Blog #5: So What's the Difference?

Going to the pharmacy has become a part of who I am, and a place I have come to spend a lot of my time in the last two years. I’ve dealt with numerous customers wondering if they should get the brand or generic, yet some still choose the expensive brand even after explanation from the pharmacist. And then you get the people who Michael Scott so famously described (not really):



Today I want to discuss Mucinex, mostly because I’m sick of their commercials. I’m sure you all know what I’m talking about, the ones with the gross, green mucus man trying to prevent someone from going about their day-to-day activities. What I really want to look into is how Mucinex compares to other cold and flu medications like DayQuil/NyQuil. Kind of like the brand vs. generic question, I’m wondering how different all of the various cold/flu medications can truly be. While doing some research, I found a commercial that stood out to me. A sick customer was reading a Mucinex box when Mr. Mucus approaches him with a box of DayQuil, telling the customer that he should just get this one. While I’m an avid DayQuil user myself, the customer in the commercial insisted that Mucinex had more helpful ingredients to combat his illness. I wanted to look into this to see if there truly was a huge difference, or if for the most part either drug would suffice. What I found wasn’t surprising, and when choosing between the two different drugs it truly just comes down to which symptoms you’re looking to treat. Much like NyQuil/DayQuil, there are many different types of Mucinex products. The varying products are special and target different cold/flu symptoms. When just looking at plain Mucinex and plain DayQuil, the major difference between the two is that Mucinex contains an expectorant called Guaifenesin. BUT, if you look hard enough, you’ll find “DayQuil Mucus Control”, which contains the magical Guaifenesin ingredient that Mucinex highlights in their product. Overall, I know that these two products are different, and choosing one comes down to the cold/flu symptoms you are looking to treat. But in my small amount of research, it sheds some light into how similar all of the marketed cold/flu drugs are, with little differences in ingredients. I know I’ll be learning a lot more about these various drugs throughout the next few years, and my current understanding on the subject will certainly change, but I find it interesting how many products are on the market for just the common cold/flu. With so many products, it's no wonder customers can get confused on which drug they should truly take..