I thought I was the only one who figured that out! (not literally, but you know what I mean)

When I took it, after pseudoephedrine was placed behind the counter, I never thought phenylephrine did anything. Turns out that it really doesn't:

https://www.jwatch.org/na39054/2015/09/17/phenylephrine-no-m... https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/11/04/the-t...

The medicines with phenylephrine are usually labeled 'PE,' which stands for Placebo Effect. Nice of them to be honest with the labeling.

When I had a case of Man Flu I used to walk right past the OTC PE crap and ask the pharmacist for the pseudoephedrine ones from behind the counter. Had to show ID and put my name on a list so they could see I wasn't Walter White. It was like once or twice a year max so not an issue.

But then the war on opiates happened and they removed all OTC codeine. I understand the evidence on codeine's efficacy as an antitussive in the amounts used was mixed but the tablets seemed to work for me. Alternatives like dextromethorphan probably work as well or better but the pseudoephedrine containing cold and flu meds seem to have disappeared instead of being reformulated. I am guessing the market was getting too small and higher volume OTC placebos make more money.

Phenylephrine's efficacy as a decongestant when taken orally is dubious. Still, it doesn't mean it's a useless drug. IV phenylephrine is a standard drug used during anesthesia to counteract the hypotensive effects of opioids and sedatives.

I ended up getting phenylephrine once because I was vacationing in the US. Needless to say, I was not impressed. How do you guys treat colds?