Lariam

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Reviewed on Jul 02, 2025. by Dr Alexandra Cristina Cowell Writer & Clinical Content Reviewer Registered with GPhC (No. 2241935) Next review due on July 02, 2028.

Last updated on Jul 02, 2025.

Product info

Lariam is a once-weekly malaria prevention tablet.
The tablets are taken before, during and after your travels to keep you protected.
It comes in a single 250mg dose and is usually started ten days before your trip.

Price checker

Prices include:

Express shipping
24 hour shipping by secure courier.
Consultation + Access to our clinicians
Ask our experts anything you like, any time you want.
Total
£44.95

Save £0.00 each order

Lariam: essential info
Lariam: instructions
Important stuff you need to know
FAQ

What is Lariam?

Lariam tablets are used to prevent malaria, and contain the active ingredient mefloquine. They’re usually recommended to people travelling to certain locations in South America, central and sub-saharan Africa that are considered high risk.

Lariam isn’t normally prescribed for travel to low or moderate-risk countries, but it could be advised if other antimalarial medicines – like Malarone or Doxycycline – aren’t suitable for you. Lariam is also recommended if you’re travelling to an area where there’s malaria that’s difficult to treat.

Lariam is taken before, during and after you travel to a high-risk area. It’s taken once a week, starting ten days before departure. You’ll then continue to take it once a week, on the same day, for the duration of your trip, and every week for another four weeks after you leave.

Like all medicines, Lariam can cause side effects. There’s a slightly higher chance of feeling side effects from Lariam compared to Malarone, so it’s usually only prescribed if Malarone isn’t suitable for you.

How does Lariam work?

In 2023 there were an estimated 263 million cases of malaria worldwide ^[1]. Malaria is a life-threatening disease caused by the Plasmodium parasite, which is carried by mosquitoes. Malaria is passed to humans when a mosquito carrying the parasite bites and breaks the skin.

Symptoms of malaria include fever, vomiting and headaches. Symptoms usually appear between 7 to 18 days after you’re infected with malaria, but in some cases it can take up to a year for you to notice them.

Mefloquine, the active ingredient in Lariam, kills the Plasmodium parasites in the body. Its mode of action is not fully known but it’s thought to disrupt the parasite’s protein-making machinery called a ribosome (more specifically a part of it called the 80S ribosome).^[1].

What doses of Lariam are there?

Lariam comes in a single dosage: 250mg. This dose is suitable for adults and children weighing over 45kg.

One tablet is taken per week, starting ten days before you depart for a high risk area. Then one tablet is taken for each week that you’re in the high risk area. After you’ve left the high-risk area, you’ll take a tablet a week for a further four weeks.

It’s possible for small children to take Lariam, but the dose will need to be altered (depending on the child’s weight).

Treated trusted sources:

World Health Organization (2021). Malaria. [online] Who.int.

This page was written by The Treated Content Team.

This page was medically reviewed by Dr Alexandra Cristina Cowell on July 02, 2025. Next review due on July 02, 2028.

How we source info.

When we present you with stats, data, opinion or a consensus, we’ll tell you where this came from. And we’ll only present data as clinically reliable if it’s come from a reputable source, such as a state or government-funded health body, a peer-reviewed medical journal, or a recognised analytics or data body. Read more in our editorial policy.

FAQ: Lariam

Have something specific you want to know? Search our info below, or ask our experts a question if you can’t find what you’re looking for.

How is Lariam different to other treatments for malaria?

Answer:

Unlike other malaria tablets, Lariam is only taken once a week. Malaria tablets like Doxycycline and Malarone need to be taken every day.

Lariam, Malarone and Doxycycline all contain different active ingredients because they’re all different types of medicines.

Lariam is recommended for high risk areas because the parasite that causes malaria has little resistance to its active ingredient, mefloquine. [1]

It’s one of the treatments used by the Ministry of Defence to protect military personnel deployed to high risk areas.

If you’re visiting a low risk area but can’t take Malarone or Doxycycline, Lariam could be an alternative form of protection against malaria.

Is Lariam similar to any other treatments?

Answer:

Lariam works in a similar way to other malaria tablets, but its active ingredient is different and more effective against certain strains of malaria, because malaria parasites don’t have any immunity against it.

Malarone is another common malaria treatment. It contains an active ingredient called chloroquine. Some strains of malaria have built up a resistance to chloroquine, so it’s not as effective as it used to be.

Doxycycline is another alternative to Malarone and Lariam, and it does not contain chloroquine. Doxycycline is an antibiotic, so it needs to be used properly to avoid antibiotic resistance.

Which dose of Lariam should I use?

Answer:

Lariam is only available in one dose: 250mg. Adults and children over 45kg should take one whole tablet, once a week.

Smaller children can take Lariam, but the dose needs to be adjusted depending on their weight. This is done by breaking the tablets and giving a fraction of the dose.

Children weighing 5-15kg usually take a quarter of a tablet, those between 16-24kg usually take half a tablet, and those weighing between 25-44kg take three quarters of a tablet.

Children should be supervised by an adult when taking Lariam.

How effective is Lariam?

Answer:

Lariam is a highly effective way to prevent and treat malaria.

Clinical trials show that mefloquine is almost 100% effective at providing protection against malaria. Low levels of resistance in the malaria parasites also make it a highly effective treatment for those travelling to high risk areas. Lariam is as effective as chloroquine was - before some strains of malaria built up resistance to it.

You’re more likely to experience side effects from Lariam than you are from Malarone.
One in 10,000 people find mefloquine unsuitable, which is why it’s important to take it before you travel to check that you feel okay when you’re taking it ^[2].

Adverse effects of Lariam can be felt after you stop taking it. A small number of people experience dizziness, depression and loss of balance for more than a month after they stop taking Lariam.

Do I need a prescription for Lariam?

Answer:

Lariam is only available on prescription. This is because a clinician needs to make sure that it’s suitable for the area you are travelling to. A clinician also needs to check your suitability to take it and monitor any side effects that you experience when you start taking it.

Treated trusted sources:

Wong, W., et al (2017). Mefloquine targets the Plasmodium falciparum 80S ribosome to inhibit protein synthesis. Nature Microbiology, 2(6).
Croft, A.M. and Garner, P. (2000). Mefloquine for preventing malaria in non-immune adult travellers. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.