There are a few brands of cough drops/lozenges which contain DXM without
other active ingredients. One such brand is SucretsTM (not the kind that
come in the tin; these come in a bag and are labelled as containing DXM).
Each lozenge contains 15mg DXM, as well as a number of inert ingredients
(primarily sucrose, flavoring, coloring, magnesium silicate). Some people
report the sucrets contain menthol; others don’t (I suspect there may be
different versions available). Other lozenges available contain from 7.5mg
DXM (a South African brand) to 30mg DXM. Revco carries a DXM lozenge
containing 5mg DXM each called HoldTM, which supposedly taste better than
Sucrets but are fairly expensive (and contain less DXM).
Since the inert ingredients present in these lozenges may cause nausea,
some people have managed to get rid of most of them by placing the lozenges
in a container of water and microwaving until fully dissolved, then
filtering through a coffee filter, discarding the precipitate (solid), and
drinking the liquid. Longer boiling seems to drive off the flavoring and
menthol without affecting the DXM.
Interesting side note: recently, in South Africa, cough lozenges containing
an abnormally high amount of DXM were illegally diverted from disposal and
resold, causing “moderately severe” toxicity in 24% of primary school
pupils using these lozenges (369).
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