Sore throat or numb tongue: it's your choice! (Dequacaine Lozenges)

Member Name: markos9

Product:	Dequacaine Lozenges
Date:	14/03/09 (448 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Works better than anything else I've tried

Disadvantages: Some people don't like the 'numb' feeling

Sore throats are, for me, one of the worst of the common ailments. I hate the dry feeling, the not being able to swallow, and of course the pain. I've been using Dequacaine for a few years now as they're the best treatment I've found.

I discovered them when I went into a chemist's during a particularly bad sore throat 'episode' and asked the girl on the counter for the strongest sore throat medicine they had (I must have been ill, since I never even asked the price. People who know me would be amazed at that!).

She sold me a 24 capsule packet of Dequacaine lozenges and proceeded to warn me not to drink hot drinks whilst taking them since I could burn myself without realising it due to the anaesthetic effect they have, they sounded just the thing!

Dequacaine is an extremely effective treatment for sore throats, much more effective than Strepsils, for example. Its secret ingredient is benzocaine, a local anaesthetic. This works on the nerve endings in the throat, numbing them and preventing you feeling the pain of the infection. Each lozenge contains 10mg of benzocaine as well as 0.25mg of dequalinium chloride, an anti-bacterial agent to fight the infection.

Taste wise, the lozenges are OK, but not great. They're sort of minty but taste a bit medicinal too (well they would, wouldn't they). I guess what I'm saying is that you wouldn't take them as a sweet, but they're not too unpleasant to eat when you have a sore throat.

The main disadvantage reported about dequacaine is that, not only do they numb your throat as they're supposed to; the act of sucking on the lozenge also numbs your tongue giving a slightly weird feeling. It doesn't bother me in the slightest, but some of the people I've recommended Dequacaine to (and they're been lots, as I am very impressed with this product), have found this not to their liking.

Dequacaine is not good for your diet, or your teeth, each lozenge contains 2.6g of sugar. There are no other medicines in it, however, so nothing to prevent you taking other treatments (although, as usual, I'd consult the list of do's and don'ts and who should take Dequacaine on the back of the packet before using it).

The recommended dose is to take one every two hours. I've found this to be a bit long between treatments when I feel as if my throat is full of broken glass! With a really bad sore throat, I've upped the dose a bit (although I don't recommend anyone else does this), but I've always stuck to the recommendation never to exceed 8 tablets in a 24 hour period.

I find Dequacaine is perfect for me when I have a sore throat. It's not nasty to take, it numbs my throat, it has anti-bacterial properties, and it definitely makes me feel better. I've never found a sore throat treatment that's got as much going for it as Dequacaine and can recommend it, if you can get past the downside of your tongue going numb. I now always keep a box handy at work and at home in case a nasty sore throat virus attacks. A box of 24 lozenges costs about £3.00, not bad value for money.

Summary: The best