Most pharmacies tell you what's in a capsule. Camden's Honeycomb Scale tells you how big it is — at a glance, with bees and a £1 coin for scale.
Approximately 37 % of adults report difficulty swallowing tablets and capsules, yet most never mention it to their pharmacist (Schiele 2013, Eur J Clin Pharmacol). The figure is higher in older adults and after stroke (Sura 2012, Clin Interv Aging).
The Honeycomb Scale
All elements shown at proportional 1:1 scale to each other.
Suitability + Camden product reference
Each row pairs a capsule size with who it suits, the bee comparison from the chart, and which Camden products use it.
| Size | Suitable for | Bee comparison | Camden products |
|---|---|---|---|
| Size 000 26.1 × 9.91 mm | Adults only Swallowing-difficulty risk | Carpenter bee | — |
| Size 00 23.3 × 8.53 mm | Adults Standard for fish-oil softgels | Bumblebee queen | — |
| Size 0 21.7 × 7.65 mm | Most adults UK pharmacy norm | Bumblebee worker | 11 of 11 SKUs |
| Size 1 19.4 × 6.91 mm | Most adults Easier than size 0 | Honeybee queen | — |
| Size 2 18.0 × 6.35 mm | Adults · elderly Noticeably easier | Honeybee worker (large) | — |
| Size 3 15.9 × 5.82 mm | Adults · elderly · paediatric (per label) Common in low-dose Rx | Honeybee worker | — |
| Size 4 14.3 × 5.31 mm | Dysphagia-friendly · paediatric Easy to swallow | Honeybee worker (small) | — |
| Size 5 11.1 × 4.91 mm | Paediatric · severe dysphagia Limited fill volume | Stingless bee | — |
Why pill size matters
Solid oral dosage forms — tablets, capsules, softgels — are the dominant way the world takes medicines and supplements. They're convenient, dose-precise, shelf-stable. They're also the form most people quietly struggle with. Schiele and colleagues' general-practice survey of 1,051 adults found that 37 % reported difficulty swallowing tablets or capsules, and most had never told their doctor. Of those who struggled, around 70 % had modified their medication unsafely — crushed it, opened it, or skipped a dose. The largest pills caused the most problems.
The rate climbs with age. Sura et al. estimate that up to 15 % of community-dwelling older adults have measurable swallowing impairment (oropharyngeal dysphagia), and the figure rises steeply in care-home settings, after stroke, and in people with Parkinson's disease, dementia, or head and neck cancer.
Camden built the Honeycomb Scale because the size of the pill should be on the front of the box, not in the small print of a regulatory document. Every Camden product page now carries a Form & Swallowability block telling you exactly which size you're buying.
How to read the chart
Each hexagon shows three things drawn at the same actual scale:
- The capsule itself, half-coloured to show how the two halves slot together.
- A UK £1 coin (23 mm diameter) — the universal everyday reference.
- A worker honeybee silhouette (~12 mm) — Camden's brand-coded body-scale reference.
The textual detail (suitability, Camden product count, bee species comparison) lives in the table above — not in the chart itself. The chart is the visual reference; the table is the lookup.
What "do not crush" means
Some capsules and tablets are designed to release their contents over hours rather than minutes. These modified-release (also called sustained-release, controlled-release, or extended-release) forms use either a special coating or a matrix material inside the capsule that controls the release rate.
Crushing or opening a modified-release dose destroys that release profile. The whole dose hits the bloodstream at once, which can cause side effects (or, for some drugs, dangerous peaks). Camden's NMN Complex (NB-160) uses a modified-release HPMC matrix and carries a "Do not crush" warning on the product page for exactly this reason.
If a capsule is too large to swallow safely, the right answer is almost never "crush it" — it's "talk to your pharmacist about a different formulation." Your local pharmacist (high-street or NHS) can advise on whether a different dose form (chewable, liquid, smaller capsule) is appropriate for your specific medication.
When to ask your pharmacist
Mention pill-swallowing difficulty to your own pharmacist or GP if:
- Pills regularly stick in your throat or cause coughing
- You feel pain swallowing tablets that you didn't a year ago
- You've started crushing or splitting medication to manage size — without checking it's safe to do so
- An older relative is leaving pills uneaten
- A child can't reliably swallow the prescribed dose form
The NHS dysphagia guide (nhs.uk/conditions/swallowing-problems-dysphagia/) explains the formal screening process and when a referral to a speech-and-language therapist is warranted. NICE Clinical Knowledge Summaries on dysphagia (cks.nice.org.uk/topics/dysphagia/) is the same source GPs use.
About Camden's Honeycomb Scale
The Honeycomb Scale is Camden Medicals' visual reference for the eight standard pharmaceutical capsule sizes (Coni-Snap convention, used by the major capsule manufacturers including Capsugel, ACG, and Lonza). Tablet sizes vary by formulation and are not standardised in the same way; we use the chart's mm scale as a rough guide for tablet comparison.
The bees are not decorative. Apis mellifera — the honeybee — is the original "-fera" creature, and Camden's hexagonal logo is honeycomb-coded. Our trade-marked product ranges (Aurifera, Mycofera, Flexifera) take their suffix from the same Latin root.
Every Camden Medicals product page links back to this chart from its Form & Swallowability block. The SVG above is print-ready — use your browser's "Print" → "Save as PDF" if you'd like an A4 reference card.
Sources
- Schiele JT, Quinzler R, Klimm HD, Pruszydlo MG, Haefeli WE. Difficulties swallowing solid oral dosage forms in a general practice population: prevalence, causes, and relationship to dosage forms. Eur J Clin Pharmacol. 2013 Apr;69(4):937-48. PMID 23052416
- Sura L, Madhavan A, Carnaby G, Crary MA. Dysphagia in the elderly: management and nutritional considerations. Clin Interv Aging. 2012;7:287-298. PMID 22956864
- NHS — Swallowing problems (dysphagia)
- NICE Clinical Knowledge Summaries — Dysphagia
- Capsugel — Coni-Snap two-piece hard capsule technical reference (industry standard for the size 000 → 5 dimensions used in this chart)
Last reviewed: 2026-05-02. Next review: 2026-11-02. The Honeycomb Scale is a Camden Medicals editorial reference, not a substitute for individual pharmacy advice. If you have difficulty swallowing your medication, talk to your own pharmacist or GP.