I tried some, having been a bit careless as to which sudafed I was buying, and it just gave me a headache. No decongestant value like you get with psuedphedrine at all. Now I look it up on the internet and it appears that the scientific backing for it is mixed at best, and the better quality studies seem to show it being no better than a placebo.
What’s the straight dope?
(Note that pseudophedrine has nothing like the controls over here that I understand it does in the US - I’ve a feeling you can only buy one packet at the time, but heck that applies to paracetamol)
I’m going to assume that you mean phenylephrine. Yes, it’s an effective decongestant, though not as effective in most people as pseudoephedrine. In some people, it’s not so effective, and in some people it causes horrid side effects. The same is true of pseudoephedrine.
What I miss is phenylpropanolamine, which used to open my sinuses without making me bounce off the walls like Sudafed. Unfortunately, it was banned (c’mon, FDA! Who wouldn’t rather have a stroke than a sinus headache?)
For what it’s worth: Barb and I have lived together in a wide variety of residences across two states over the last 35+ years, with any rhinovirtuses vve been exposed to being effectively community property. For neither of us has either drug been the sinus/congestion reliever of choice, but…
For me phenylephrine is about 80-90% as effective as pseudoephedrine; for her it is nearly useless. I’ve concluded that for us at least it’s a case of individual physiologixcal reaction trumping the accepted wisdom.
Doesn’t do a thing for me. Pseudo works okay by comparison, but I don’t like the methy creeping-stomach feeling or being subjected to disapproving glares and a cavity search when I have to ask the pharmacist for a tiny box of it once every year or two.
This is not an argument but Sudafed is a godsend for me. I remember the first time I took it 30 some years ago. I had a terrible sinus headache that was destined to turn into a migraine. Not only does it work as intended it also relaxes the muscles in the back of my neck which is stage 2 (tension headache) of a migraine.
That’s funny, because this thread got me thinking that the next time I get a cold/congested I might be tempted to try this “ineffective” stuff people seem to hate.
Why? Because the first and last time I ever took Sudafed, it decongested me all right, it also completely dried out all of my sinuses and throat to the point where I was praying for my sweet, sweet lubricating congestion back! Every breath, swallow, and especially sneezes and coughs, seriously fucking hurt! I was pretty much glued to a vaporizer for days, and the only thing coming out was the occasional blood. The word Sudafed still makes me want to declare jihad!
After that, I never again took anything for colds. Luckily, I haven’t had a cold in well over a decade, which I suspect is due to whatever caused my overactive immune system/psoriasis.
I wish I had your luck with it. I’d cut the dosage in half with a pill cutter. I’ve found myself using nose spray to back it up in an emergency. I just can’t handle migraines. Haven’t had one in maybe 10 years and want to keep it that way.
But you are surely a candidate for the “other stuff”.
If you are against headaches then I’d be careful with this - I basically never have headaches but had it with this thing. Admittedly I took four times the recommended dose (48mg) but that was cause it wasn’t doing anything.
my only concern is that it jacks up one’s BP along with just about anything else useful. But the relief it gives my neck area is another benefit. I have a piece of broken bone that just sits there doing nothing but causing muscle tension. I have a permanent (usually small) tension headache.
The key ingredient in popular decongestants such as Sudafed PE, Benadryl Allergy Plus Congestion and Allegra-D doesn’t relieve nasal congestion when taken orally, a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) panel concluded in a meeting Tuesday (Sept. 12).
After reviewing years’ worth of data, the FDA’s Nonprescription Drug Advisory Committee (NDAC) found that the effectiveness of the decongestant ingredient, phenylephrine, can help relieve a stuffy nose when delivered straight into the nose — via a nasal spray, for example — but doesn’t work when taken by mouth, the 16 panelists unanimously decided.
For most people, oral phenylephrine works little better than placebo. Topical phenylephrine, however, is a great decongestant when administered as a nasal spray.
With the recent reporting on this topic, I’ve finally begun to see an explanation for this.
Simply, the digestive tract breaks down phenylephrine into uselessness. Apparently, only 38% of an oral dose makes it into the bloodstream, and that’s not enough it seems.