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posted by cmn32480 on Tuesday October 27 2015, @02:24PM   Printer-friendly
from the if-it-doesn't-work-why-is-it-popular dept.

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 They say the FDA cited four tests demonstrating efficacy at the 10 milligram dose, two of which were unpublished and sponsored by drug manufacturers.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."


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  • (Score: 2) by TheRaven on Tuesday October 27 2015, @06:42PM

    by TheRaven (270) on Tuesday October 27 2015, @06:42PM (#255229) Journal
    I'd rather take a homeopathic remedy than phenylephrine. At least small quantities of water don't have unpleasant side effects. Phenylephrine makes me quite ill, something that (according to clinical trials), I have in common with 20-40% of the population.
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  • (Score: 1) by nitehawk214 on Tuesday October 27 2015, @10:54PM

    by nitehawk214 (1304) on Tuesday October 27 2015, @10:54PM (#255320)

    Well careful with that, since they are unregulated, homeopathic crap can have some really nasty stuff in them as fillers.

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