phase of the pandemic.

Pharmacists reported price increases of antibiotics amid shortages last month. But Paras Shah, chief executive of UK wholesale retailer Sigma, said prices for over-the-counter treatments do not react to market conditions as quickly as prices for prescription medicines.

In the United States, CVS Pharmacies have limited purchases of children’s pain relief products to two per customer since last month. Walgreens has limited the number of online customers to six per transaction to “prevent excessive purchasing behaviour”.

Johnson & Johnson, which makes the pain relievers Tylenol and Motrin, said its production sites are working around the clock to handle “high consumer demand due to a very difficult cold and flu season.”

Consumer health groups said the shortages were caused by a jump in demand, rather than problems securing essential ingredients. Rickitt reported a “significant increase in demand” but said she was doing everything she could to minimize disruption. Haleon said it is increasing its supply capacity but that customers in some areas may face shortages.