Amoxicillin®

What is Amoxicillin?

Amoxicillin is an antibiotic, a type of antimicrobial drug that is effective against a wide range of bacteria.¹ One type of bacteria it works against is Group A Streptococcus, which is the kind that causes strep throat.

Unlike viruses, which often cause a sore throat alongside other symptoms like sneezing and general aches, strep throat usually develops suddenly. Symptoms like difficulty swallowing, swollen tonsils, and sometimes fever usually start without more typical common cold symptoms. Antibiotics like Amoxicillin are often recommended to treat an infection.

How does Amoxicillin work?

In simple terms, penicillins destroy bacteria. They do this by targeting the cell walls of bacteria, which causes them to leak. By interfering with the cell structure in this way, harmful bacteria can’t survive or multiply. This means your body can eventually fight off the infection and clear your strep throat.

What doses of Amoxicillin are there?

Amoxicillin comes as a single-strength 500mg capsule.

The usual dosage routine is to take three capsules a day, taking each capsule every eight hours. Your clinician will advise you if they think you should take less than this each day.

How long does Amoxicillin take to work?

You might feel like your symptoms start to ease off after you’ve only been taking Amoxicillin for a few days. The medication works systemically, so once it starts working in your body, your throat pain and swelling should begin to ease off.

But it’s important to take the full course you’ve been prescribed, as stopping the capsules too soon could mean another infection develops. Misusing antibiotics can also contribute to antibiotic resistance, which is when antibiotics become less effective against certain types of bacteria.²

How to take Amoxicillin

For strep throat, the usual dose of Amoxicillin is one 500mg capsule, taken three times daily for 10 days.

But guidance for antibiotics can sometimes change, so your physician will give you specific instructions on how to take this treatment.

Swallow the capsules whole, with water. Avoid breaking them.

Amoxicillin can be taken with or without food.

If you forget to take a capsule at the usual time, you can still take it when you remember as long as it’s not too close to the time your next capsule is due. In this case, skip the missed capsule and continue with your normal dosage schedule.