Decongestant · ATC R01BA02
Pseudoephedrine
Sudafed in the US
The international (INN) name. Pharmacists everywhere recognize it, even when the local brand differs (e.g. Sudafed, Aspirinagripe, Actifed).
Sold for: cold and cough.
Sold from behind the pharmacy counter without a prescription. You must show photo ID and be 18 or older, and purchase limits apply.
Not sold on its own. It comes only in combination cold remedies with a painkiller (aspirin or ibuprofen) or an antihistamine, so check the other ingredient. Aerinaze, the higher-dose version, needs a prescription.
ANSM made a prescription mandatory nationwide for all pseudoephedrine-based medicines effective 11 December 2024, citing documented stroke, heart attack, and death cases; the Actifed Rhume combination products have themselves been withdrawn from the market. The French medicines register currently lists no pseudoephedrine product as marketed.
Banned since 2008. Mexico was the first North American country to prohibit pseudoephedrine outright.
Combined with an antihistamine or paracetamol. Plain pseudoephedrine is not registered.
A stimulant raw material under Japanese law. Products with more than 10% pseudoephedrine need written permission before you travel; products with 10% or less are excluded from that rule.
Almost all products combine it with paracetamol or an antihistamine. Plain pseudoephedrine tablets are rare.
Plain pseudoephedrine is not registered. Purchase limits apply.
The local rules are not known. Many countries have tightened controls on this ingredient because it can be used to make methamphetamine, so it may not be freely sold.
The only pseudoephedrine product on the market here.
Only combination products such as Coldaway are sold behind the counter. Products with pseudoephedrine alone need a prescription.