THEY'RE TAKING THE P*SS (Canesten Oasis)

Member Name: sandrabarber

Product:	Canesten Oasis
Date:	14/04/03 (203 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: IT WORKS

Disadvantages: IT'S A RIP OFF

Cystitis, in case you've never had it, is horrendous. You have a constant urgency to pee, and when you do it comes out in a mere tiny trickle and stings like hell because the infection has made your urine highly acidic. As well as this, it's not unusual to have excruciating groin pain and feel generally feverish and unwell. Your urine, when it does come out, will often be dark and cloudy, and may contain streaks of blood.

Cystitis is a urinary tract infection, an infection of the bladder that can also involve the urethra. It is often, but not always, caused by bacteria. Bacteria gets in there in many different ways, such as wiping yourself from back to front rather than vice versa when you've been to the loo, or from sex. It can even be brought on by wearing tampons or constricting underwear which provides the warm, moist atmosphere so beloved of bacteria and fungi.

One way to treat cystitis is with an over-the-counter remedy from Canesten (they of thrush cream fame), called Oasis.

Oasis is a box of 6 sachets that you mix with water. The active ingredient is sodium citrate, which is very alkali and works to neutralize your urine and thus bring down the acid-caused inflammation of your bladder wall. And because your urine is alkali, it won't feel like it's lacerating your labia when you pee.

Oasis sachets certainly do work, and you can feel relief just half an hour after the first one. By the time you've taken all six, your cystitis might well be gone altogether.

At over £4 for 6 sachets they're not cheap, but if they get rid of your cystitis they're worth it, right?

Well no.

You can alternatively go to the chemist and ask the pharmacist for a bottle of pot cit. It contains the same active ingredient as Oasis but it comes in liquid form. Like Oasis, you mix it with water. Like Oasis, you may start to feel relief almost immediately.

The only difference a

s far as I can ascertain is the price. For not much over a quid, you get 200 ml of pot cit. You take 5 or 10 ml three times a day mixed with plenty of water.

So even using the highest dose, you get 20 doses of pot cit for about £1.20.

You get 6 doses of Oasis - THE SAME THING - for over £4.

The rip-off prices of brand name medicines is one of my big bug-bears. I always ask the pharmacist if there is an equal generic brand for anything I buy in the chemists, and 8 times out of 10 there is, and always much, much cheaper. For example, the same applies to vitamin tablets (where you can regularly save two thirds!) and yellow Migraleve tablets (which are just paracetamol and codeine) to name but two.

So if you've been treating your cystitis with Oasis I urge you to save your money and ask the chemist for pot cit instead. You'll be glad you did.

To prevent further attacks:

Wipe from front to back
Don't wear constricting underwear or sweaty tights
Don't eat too much spicy food
Pee straight after sex
Never hang on to a full bladder

Warning: Do not self-treat cystitis with either of the above mentioned in the following circumstances:

You are under 16
You are male
You have very bad groin or back pain
You have kidney or heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes
You are pregnant or breastfeeding
There is blood in your urine
It is your first ever attack

Otherwise, buy pot cit and pee painlessly without being penniless.
(If you think this sounds too good to be true, ask your pharmacist to have your mind put at rest).

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