Do value ibuprofens work as good as top brands?

Question

The likes of Tesco and Boots have their own 'value' cheaper ranges of ibuprofen and I wondered if anyone has tried them and whether they are as good as the more expensive ones in their range or even brand names such as Nurofen etc.

Thanks!

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

They are chemically identical and have to have very similar bio-equivenance as well. They may be differently shaped and coloured but are just as good and of course a lot cheaper!

Source(s):

GP for more years than I care to remember

Answer 2

I always buy the generic brand ibuprofen, and I've never noticed a difference.

Answer 3

Ibuprofen is Ibuprofen. Hard to screw that one up. Plus the generics save you some money.

Source(s):

US Army Combat Medic

Answer 4

they are fine cheaper and they work just the same.

Answer 5

In my experience, yes, they are no different whatsoever when it comes to effectiveness.

Source(s):

I get a lot of headaches and take a lot of ibuprofen.

Answer 6

Ibuprofen is ibuprofen, no matter if it has a brand name or not. It does the same thing. You are buying the brand.

Answer 7

Depends what mg they are, if you get a high mg then yea they are x

Answer 8

Yes

i never use it but I usually administer it to all my patients without any complications appear.

Yes it does

Answer 9

Hiya, no there is no difference they both have same ingredients you are just paying for the brand, I always use the Tesco's ones and they are fine.
Well I don't always use them, that sounds wrong ha ha!!! but when I buy them I get Tesco's own!

Answer 10

well it depends are tesco baked beans as good as heinz beans??
its that kinda thing

Answer 11

to be honest i would have to say that the more expensive the ibuprofen the better it is, value brands normally come in smaller doses meaning taking more pills, and the value brands dont have all the little extras that make ya feel better

Answer 12

lmao, when i went inot hospital at 4am with severe pains and couldnt breathe, i was given paracetamol (couldnt have anything with codiene in as im allergic to it) and they stopped all the pain within 10 minutes, when i questioned what sort they were cause i had never known paracetamol work that well before i was told.. and i quote "they were just cheap paracetamol, its the NHS we dont by expensive anything!" so yeah i think they do work just as well lol

and heres another little fact, i asked if they were double strength or somehting and she said no, double strength still contains the same amount of ibuprofen/paracetamol as regular, the tablets just contain more caffeine and other chemicals! which i guess is what anadin and nurofen and all them probably do as well.

Answer 13

Yes, but check the ingredients against the "branded" one to make sure it's exactly the same. The value ones are so much cheaper.

Answer 14

If you buy your medication in the pharmacy and under a brand name the extra price is for the name only, not for the effect. If a drug has the same amount of the effective substance in it it will do the same.
On drugs whose patents have run out and which are supplied legally there will be no difference in action, it's the same with any generic drug.

Answer 15

I actually work at a pharmacy and can defiantly answer your question.
cheaper medications or (generics) are vigorously tested in labs to ensure the same standards are kept as those "names brands" they work just as well because they have exactly the same ingredients.

when a new medication/drug is discovered it is patented under law and as such no company may produce that product for 5-20 years or so to make up for the money spent in the research of the drug. After this period is up any company may make generic versions of them. People assume Nurofen is better because its more well known from advertising. You can save serious money by purchasing generic medications. THEY DO THE SAME THING...THEY ARE ALMOST IDENTICAL... usually only the size of the tablet or shape is different.

I hope this answered your question.

Answer 16

As said by others ibuprofen is ibuprofen, when you buy the more expensive ones you are paying for a brand as well as a drug, I always buy the cheaper ones they are the same, plus over the counter/on the counter you can only buy 200mg tablets where as if you went to the Dr's they would be able to give you a higher dose, but they wont be some expensive brand.

Answer 17

yes~
i recommened the ASDA ones as out of all the own-brands, they are the easiest to swallow

Answer 18

Yes, they are exactly the same. Just have a chat to your pharmacist to check if the ibuprofen mg is the same as your usual brand, or a little more or a little less. Typically they will be the same mg. Otherwise it has the exact same function. More than likely produced in the same factory too.

Source(s):

Pharm. ***.

Answer 19

Yes they do. They all have the exact same amount of the same ingredients. You pay more for the well known name brands. That's the only difference.

Answer 20

Very occasionally there are minor differences between the branded drug and the generic. This is due to the way it is milled or the excipient used. The actual drug is the same. I have never had any problem with any generic ibuprofen but I found Sainsbury's own brand liquid capsules particularly cheap and good.

Answer 21

Yes.

Answer 22

Yes they are all the same all you are paying extra for is a brand name.

Answer 23

their all the same,
just go for cheapest,sam old......same old!!!!

Answer 24

They're pretty much identical - all will cure u of pretty much whatever u want them to. The branded stuff sometimes come in easier to swallow caplets or whatever but thats about it. In the hospital, patients receive generic no-name medications all the time (and they are the sickest of the sick, and we wont be giving them half assed meds). Its the active ingredient that u want, and thats what binds to the receptors in your body to do the work u need it to. Once its inside your body your body doesnt discriminate coz its cheaper!

Answer 25

Read the ingredents ! i did and now i save a fortune, nurofen 200mg of ibuprofen cost around £2.50 or £3 a box ! sainsburys own brand contain 200mg of ibuprofen and are around 40p a box !!!