Stock up your medicine cabinet today and help ease the pressure on our NHS this Christmas

The message from health experts is to be prepared for common ailments by keeping a well-stocked medicine cabinet at home.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society, will help deal with most minor ailments:

Painkillers like aspirin, paracetamol and ibuprofen are highly effective at relieving most minor aches and pains, such as headaches and period pain.

These medicines also help with some minor ailments, such as the common cold, by reducing aches, pain and high temperatures.

Paracetamol, aspirin and ibuprofen also help reduce the inflammation seen in arthritis and sprains.

Antihistamines are useful for dealing with allergies and insect bites. Antihistamines can come in the form of creams to apply to the skin (topical antihistamine) or tablets you swallow (oral antihistamine). Antihistamine creams soothe insect stings and bites, and rashes and itching from stinging nettles.

Antihistamine tablets help control hay fever symptoms and calm minor allergic reactions to food.

They can also help calm itchiness during chickenpox.

Oral rehydration salts can help fever, diarrhoea and vomiting after people have lost water and essential minerals, to prevent dehydration.

Anti-diarrhoea tablets, indigestion treatment and a good first aid kit will also help.