A pharmacist revealed five of what he says are the best deals on medications at Dollar Tree, along with a few pharmaceutical products you should avoid.
Dollar Tree is popular among budget-conscious shoppers for its grocery selection, but it isn’t necessarily the first place that comes to mind for pharmaceutical products.
Recently, licensed pharmacist Grant Harting (@grant_harting) posted a TikTok video in which he shares his expert opinion on the best and worst medication deals you can find at Dollar Tree.
Below, we’ve listed every single product Harting mentions in his video along with his opinion on whether each one is worth your money.
Arthritis & Muscle Pain Relief Cream by CareAll
The first product up on Harting’s list is this pain relief cream by CareAll, a brand that provides over-the-counter products.
“The best value you're gonna get here is their creams,” Harting begins in his video.
The packaging contains 1.5 ounces of product, with a concentration of 0.25% capsaicin. This, according to Harting, makes it a good deal.
“It’s only $1.25 because we’re at the Dollar Tree,” he states. “You’re gonna be looking at $6 to $8 anywhere else.”
Anesthetic Hemorrhoidal Cream by NaturePlex
According to Harting, this cream, on the other hand, isn’t the best deal, as the price of $1.25 at Dollar Tree does not offer significant savings.
“This is really cheap everywhere else,” he states of the Anesthetic Hemorrhoidal Cream by NaturePlex. “It’s probably gonna be like a dollar or maybe $2 anywhere else.”
However, after a quick search, it appears that a similar product costs around $3 per ounce in discount stores such as Walmart or on Amazon, meaning that Dollar Tree might be offering a good deal on this cream.
Anti-itch Cream By CareAll
The next product Harting picks up is the anti-itch cream by CareAll.
“This a great deal,” he states.
When discussing the active ingredients, he explains, “It has Diphenhydramine, which is Benadryl… and Zinc Acetate.”
However, Harting states he doesn’t believe in the effectiveness of this product overall, saying, “I don't think this product itself is very good anywhere… but it's cheap.”
According to WebMD, anti-itch creams indeed work by blocking the effects of histamine, which causes itching.
Oral Analgesic Gel
This next product seems to be Harting’s favorite. It’s the Maximum Strength Oral Analgesic gel with Benzocaine 20%.
“This is definitely the best product,” he states. “You get almost an entire ounce. … This is almost a lifetime supply.”
According to Harting, a similar product would cost you $10 to $11 at a pharmacy.
“I love it. I love it. I love it,” Harting exclaims. “I use this myself.”
This gel can be used whenever you get a cut in your mouth. It acts as pain relief by numbing the area, as Harting explains.
Pain Relief PM by ValuHealth
Next, we see Harting grab a box of Pain Relief PM by ValuHealth—another brand that offers affordable over-the-counter products.
“This is what most people would call Tylenol PM,” Harting states. “It says here in the corner ‘For $1.25’, and you get 24 tablets. This is a great deal.”
A similar product and quantity as the one shown by Harting seems to be priced at $5 to $8 at pharmacies and discount stores. This makes the Dollar Tree deal an excellent one.
Pain Relief by ValuHealth
Moving on to a very similar product, Harting says the extra strength pain relief by ValuHealth might not be the best deal Dollar Tree has to offer.
“This is regular old Tylenol,” Harting states. “You get 500 milligrams for each tablet.”
While the pharmacist doesn’t think it’d be an unwise purchase, he does advise that you could find a similar strength pain relief medication for cheaper elsewhere.
“You can get thousands and thousands of Tylenol for just pennies,” he states.
Cough Syrup
The next product up on Harting’s “good” list is the cough syrup.
Since you rarely may need a big bottle of cough syrup, Harting suggests that small bottles Dollar Tree offers are more convenient.
“Cough syrups, I’m a big fan of,” he says. “These are really good, efficient bottles.”
However, Harting says he dislikes some aspects of the product, stating, “I'm not really a fan of the actual active ingredients myself, but if this is what you want, this is very cost-effective here.”
Allergy Oral Solution for Children
Harting then picks up a bottle of allergy medication, which appears to be manufactured for children to protect them from negative reactions to animals.
Not offering a ton of explanation, he simply says, “It’s liquid Benadryl. I wouldn’t probably buy [it].”
According to Healthline, it’s best to avoid the allergen, whatever is making one feel sick. However, if that's impossible, treatments such as Benadryl, Claritin, Zyrtec, Flonase, or Nasonex may be helpful in treating allergies.
Melatonin
The last product on Harting’s list is the Dollar Tree Melatonin. The tablets contains 3 milligrams of concentration, and there are 30 tablets in the container.
Harting says you could probably find a better deal elsewhere.
“I’m gonna be honest with you, you should be taking at least 5 milligrams of melatonin,” Harting states. “If you’re gonna be taking it, you need a much bigger quantity than 30 tablets.”
He advises against purchasing melatonin at the Dollar Tree store, instead recommending another discount store such as Walmart.
In the comments section, viewers mostly agree with the pharmacist and shared their experience shopping for medication at Dollar Tree.
“I use to buy their pregnancy test,” shared one commenter. “There very accurate and soooo much cheaper!!”
“Their tension headache medicine is incredible,” wrote another. “It works better for me than Excedrin! I use it for all my aches lol.”
“I’ve always wondered about their medications,” said a third.
The Daily Dot reached out to Harting via Instagram direct message and Dollar Tree via email for further comment.
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