Cheap medicines you should all have

[diamond lil]

I buy ranitidine online - took myself off Lansoprazole. I don't suppose - in fact am pretty sure it's a no go - that there is any legalish way of getting hold of Hydrocortisone?

[Arzosah]

I buy ranitidine online - took myself off Lansoprazole. I don't suppose - in fact am pretty sure it's a no go - that there is any legalish way of getting hold of Hydrocortisone?

I found an NHS link, Lil, that says its OTC for some purposes (pharmacists aren't allowed to sell it for use on the face).
http://www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/868.aspx?CategoryID=73

HTH.

[diamond lil]

I need to swallow it lol. Don't really see me sooking on a tube of steroid cream... but if my life depended on it - which it does- then I'll try it TY Arzosah

[covertcolin]

I buy ranitidine online - took myself off Lansoprazole. I don't suppose - in fact am pretty sure it's a no go - that there is any legalish way of getting hold of Hydrocortisone?

just had a quick look- most hydrocortisone is either cream or suppository ... not for oral use. have you had tablets before? what do you need?

[url][/http://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/search/ ... rtisoneurl]

[covertcolin]

aha found it:

[url][/http://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/medicine/31179url]

cant see anyway getting that without prescription

[Daisysmum]

Surely no prepper would buy branded ibuprofen etc, they're massively more expensive than your quoted prices, which are what I *would* expect to pay - paracetemol for 30p for 16, etc?

I would hope so to. But people do get drawn into branding and it is a bug bear to see people waste money on meds that work no differently!

I once got into a 'discussion' about this.
The other guy insisting that branded products are much better because they're branded, and trying to explain that all products marked with the same BP number have the same quality and quantity of active ingredient.

I love the con that one drug brand came up with, this package for joint pain, that one for headaches, one other for muscle pain and an other one for period pains... All with the same BP number

Re: paracetamol & codeine, there are some with caffeine in them. These seem to work faster.... Or is it placebo ??

I'm happy to buy most generic medications as I'm not swayed by the wonders of a branding - normally. However I have a chronic medical condition and initially I was started on a specific brand as an adjunct therapy. When the brand became my monotherapy the pharmacist once gave me the generic. It wasn't a nice experience.

Yes the active ingredient is the same but the binders, coatings, supplements, fillers, even (shock horror) artificial ingredients and sweeteners that make up the drugs can vary between the generic and branded. Even the branded drug from abroad didnt give the same level of control as the UK branded I was given.

I've heard the 'but its the same drug' and so have forum friends with the same condition; and each of us have had issues with parallel imports and generics.

Once you get into the specifics of disease I would argue that especially in the case of long term medication you have to be consistent.

[Deeps]

Hi Daisysmum, welcome to UK Preppers, could you give us an introduction in our welcome section, I hope you find plenty of useful stuff on here, I have.

[diamond lil]

Covertcolin - I don't see it either. But its true and interesting what Daisysmum said. The main brand of HC, Auden, is fine. But increasingly I'm being given other generic cheaper makes and they either give side effects or are too tiny and crumbly to half and quarter. It's so bloody difficult.

[Arzosah]

Ah! My apologies, absolutely, if the extra ingredients used to make a generic drug - the binders etc - aren't as useful, then yes, a brand. I was thinking of the *automatic* use of branded goods, thats all.