Patient leaflet - Cacit 500 mg effervescent tablets
1. What Cacit is and what it is used for
Cacit contains calcium carbonate as the active ingredient (which when dispersed in water provide 500mg of elemental calcium as calcium citrate). The tablets provide extra calcium, in addition to a normal diet, and are used to treat conditions in which the body’s calcium levels need to be increased. Calcium is essential for healthy growth of bones and teeth.
2. What you need to know before you take Cacit
Do not take Cacit:
if you are allergic to calcium carbonate or any of the
other ingredients in this medicine (listed in section 6).
if you have an overactive parathyroid gland
(hyperparathyroidism) or too much vitamin D in your body (hypervitaminosis D).
if you have a high concentration of calcium in your urine
(hypercalciuria) or blood (hypercalcaemia). A high concentration of calcium in the blood may be caused by impaired kidney function, an overactive parathyroid gland, too much Vitamin D in your body or certain bone tumours.
if you have been immobilised for long periods and had a
high concentration of calcium in your blood or urine.
- if you have kidney stones.
Warnings and precautions
Talk to your doctor or pharmacist before taking Cacit:
if you have a tendency to form kidney stones or have
impaired kidney function - your treatment will need to be monitored carefully if your kidneys are not working properly to ensure you do not build up too much calcium in your blood.
if you have sarcoidosis (formation of nodules especially
in the lymph nodes, lungs, bones and skin).
If you are on long-term treatment your doctor may, from time to time, wish to check the level of calcium in your blood and take a urine sample to monitor your kidney function. Depending upon the results, your doctor may reduce the dosage or decide to discontinue the treatment.
Other medicines and Cacit
Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you are taking, have recently taken or might take any other medicines. Especially:
- vitamin D
- heart medicines such as digoxin and cardiac glycosides
- tetracycline antibiotics
- thiazide diuretics (water tablets)
- bisphosphonates and sodium fluoride (drugs used to treat bone disorders).
Calcium salts may decrease the absorption of iron, zinc and strontium ranelate. Consequently, iron, zinc or strontium ranelate preparations should be taken at least two hours before or after Cacit.
Pregnancy and breast-feeding
Women who are pregnant or breast-feeding can take Cacit. If you are pregnant or breast-feeding, think you may be pregnant or are planning to have a baby, ask your doctor or pharmacist for advice before taking this medicine.
Driving and using machines
Cacit is not expected to affect your ability to drive or operate machinery.
Cacit contains sorbitol (E420)
This medicine contains 1.36mg sorbitol in each tablet.
Cacit contains sunset yellow FCF (E110) colouring
Sunset yellow FCF (E110) colouring may cause allergic reactions, including asthma. Allergy is more common in those people who are allergic to aspirin.
Information on sodium content
This medicine contains less than 1mmol sodium (23mg) per tablet, that is to say essentially ‘sodium free’.
3. How to take Cacit
Always take this medicine exactly as described in this leaflet or as your doctor or pharmacist has told you. Check with your doctor or pharmacist if you are not sure.
The tablets must be dissolved completely in a glass of water and the solution consumed immediately.
Your doctor will normally prescribe a suitable dose for you:
Use in Adults and Elderly
- To treat conditions caused by a lack of calcium, the recommended dose is usually between 2 and 5 tablets per day.
- To prevent bone damage caused by osteoporosis, a recommended dose of 1 to 3 tablets is required per day.
- To supplement calcium in your diet, the recommended dose is up to 3 tablets a day.
Use in Children
To treat conditions caused by a lack of calcium and to supplement calcium in your diet:
6 to 10 years – the recommended dose is 1 tablet daily
(500mg per day),
- over the age of 10 years – the recommended dose is 2 tablets daily (1g per day).
If you take more Cacit than you should
Do not exceed the recommended dose. If you take too much medicine, tell your doctor immediately or visit your nearest Accident & Emergency Department (take the pack with you if possible). Symptoms of overdose may include nausea (feeling sick), polydipsia (excessive thirst), polyuria (frequent passing of urine) and constipation.
If you forget to take Cacit
If you miss a dose, take the next dose as soon as you remember and continue taking your medicine as before. 1
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Do not take a double dose to make up for a forgotten dose. If you have any further questions on the use of this product, ask your doctor or pharmacist.
4. Possible side effects
Like all medicines, this medicine can cause side effects, although not everybody gets them.
Stop taking the tablets and tell your doctor immediately if you experience:
- an allergic reaction: rash, itching, difficulty in breathing, swelling of the face, lips, throat or tongue.
Tell your doctor if you notice any of the following side effects or notice any other effects not listed:
Rare (may affect up to 1 in 1,000 people)
- nausea
- abdominal pain
- diarrhoea
- constipation
- wind
- skin rashes and itching
high concentration of calcium in the blood
(hypercalcaemia) or urine (hypercalciuria)
Not known (frequency cannot be estimated from the available data)
Milk-alkali syndrome: frequent urge to urinate, headache,
loss of appetite, nausea or vomiting, unusual tiredness or weakness, along with elevated levels of calcium in the blood and kidney impairment.
Patients with kidney problems have an increased risk of higher phosphate levels in the blood and kidney stones.
Reporting of side effects
If you get any side effects, talk to your doctor, pharmacist or nurse. This includes any possible side effects not listed in this leaflet. You can also report side effects directly via the Yellow Card Scheme at: www.mhra.gov.uk/yellowcard or search for MHRA Yellow Card in the Google Play or Apple App Store.
By reporting side effects, you can help provide more information on the safety of this medicine.
5. How to store Cacit
Keep out of the sight and reach of children.
Replace cap after use.
Keep the tubes tightly closed in order to protect from moisture.
Do not take the tablets after the expiry date which is stated on the carton and tube labels after 'Exp'. The expiry date refers to the last day of that month.
If the tablets become discoloured or show any signs of deterioration, seek the advice of your pharmacist Remember if your doctor tells you to stop taking this medicine, return any unused medicine to your pharmacist for safe disposal. Only keep this medicine if your doctor tells you to.
Medicines should not be disposed of via wastewater or household waste. Ask your pharmacist how to dispose of medicines no longer required. These measures will help to protect the environment.
6. Contents of the pack and other information
What Cacit contains
Each tablet contains 1.25g of the active ingredient calcium carbonate, which when dispersed in water provides 500mg of calcium as calcium citrate.
The other ingredients are citric acid (E330), sodium cyclamate, sodium saccharin (E421), orange flavour MK 500 (mannitol, sorbitol (E420), gluconolactone, dextrin, orange essential oil 5504, concentrated orange essential oil 5001, mandarin essential oil 5109), colouring Sunset Yellow FCF (E110). See section 2 ‘Cacit contains sunset yellow FCF (E110) colouring, sodium and sorbitol’.
What Cacit looks like and content of the pack
Cacit is white-pink speckled, round, biplane tablets with no markings on either side. Cacit is supplied in packs of 60 tablets (3 tubes each containing 20 tablets) and 80 tablets (4 tubes each containing 20 tablets).
Manufactured by: Hermes Pharma GmbH,
Schwimmschulweg 1a, 9400 Wolfsberg, Austria.
Procured from within the EU and repackaged by the Product Licence holder: B&S Healthcare, Unit 4, Bradfield Road, Ruislip, Middlesex, HA4 0NU, UK.
Cacit® 500mg effervescent tablets; PL 18799/1281
Leaflet date: 07.08.2024
Cacit is the registered trademark of Theramex HQ UK Limited.
Blind or partially sighted? Is this leaflet hard to see or read? Call 0208 515 3763 to obtain the leaflet in a format suitable for you.
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