PART-time blogger and pharmacist Zeff Tan shared in a Facebook post shared the distinctive differences between the original Panadol and the fake Panadol.
Check the MAL number
One of the sure-fire ways to check the authenticity of the pills is to refer to the MAL number printed on the back of the tablets strip.
According to the Ministry of Health Malaysia, all pharmaceutical products including health supplements must be registered with the Drug Control Authority (DCA) of Malaysia.
The registered figure should start with the letters MAL followed by eight numbers and end with letters T, A, X or N.
Head to the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency website and enter the MAL number to check if the drugs are registered.
Look out for spelling errors and the packaging quality
According to Zeff, fake Panadols have a rough packaging as compared to the genuine product.
The fake product has a spelling error. GlaxoSmithKline is the company that manufactures Panadol tablets, not ‘ClaxoSmithKline’ as shown on the fake product.
Genuine Panadol would have the ®symbol too.
Check for rough edges
If you see the tablets looking crumbly, it’s likely not properly manufactured and it’s not a genuine product. Genuine products adhere to stringent quality and the tablets shouldn’t have rough edges.
