Some popular drugs are completely ineffective, even though they require FDA approval to appear on the shelves of local pharmacies. At least that’s the case, according to TikTok’s certified pharmacist.
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This popular pharmacist on TikTok tells us what’s worth your money and what’s going to leave you feeling just as bad as when you started.
Drug fraud?
Grant Harting (@grant_harting on TikTok) is a pharmacist licensed in three states and certified in integrative medicine. his This website is said to help people save money on medicines..
In a viral video that has been viewed over 840,000 times, he reveals that a popular drug is actually a scam. If you have any of these in your medicine cabinet, we recommend replacing them with one of Harting’s suggestions.
Starting lightly, ZzzQuil Sleep Aid is effective, but getting the Dollar Tree version is cheaper and just as effective, he says. Harting claims that the name-brand versions are nothing more than “alcohol and antihistamines,” and says the Dollar Tree version is more cost-effective.
Coles It’s a “stool softener.” But one study shows it’s actually just a placebo. Instead, he said, the study experts recommended psyllium fiber supplements (trade name Metamucil), which increase water in the stool.
plain mucinex It does not actually break down “lung dirt”. Harting recommends getting a saline nebulizer or a sedating liquid decongestant.
Harting then says: Sudafed PE This is “absolute and complete chickpea garbage” and could be removed from the market. However, Sudafed (no PE behind it) is better, but you have to request it at the counter.
“Buyers beware, there are some blood pressure and prostate issues that you should discuss with your doctor or pharmacist,” Harting added.
Finally, Harting says: PrevagenIt is the “end of deception” that is said to improve memory.
@grant_harting Licensed pharmacists from three states reveal the top five pharmacy scams. #asmr #scam ♬ Original song – Grant Harting
FDA crackdown
Last year, a Food and Drug Administration advisory panel found that phenylephrine (the main ingredient in many over-the-counter cold and allergy medications, including Sudafed PE, Vicks Nyquil Synex Nighttime Sinus Relief, and Benadryl Allergy Plus Congestion) is actually effective. I concluded that there is no. relieve nasal congestion, NBC News reported.
One FDA official said he believed the original study using the drug was “methodologically unsound and does not meet today’s standards.”
This drug is thought to relieve nasal congestion by reducing the swelling of blood vessels in the nasal passages. But when taken orally (as opposed to a nasal spray), it doesn’t reach the nose where it’s needed to relieve nasal congestion.
Not only is it ineffective, but it also comes with side effects such as headaches, insomnia, and irritability.
The FDA appears to be still deciding whether these drugs, which essentially misrepresent their effectiveness, should be removed from shelves and reformulated. This would disrupt a product type that generated $1.8 billion in sales in 2022.
To be clear, this only applies to oral medications. Nasal drops are effective. People tend to prefer the oral version, and an effective alternative is pseudoephedrine, which is found in Sudafed (different from Sudafed PE).
The top comment read, “We had a one-hour lecture at pharmacy school about how Prevagen is a scam.”
“I always tell people that over-the-counter sleeping pills are just glorifying Benadryl,” one person pointed out.
“We need a website that lists all the information we’ve collected about name brand trash and its alternatives,” said another.
The Daily Dot reached out to Harting for comment via direct message on Instagram and TikTok.
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