The World Health Organisation has recommended that people suffering from COVID-19 symptoms to avoid taking ibuprofen after French officials warned that anti-inflammatory drugs could worsen the effects of the virus.

The warning came after French Health Minister Olivier Veran followed a recent study in The Lancet medical journal that hypothesised that an enzyme boosted by anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen could worsen COVID-19 infections.

When asked about the study, WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier told reporters in Geneva that the UN health agency’s experts were “looking into this to give further guidance”.

"In the meantime, we recommend using rather paracetamol, and do not use ibuprofen as a self-medication. That's important," he said.

He added that if ibuprofen had been "prescribed by the healthcare professionals, then, of course, that's up to them."

Mr Lindmeier’s comments came after Veran made a tweet cautioning the use of ibuprofen and other anti-inflammatory drugs.

"In the case of fever, take paracetamol," he wrote.

A spokesperson for British pharmaceutical company Reckitt Benckiser, which makes Nurofen, said in an email statement that the company is aware of concerns about the use of steroids for the alleviation of COVID-19 symptoms.

“Consumer safety is our number one priority," the spokesperson said, stressing that "Ibuprofen is a well-established medicine that has been used safely as a self-care fever and pain reducer, including in viral illnesses, for more than 30 years."

"We do not currently believe there is any proven scientific evidence linking over-the-counter use of ibuprofen to the aggravation of COVID-19," the statement said.

The COVID-19 pandemic has currently infected 190,000 people worldwide and killed more than 7,800. It causes mild symptoms in most people, but can result in pneumonia and in some cases, severe illness that can lead to multiple organ failure.