Need an ear wax remover? Tummy upset? Rolaids or Maalox? You're probably not going to ask your doctor which over-the-counter products to buy, but you will likely ask your pharmacist.
"Pharmacists, more than doctors, are really in the trenches with people when it comes to OTC meds," says TODAY contributor Dr. Roshini Raj. "They hear peoples questions, likes and dislikes about various products."
In fact, pharmacists make more than 80 million recommendations on a monthly basis and play a key role in people's health.
In a collaboration with Pharmacy Times, U.S. News and World Report has released their 2014 survey of pharmacists' over-the-counter picks. The list includes overall recommendations from thousands of pharmacists across the country, covering 1,100 OTC products and brands in more than 150 categories.
Americans spent more than $23 billion on nonprescription medications in 2010 and an estimated 35 percent of Americans use nonprescription drugs on a regular basis, and that percentage is growing annually, according to the guide.
Recommendations from pharmacists for top categories, including the percentages (not every product in a category is included):
Sunscreen
- Neutrogena 52%
- Coppertone 30%
- Hawaiian Tropic 10%
- Panama Jack 3%
- Australian Gold 1%
Cough/Cold/Flu combinations — Daytime
- Advil Cold & Sinus 21%
- Vicks Dayquil 17%
- Sudafed (Pseudoephedrine) 16%
- Tylenol Cold 10%
- Robitussin 8%
- ALka-Seltzer Plus 7%
- Claritin 7%
Children's Cough/Cold Combinations
- Children's Dimetapp 35%
- Pediacare 14%
- Children's Mucinex Cold 13%
- Children's Benedryl 7%
- Children's Tylenol 7%
- Children's Robitussin 6%
- Triaminic 6%
Antacids
- Tums 41%
- Maalox 20%
- Mylanta 16%
- Gaviscon 14%
- Alka-Seltzer 4%
- Rolaids 4%
Toothpast, general use
- Colgate Total 38%
- Crest 38%
- Aquafresh 6%
- Arm & Hammer 5%
- Listerine 4%
- Sensodyne 4%
Products that were favored by 80 percent of pharmacists or more:
- Nasal Strips — Breathe Right 98%
- Lactose Intolerance — Lactaid 98%
- Topical Cough Suppressants-Ointments —Vicks VapoRub 91%
- Antidiarrheals —Imodium AD 91%
- Ear Wax Removal —Debrox 90%
- Teeth Whitening Products —Crest 3D Whitestrips 87%
- Proton Pump Inhibitors —Prilosec OTC 82%
- Dry Mouth Therapy — Biotene 80%