I'm on day 2 with a cold and all the dayquill in the world won't help. I've noticed that all the pseudophed medicines now don't actually contain pseudophed, but phenylephrine. Whatever it is it doesn't seem to be helping me out at all.
Could somebody in the pharmaceutical or medical field give me the real-deal on this stuff?
2007-01-03 08:56:15 · 3 answers · asked by KenCosgrove 2 in Health ➔ Diseases & Conditions ➔ Other - Diseases
You are correct. Phenylephrine is not as effective as pseudoephedrine when it is used as a decongestant. It has been shown to be an effective decongestant in most people when proper doses are taken. Sorry, if it weren't for all of the meth heads we might still have access to pseudoephedrine.
2007-01-03 09:05:49 · answer #1 · answered by tooqerq 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Phenylephrine is one of a family of drugs which mimic adrenaline. One of the effects is to constrict peripheral capillaries, including the small blood vessels of the tissues in the back of your nasal cavity. These tissues tend to swell from irritation when you have a cold, and constricting the vessels reduces this swelling, thus relieving the sense of stuffiness.
Phenylephrine does the same thing as pseudoephedrine, but (as you've found out) it isn't quite as effective. On the plus side, it lasts longer. And yes, you can thank all the meth heads for your discomfort, since they're the reason for the change in formula.
2007-01-03 09:09:57 · answer #2 · answered by dukefenton 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
yeah but not much. i saw a study comparing phenyephrine and pseudoephedrine, i think something like 60-70% of people felt noticeable improvement with psedoephedrine versus only something like 10-20% for the PE over placebo (cant remember the exact numbers, but you get the point). plus ive heard many people buying the good stuff from me complain about the phenyephrine
2007-01-03 09:06:21 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋