We're heading into flu and cold season, so quick PSA for everyone who has to treat their colds at home: do not buy phenylephrine HCL (also known by brand name Sudafed PE), it is ineffective, barely works, and is a waste of money. If you want a decongestant that works, you need to get pseudoephedrine HCL (also known by brand name Sudafed) instead.
You may be asking, well what's the difference? Simple! They're two different drugs, but in the US, pseudoephedrine HCL is highly regulated as it is an ingredient for making meth, where as phenylephrine HCL cannot be used to make meth. Because of this, you can buy unlimited quantities of phenylephrine HCL from any store that sells it. But you can only buy a certain amount of pseudoephedrine HCL per year.
If you see a box that says Sudafed PE on the shelf, that's phenylephrine HCL. It's a waste of money and so ineffective that the FDA has been kicking around the idea of pulling it from markets.
If you want a real high powered decongestant, you want to get pseudoephedrine HCL. The way you do this, if you're in the US, is you go up to a pharmacy counter and ask the pharmacist or pharmacy tech for Sudafed. You can also ask for the generic version, which is just the store brand of pseudoephedrine HCL. Store brand works the same as name brand so save yourself some money and just buy store brand. You will need a photo ID for them to scan, as this is a controlled substance, but you do not need a prescription for it.
The pharmacist may also ask if you want the 4 to 6 hour version or the 12 hour version. These are both still the same drug, just at different quantities, so it's your choice of if you want to be taking a pill every 4 to 6 hours or every 12 hours.
This is what the name brand boxes look like, but again the generic or store brand version works just the same and is often cheaper.
However, if you have high blood pressure, heart issues, and/or are taking any MAOI drugs, do not take pseudoephedrine HCL.
I know money is very tight for most people so I just wanted to make this to help save some people from getting (in my opinion) scammed by Sudafed PE and other versions of phenylephrine HCL out there.
