In March of 2023, I told you about a study that found the main ingredient in many common cold and flu medications had been found to be worthless, completely ineffective in relieving symptoms of cold and flu. I made fun of why it was even on the shelves. Well, the Food and Drug Administration, or FDA listened. They want to pull medications such as vick sinus, sudafed and benadryl that contain phenylephrine. Their studies have also found that it was no more effective than a placebo.
The FDA says their study concludes that phenylephrine is not effective as a nasal decongestant when taken orally as advertised. However, it is effective as a nasal spray and, they have known about this since 2007 when pharmacy professors petitioned the FDA to review the effectiveness of the drug. The FDA proposal is that oral cold and flu medications would not be able to contain phenylephrine anymore. So, the next time you have a stuffy nose and you reach for the sudafed, sinex, robitussin, benadryl, alka seltzer plus, or tylenol cold and flu, think again
