Consumer Health

Locally preferred alternatives, like consuming honey, ginger, and lemon infusions, enjoy widespread popularity among the locals. In households with lower incomes, natural remedies often take precedence as the initial choice before resorting to…

Cough and cold remedies/products are expected to enjoy demand in 2023. However, the shortages of cough and cold medicines, which provided a consistent disruption in 2022, lingered in 2023. Against this background, manufacturers have struggled to keep…

Cough, cold, and allergy (hay fever) remedies in Chile is experiencing remarkable growth for the second consecutive year in 2023, both in terms of volume and value. This upward trend can be attributed primarily to the return to normalcy following the…

Even though cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies recorded over 40% current value growth in 2022, it is anticipated that the category will continue to achieve high single-digit growth in 2023. Starting from late 2022, the end of the zero-COVID…

In 2022, demand for cold, cough and allergy (have fever) remedies soared, as a result of the atypical increase in flu cases, as social distancing, handwashing protocols, and the use of face masks were totally lifted in 2022, facilitating the spread…

At the end of 2022, there was an increase in the need to treat cold and flu symptoms. This was driven by the return of socialising following periods of social distancing, increased hand washing and the wearing of face masks throughout most of 2020…

During the last couple of years, the flu season was virtually non-existent as a result of Croatians staying at home and, when venturing out in public, wearing face masks, maintaining social distance and frequently washing their hands. This…

Cough remedies and decongestants, which had seen strong growth during the pandemic period, saw more moderate growth in 2022 and 2023 as the contagion receded and public concern waned. Current value sales growth partly reflects inflationary pressures,…

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies are among the most popular consumer health items in the Dominican Republic and are experiencing further growth in 2023 despite higher unit prices resulting largely from persistent inflationary pressures…

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies are expected to register a decline in value sales. Value sales are now at more normal levels, as concerns about the COVID-19 virus have abated. In addition, Ecuador is grappling with rising crime rates and…

Combination drugs are often used to treat multiple symptoms or conditions with a single medication. They can be very helpful in simplifying medication regimens and improving patient adherence. Combination drugs are also beneficial in a number of…

Whilst the category continues to record growth in 2023, the particularly high growth level seen in the previous year could not be maintained. 2022 was a strong year for the category as consumers returned to their pre-pandemic lifestyles following the…

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) sales are expected to be slightly down in 2023. This is partly a result of the very strong performance seen in the previous year, as the lifting of COVID-19 related restrictions led to greater social contact and…

Within OTC consumer health in France, value sales of cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies are continuing to record the fastest growth in 2023, following a dynamic performance the previous year. Within the category, demand for various formats…

Analgesics is expected to register moderate constant value growth in 2023. Though there was widespread severe flu in early 2023, cough and cold remedies are not expected to benefit to a huge degree, as most of these patients were hospitalised or put…

Cough and cold remedies were recording see high single-digit growth in current value terms in 2023, with sales benefiting from the large number of cases of cold and flu in the 2023/2024 season. Furthermore, value sales were also being boosted by unit…

In May 2022, Greece lifted all COVID-19 related regulations. This included the compulsory use of face masks and social distancing rules, and although use of face masks remains fairly high in Greece compared to other European countries, it appears…

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies are widely consumed consumer health items in the Guatemalan market. These products have established broad distribution throughout the country, with products available throughout the modern and traditional…

The removal of mask-wearing and social distancing measures in March 2023 led to rising demand for cough, cold and allergy remedies as respiratory infections increased. Since February 2020, local seasonal influenza in Hong Kong has remained at a low…

Most cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies categories in Hungary are set to expand in volume terms in 2023 or record slower rates of decline than in 2022. Similar to the case with analgesics, the need for these products has been bolstered by…

In 2023, cough, cold, and allergy (hay fever) remedies in India is set to experience moderate single-digit current value growth, driven predominantly by the demand for decongestants. Decongestants is expected to demonstrate above-average growth due…

Although the pandemic is considered over, this is not expected to immediately reduce sales of OTC cough and cold medicines in Indonesia in 2023, with both retail volume and current value growth set to continue across most categories. However, the…

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies are enjoying strong growth in 2023 as the category continues to recover from the sharp declines seen during the COVID-19 pandemic. Flu, common coughs and colds and seasonal allergies in the Irish…

The normalisation of consumer lifestyles has hastened the return of common coughs and cold in Israel, with a notable uplift in schools. In April 2022, the mask mandate was removed, aside from specific locations such as hospitals and medical clinics,…

Cough/cold remedies are set to see high single-digit growth in current value terms in 2023, with sales likely to benefit from a high number of cases of cold and flu in the 2023/2024 season. Furthermore, value sales will likely also be boosted by unit…

Sales of cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies in Japan have continued to recover in 2023. This is largely due to increased opportunities for consumers to go out and a shift away from the practice of wearing face masks on a daily basis. With…

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies is experiencing a level of stabilisation in 2023. Following strong retail volume growth in the wake of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, almost all categories are projected to see slower retail volume…

A prevalent issue in cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies is the misuse of cough syrups, often through self-medication with OTC products. To address this concern, a regulatory framework has been implemented restricting the distribution of…

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies in Latvia is registering moderate growth in 2023 as the category begins to stabilise post-pandemic. Retail value sales rebounded strongly 2022 after two years of decline, with lifestyles shifting back to…

2023 marks the year when the cough and cold landscape is set to lose its uplift due to COVID-19, returning to a level closer to that seen pre-pandemic. Sales have continued to benefit from harsh seasonal colds and the flu season of 2022-2023.…

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies witnessed an improved performance in constant value terms in 2023. This was due, in a large part, to a return of pre-pandemic lifestyles, including the reopening of schools and workspaces, which…

In early 2023, a sixth wave of COVID-19 coincided with an upsurge in cases of the common cold and influenza, creating a "tripledemic" felt across Mexico, the US, and Central American countries, with Mexico experiencing a milder impact. This scenario…

Overall demand for cough and cold remedies in Morocco has picked up in 2023, with most categories set to register improved results in volume growth terms as compared to 2022. The use of these products has been buoyed by the easing of the pandemic and…

With an early start to the influenza season, many New Zealanders were caught off guard and succumbed to the virus throughout 2023. With a dry cough being one of the most common flu symptoms, demand for treatments to help soothe the throat was…

On a landscape featuring local and international brands, consumers can access a wide array of choices. Brands like Emzolyn and Exiplon are popular among individuals with lower disposable incomes, while international counterparts, including Benylin,…

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies is seeing slower growth in 2023 due to a shorter cold season caused by milder winter 2022/2023. The exception is antihistamines, which continues to grow at a solid rate due to high consumer demand amidst…

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies remains the largest OTC category in Norway, accounting for more than one-third of total OTC value sales in 2023. Despite the already relatively high penetration of these products, the category registered…

As people become more aware of the importance of self-care, there is a growing demand for OTC medications to treat cough and cold. Access to healthcare is limited and as such it is easier to buy OTC medications. Therefore, despite the increase in…

Consumers have been returning to doctors’ surgeries in the post-pandemic landscape, thus hindering the sales of OTC medicines which they are instead accessing via prescription. This is noted to be the case with antihistamines, for example, along with…

The majority of subcategories within cough, cold and allergy remedies recorded positive growth in retail volume terms in 2023. This was due, in a large part, to a return pre-pandemic lifestyles, which facilitated the spread of the influenza virus and…

During the winters 2020/2021 and 2021/2022, the circulation of cough, cold and flu viruses was limited by the restrictions implemented to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. Winter 2022/2023 was the first one with no restrictions in place at all and this…

Following the return to normality in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, with no more lockdowns or movement restrictions, there has been an increase in the spread of cold and flu viruses, as well as a widespread rise in issues caused by hay fever and…

The pandemic has led consumers to become more concerned about the products they consume, and more conscious of side-effects, with some people therefore preferring to purchase herbal/traditional products instead of standard products, or those needing…

Although the threat from COVID-19 is largely perceived to have past, many consumers continue to worry about how people will react if they sneeze or cough in public. Volume growth of cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies is helping to drive the…

The pandemic brought about a huge increase in sales of cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies, especially from the end of 2021, with later COVID-19 variants being revealed to have unique symptoms resembling those of the common cold. In February…

In Slovakia, cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies was characterised by very strong increases in retail volume sales of OTC remedies for sore throats, coughs and colds. The high demand was the result of extremely high morbidity throughout the…

During the past few years, Slovenia has experienced a virtually non-existent flu season due to the outbreak of COVID-19. This led to individuals opting to stay at home and, when going out in public, adhering to practices like wearing face masks,…

During the review period, the flu and allergy season in South Africa was rife specifically during the winter periods. Given the presence of several flu strains and allergies, consumers reached out to cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) products to…

Like analgesics, sales of cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies continue to rise, benefiting from the “tripledemic” of rising COVID-19 cases, the stronger return of influenza due to greater mobility outside of the home and contact with others,…

After the surge in sales that cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies experienced in 2022, demand is waning in 2023, with the category recording more subdued growth rates. Traditionally, sales of cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies in…