Five Products That Are a Waste of Money

Sometimes, paying a premium price doesn't necessarily ensure better performance.

Take antibacterial soap. With the growing concern about the spread of infectious diseases like the avian flu, everyone should be taking basic precautions such as thoroughly washing your hands and making sure not to touch your eyes, nose or mouth since these are common ways to catch colds, according to the Center For Disease Control. Another step that many people take is to use antibacterial soap and other cleaning products.

A new study, however, suggests this may be a waste of money. Researchers at the University of Michigan School of Public Health recently looked at 27 past studies done on antibacterial products containing the active ingredient triclosan to determine their safety and effectiveness. The conclusion was that antibacterial cleaning products are no more effective at killing bacteria and preventing infectious illness than standard soap.

In another study by the same researchers on the effectiveness of antibacterial cleaning products, 238 families were split into two groups where one group used antibacterial products and the other group used regular cleaning products. The results also concluded that the antibacterial products were no better than the standard cleaners for killing germs.

Here are a few more products for which you may be paying a premium on the belief that they are better, when they really aren't:

1. Brand-name drugs: Many people shy away from generic prescription drugs because they feel that they are not as good as their brand-name counterparts. Generic drugs are simply drugs made by another company because the patent on the drug has expired.

The government requires the same active ingredient in the same dosage for all generic drugs as with their brand-name equivalents. That means that they are exactly the same, except for the huge price difference and the look of the pills, since the law does not allow generic drug to look exactly like the brand drug it copies, according to Consumer Reports. There are cases in which brand-name drugs may be preferable to generic alternatives, so you should always check with your doctor before making a switch, Consumer Reports says. But using generic drugs, where applicable, can save a lot of money.