Back before methamphetamine cooks started buying up non-prescription decongestants to brew crank, all of us were able to buy effective decongestants right off the store shelf without a problem. Now David DiSalvo writes at Forbes that to fill the store-shelf void, drug companies substituted the already-FDA approved ingredient phenylephrine for pseudoephedrine but the oral decongestant phenylephrine simply doesn't work at the FDA-approved amount found in popular non-prescription brands, and it may not even work at much higher doses.
Researchers at the University of Florida are asking the FDA to remove oral phenylephrine from the market. "We think the evidence supports that phenylephrine's status as a safe and effective over-the-counter product should be changed," says Randy Hatton. "We are looking out for the consumer, and he or she needs to know that science says that oral phenylephrine does not work for the majority of people."
In 1976, the FDA deemed a 10 milligram oral dose of phenylephrine safe and effective at relieving congestion, making it possible for companies to use the ingredient without conducting studies. But Leslie Hendeles and Hatton say phenylephrine does not effectively relieve nasal stuffiness at this dose. They say the FDA cited four tests demonstrating efficacy at the 10 milligram dose, two of which were unpublished and sponsored by drug manufacturers. In contrast, the FDA cited six tests demonstrating no significant difference between phenylephrine and placebo. Hendeles said a higher dose may work, but no research has been published regarding safety at higher doses. "They need to do a dose-response study to determine at what higher dose they get both efficacy and safety," says Hendeles adding that until then "consumers should go that extra step and get it (pseudoephedrine) from behind the counter."
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 27 2015, @05:41PM
Is it really just me that doesn't use any of this rubbish?
Anything you take on a regular basis will soon become ineffective for you anyway.
Some people with allergies take sudafed regularly. But most people take it to treat symptoms for specific infections. I tried your idea and it fucked me up. Without sudafed snotfulf colds get progressively worse, I get weaker and start getting secondary infections like pink eye and I'm out of commission for a couple of weeks, sometimes with a doctor's visit. With sudafed I just feel kinda shitty for a couple of days and its over. I'm just a sample size of one, but that's been my experience and it has made me deeply bitter about this law.