Price comparisons with different brands
Which magazine has done a series of articles about the differences in prices from buying branded products or generic. They compared 20 different branded products including Neurofen, Sudafed and Gaviscon. Buying all 20 at branded price came to a total of £96 whereas the same drugs not branded but generic came to a total of £18.82. These generic brands contain exactly the same active ingredients.
The reason for the difference is that when the patent runs out then a generic drug has no need to go through all the safety testing and so can be produced much cheaper.
Where you buy them makes a big difference- Boots, Superdrug and Lloyds pharmacy all have their own brands which are slightly cheaper. However, in most cases buying at a supermarket or discount store is much cheaper.
Nytol pack of 30 is £3.99 in Boots, their own brand is £3.59 but in Wilko 30 Sleep aid tablets are a mere £1.20
For the best discounts try Superdrug, supermarkets like Asda, Aldi and Lidl, Morrisons or discount stores such as Poundstretcher
When comparing prices
- Always check the medication strength
- The active ingredients
- Number of units in the pack
- Product licence number- if the branded and generic PL number is the same then it is exactly the same drug
Do not be taken in by adverts suggested that it is targeted pain relief. Some companies suggest that a certain drug targets a particular area of the body. There is no way a painkiller can know that you have a bad knee for instance and just go there. The tablets effect would go everywhere in the body.
Avoid Expensive Extras
Caffeine is often added to help boost the pain killing effects. It is much cheaper and just as effective to take a cheap generic such as paracetamol and drink a coffee at the same time.
So for example Panadol Extra advance is a pill containing paracetamol and caffeine and costs 40 p whereas 2 generic Paracetamol and a cup of coffee is 3p!!
Sources- Which magazine articles