If you're sick, this decongestant doesn't work. So what does?

FDA advisers voted unanimously last year that oral phenylephrine--found in hundreds of OTC meds--doesn't actually relieve nasal congestion. Back to those little red pills behind the counter.

If you’re suffering from a cold, flu, or RSV¹, check to make sure the decongestant you’re taking actually works…because the main component in most over-the-counter meds doesn’t.

Remember those little red Sudafed tablets? The ones that moved behind the pharmacy counter in 2006 and can only be purchased in limited quantities and with a photo ID because they’re used in processing methamphetamines? They’re still there, available without a prescription. That’s what still works, along with (unpopular) nasal sprays.

Read more for what else works. And nasal sprays with phenylephrine still work—it’s just the oral version that’s broken down too quickly in the stomach to effective.

• Is it a cold or the flu? Here’s how to tell

• More about RSV, which is hitting older adults very hard this year—and for which there’s vaccine

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