How to Navigate the Cold and Flu Aisle

Sept. 8, 2008— -- The moment when people want cold medicines the most, when their heads are stuffed, aching and dizzy, is exactly the worst time to try and decipher what to buy from the rows of cold medicine boxes with small print.

Instead of grabbing the first thing you remember from last night's commercial and ending up unsatisfied or with side effects, you can draw on recommendations from physicians and pediatricians on how to navigate the cold and flu aisle.

"I know this is a chore for patients, and it makes it much more complicated ... but whatever you're taking, make sure you put them all side-by-side and make sure that the ingredients don't overlap," said Dr. Vincenza Snow, director of clinical programs and quality of care at the American College of Physicians.

With lines of symptom-fighting drugs in combinations that could rival a fast-food restaurant menu, Snow said patients often get confused by what to choose. However, many of the over-the-counter cold medicines have the same active ingredients.

"Generally, they're very similar and only vary by one ingredient from one to the next," Snow said. That means when patients take one or two cold medicines, they may unintentionally be overdosing with the same compound.

"I actually had that happen with my own father, and he had a lot of [side effect] symptoms," Snow said.

Not only can mixing cold medicines cause problems, Snow explained that overdoing it with medication can rarely be strategic or prevent other symptoms from emerging.

"Generally, I just tell patients to treat just the symptoms they have," Snow said. "If you're not having a lot of congestion, there's no need for a decongestant."

Once a patient zeros in on symptoms, there may be more confusion. For example, there are suppressants to stop coughing and expectorants to help the person cough up more.

When it comes to cough suppressants or expectorants, Snow said it matters if cough is wet and croupy or dry and wheezy.