The information asymmetry and confusion factor are worst in that all these products have just a few ingredients, in my opinion. While the branded/generic price difference is an important issue, I think a larger one is that the huge volume of products takes attention away from the fact that there are only a few basic components, leading many to buy inappropriate products or products with too many components that can cause side effects that could easily be avoided.

People without some prior knowledge of the basic drugs must have a very difficult time walking into a store and choosing the product with the drugs they need without some of the ones they don't. I imagine many people are totally overwhelmed by the product selection and they just pick something, which they then turn to each time they're feeling sick. It's more difficult than normal to perform an assessment of products at the store when you're sick, and the store presentation only makes things more difficult. Even knowing something about these products and knowing exactly what I want, I sometimes find it time-consuming to locate the single-ingredient products among all the endless combinations, especially when they're out of stock.

Things would be so much simpler if stores posted some type of reference. I'm not an expert in the field, but it's such a pet peeve of mine that I've memorized the basics. Here's a start:

  Fever/pain -> Relieve:
  ibuprofin
  acetaminophen [avoid if you have liver problems]
  naproxen
  aspirin

  Nasal congestion -> Reduce:
  pseudoephedrine [quite effective, but the pharmacy must be open; prepare to provide identification, sign, possibly be questioned / receive a dirty look, and have your purchase be entered into a federal database]
  phenelyphrine [of questionable effectiveness]

  Coughs -> Make more productive at clearing congestion:
  guaifenesin

  Coughs -> Suppress:
  dextromethorphan

  Trouble sleeping / allergic sensitivity -> Relieve:
  doxylamine [slightly better for sleeping than allergies]
  diphenhydramine [slightly better for allergies than sleeping]

The store could have a nice section of the products that contain just one of these drugs, making it easy to mix and match, with reference to the list.

I don't think there's anything inherently wrong with the combination products, but it really seems their general effect confuses rather than clarifies, which seems to me to be part of the reason for the design and proliferation.

The author of this piece seems to have similar feelings:

> ...I can't see myself using it, because I usually keep generic single-drug products around. A family, or a sickness-inclined person living alone, could very reasonably keep the five aforementioned individual generic medications in their medicine cabinet and address the symptoms as they arise. I think that's easier than messing with combination products, and usually cheaper. Especially if you consider that you're not taking medications you don't need.

> I tried to convince Angelotti that's the way to go, but she was adamant that many or even most people really like to take one pill that addresses all of their symptoms. "I don't know if people will be likely to have their own inventory of generic over-the-counter medications in their homes," she said.

I think a simple list like this, preferably easily visible in the store, and some better organization in stores would do people a much greater service than the app the article discusses.