Latin America

Paediatric consumer health is expected to register a slight increase in current value sales, but a fall in volume sales. The performance of vitamins in particular is expected to drag down the overall segment. Vitamins are the largest product in…

Despite challenging macroeconomic conditions in the country and higher prices for just about everything, paediatric consumer health managed to record positive growth over the review period and in 2023, reflecting the importance families place on the…

Paediatric analgesics faced supply issues during 2022 and part of 2023, particularly with a scarcity of Dolex 7+ (a suspension that can be used for children aged 7 and above that has a different concentration from baby drops and adult acetaminophen).…

Paediatric consumer health is experiencing similar value growth rates to the previous year in Chile, although this is not aligned with the increasing demand for this category during 2023. A notable challenge has emerged as there have been stock…

In 2023, paediatric consumer health is expected to register a decline in current value sales. A contributing factor to the decline is that the birth rate is falling in Bolivia. That being said, birth rates are still high. Some products are expected…

Retail volume sales of paediatric cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies saw positive growth for the second consecutive year in 2023. With the resumption of pre-pandemic lifestyles, including the return of students to school and infants to…

NRT smoking cessation aids saw growth decelerate in 2021 and 2022. On one side, with the high price tag of NRT products and consumers looking to balance their budgets, this category is not considered essential but easily replaceable. On the other…

The proportion of the Argentinian population claiming to smoke declined in 2023, continuing the trend of previous years of the review period. This was driven mainly by a decline in smoking amongst women, with prevalence amongst men decreasing at a…

Herbal/traditional sleep aids is expected to register the highest current value growth in 2023. Stress factors such as economic uncertainty and a spiralling crime rate are expected to lead to increased demand for sleep aids. In addition,…

Herbal/traditional remedies recorded steady growth in 2023 as they are well received and trusted by Dominican consumers. Also, consumers are increasingly turning to more natural products that they perceive to be healthier, cleaner and less processed.…

Demand for cough/cold/allergy remedies is on the rise. Ingredients such as menthol, eucalyptus, propolis, and hedera helix are particularly popular in syrups used to address dry or productive coughs. These herbal remedies are known for their…

Consumers in Chile continue to show strong support for herbal/traditional products, especially when purchasing cough/cold remedies. This trend is not only driven by the longstanding preference for natural products among many Chileans but also due to…

In recent years, the local government has been active in promoting the development of traditional medicine. In 2023, local health authorities continued with this strategy and signed an agreement with the Japanese government to help promote local…

Demand for herbal/traditional dietary supplements continued to grow strongly in 2023, as consumers sought out products to help protect them from illness. This increased focus on preventative health and immunity-boosting products caused a surge in…

The occurrence of dry eye in Colombia is on the rise, with an estimated 35% to 40% of the population experiencing this condition, although official statistics are unavailable. The emergence of new habits during the pandemic and post-pandemic period,…

Eye care in Chile is experiencing declining retail volume sales in 2023, primarily due to greater mobility outside of the home and the transition back to in-person work settings. In 2020 and 2021, standard eye care experienced a notable upturn in…

With consumers spending more time in front of screens, whether as a result of home working or e-learning, retail sales of eye care products continued to see healthy growth in constant value terms in 2023. The COVID-19 pandemic led to an increased use…

Digestive remedies is expected to register significant current value and volume growth in 2023, partly driven by high demand for diarrhoeal remedies (see below). The healthy growth is also due to the high levels of recommendation by pharmacists at…

Digestive remedies continued to see an expansion in its consumer base in 2023 with higher penetration levels translating to stronger retail value sales. Products for indigestion and heartburn saw healthy growth thanks to more consumers eating outside…

Digestive remedies has been amongst the most dynamic categories within OTC. With people back to their normal routines, which include an increase in the frequency of eating out of the home, they have been more prone to suffer from bloating, reflux, or…

Digestive remedies in Chile is experiencing a deceleration in value growth during 2023 compared to the double-digit increases observed in the previous two years. Despite a general decline in demand, the category continues to show healthy growth rates…

The increased availability of low-cost generic proton pump inhibitors containing compounds such as omeprazole are dampening volume sales of antacids. Despite omeprazole being registered as an Rx drug, it is widely available, and can be accessed…

Retail sales of digestive remedies saw accelerated growth in constant value terms in 2023, as consumers returned to their busy, pre-pandemic lifestyles. With fears over the COVID-19 pandemic beginning to subside, there was notable increase in the…

Probiotic supplements is a standout product within dietary supplements and is expected to register double-digit volume growth in 2023. Probiotics supplements are available over the counter, but part of their success is due to sales representatives…

Dietary supplements continues to expand in 2023 as consumers have a large variety of products to choose from and are responding favourably to new product launches. At the end of 2022, for instance, Megalabs, launched InvitaEnergy, a combination of…

The dietary supplements category is expected to experience positive growth rates in 2023, largely driven by prices, although the growth is expected to be slower than that seen previously in the review period. Despite the increasing concern amongst…

Dietary supplements in Chile is experiencing a resurgence in dynamic value growth in 2023, following a decline the previous year. This renewed growth can be attributed to the growing interest among consumers in educating themselves about the…

While dietary supplements are expected to register moderate current value growth, constant value growth is expected to be minimal. Dietary supplements are mainly imported and in 2023 costs have been rising for imports, due to a sharp decline in…

Despite ongoing economic instability, consumers remained keen to maintain healthy lifestyles in order to help boost their immune systems. This, alongside the expansion of health food shops, boosted retail volume sales of dietary supplements in 2023.…

Medicated shampoo is expected to register the highest current value growth in dermatologicals in 2023, with the big winner being Genommalab’s Medicasp. This brand has significantly increased value share over the review period. With substantial…

Despite the challenging economic conditions affecting the country, consumers continue to purchase a variety of dermatological products as awareness about treating certain conditions increases. Categories such as haemorrhoid treatments, medicated…

Dermatologicals is expected to see higher value growth in 2023 than in the previous year. Value growth is partly being driven by escalating prices and partly by people returning to in-person medical consultations, which lead to more recommendations…

Dermatologicals maintain a healthy growth trajectory in line with figures recorded in 2022, retaining significant value sales that surpass pre-pandemic levels. While this category typically demonstrates notable stability and does not exhibit…

With society operating normally once again, after the pandemic, visits to doctors in relation to skin conditions have increased. This is seeing products such as topical antifungals, vaginal antifungals, cold sore treatments, and haemorrhoid…

Retail sales of dermatologicals saw a second year of healthy growth in constant value terms in 2023. The category suffered a decline during the pandemic, when consumers spent more time at home and were therefore less exposed to environments which…

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…

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…

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…

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…

Seasonal flus have returned, as people mix together once again , post pandemic, and cough, cold and allergy (hay fever remedies) are expected to register moderate current value growth, though constant value growth will be minimal, as rising costs hit…

Retail sales of cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies saw another year of healthy growth in constant value terms in 2023. With the resumption of pre-pandemic lifestyles, including a return to work, school and social activities, consumers…

Ecuador is expected to register only a slight increase in current value sales in 2023. Ecuador is grappling with rising crime rates and political instability, with runoff elections scheduled in October. This is all leading to economic uncertainty and…

Despite persistent inflationary pressures in the country and wages that have not yet caught up with market conditions, consumer health recorded growth in 2023. Growth was supported by solid categories, including cough, cold and allergy (hay fever)…

In 2023, Colombians returned to their familiar routines, with increasing social activity and hectic lifestyles leading to an increase in cases of cold and benefiting most OTC categories. However, the opposite trend is being observed in vitamins and…

Consumer health in Chile experienced a notable slowdown in value growth in 2022 compared to the previous year's performance. In 2021, the pandemic-induced liquidity in the local market and the shift towards preventive habits among consumers drove…

Bolivia has managed to protect itself to a large extent from inflation by continuing to have a fixed exchange rate against the dollar. However, there has been challenges for the economy in 2023, with sharp falls in foreign currency reserves and this…

During 2023, Argentina was plunged into an economic crisis, with the rate of inflation soaring to more than 100%, one of the highest in the world. With the country already struggling to comply with the conditions of a loan package from the…

Pharmacies continue to have significant influence over the value sales of analgesics in Ecuador. For instance, in lower income neighbourhoods, pharmacies are generally stocked with generics, whereas in wealthier neighbourhoods, mainly branded…

Analgesics has not seen a positive performance in 2023 as the height of the pandemic has passed. During the pandemic’s peak, consumers were buying up analgesics at a rapid pace to treat fevers, aches and other symptoms associated with acute…

After the spike in demand for systemic analgesics in the period, 2020 to 2021, driven by COVID-19 and then by the need to relieve reactions to vaccination, in 2022 demand tended to stabilise. However, adult acetaminophen and combination analgesics…