TRAVEL SICK
North Korean tyrant launches TV streaming service Branded holiday meds cost more than flight
STOCKING up on branded meds to take on holiday can leave a sting that is hard to soothe – it can cost more than your flight.
The 20 most popular remedies people take away can add up to £96.79, while generic alternatives that do the same thing can be picked up for £18.82.
Well-known products such as Nurofen, Gaviscon and Piriteze are all among the branded favourites.
But consumer watchdog Which? says buying medicines with identical active ingredients can save as much as £77.97.
Yesterday, we found 16 flights to EU countries for that price or less leaving the UK on Thursday – including a return to Alicante from Gatwick with Tui for £74.
The study by Which? found Waitrose charged £10.10 for hayfever cure Piriteze, while a generic version in Poundstretcher was just 79p. Headache brand Nurofen Ibuprofen cost most in Wilko at £2.50 but a non-branded version of the same drug was 24p in Poundstretcher.
Cold sore cream Zovirax – a must for run-down sufferers abroad – was £5.99 in Lloyds Pharmacy but a similar product in Savers cost just 89p.
And if that is hard to swallow, try indigestion relief Gaviscon at £3 per 100ml in Sainsbury’s – or 60p per 100ml for a Poundstretcher alternative. For diarrhoea, Imodium was £3.49 in Superdrug, yet Poundstretcher capsules at 49p have the same key constituents.
Which? said: “These are products that contain the same active ingredients and work in exactly the same way as the medications from the big-name brands.
“Marketing tricks can make us think we’re buying premium products when, in actual fact, the results are exactly the same whether we’ve forked out more or not.” Other alternatives included allergy tablets for 49p in Savers, compared with £5.60 for Clarityn in Waitrose.
The team also found Zantac Relief, for heartburn and indigestion, was £4.50 in Wilko but 79p for a cheap cure in B&M, Home Bargains and Poundstretcher.
If you get stuffy sinuses, Sudafed was £4.99 in Lloyds but a Home Bargains cure was 99p. Meanwhile, Lemsip Max Cold & Flu sachets were £4.70 in Morrisons b but the Wilko option was £1.90.
And, of course, if worrying about which brand to buy is keeping you awake, bear in mind that sleeping tablets Nytol Herbal were £4.89 in Lloyds – while Wilko’s generic brand was £1.20.
Which? added: “It pays to know how t to shop for budget alternatives.”