Mumsnet sponsored ad - Neutrogena T-gel coal tar shampoo

[ShutUpJennie]

I keep getting this ad in the site but can you actually buy the coal tar shampoo now?

I thought it was discontinued; I used to use it all the time and have never found a good alternative. Isn’t it odd that MN have it as an advert?

Well Google is your friend. I just looked and yes it is available from several sources, online and in shops (it’s listed at our local Boots and Asda).

The coal tar one?

It’s not coming up for me anywhere (yes I did google; there are a few other types that Boots etc have…)

That is odd! Yes it's the brown one you can't find any more. Isn't it a transparent/pale colour now? They reformulated it without the coal tar?

Yes the one you can get at Boots is a completely different formulation; it’s the brown one pictured in the ad that I used to use

I don't need MN torturing me with reminders that I can no longer calm my painful scalp effectively because the shampoo they're still advertising doesn't actually exist anymore (due to some stupid nanny state legislation). 🙄

I used to use it as well, I stockpiled but have run out.

Why was it discontinued?

My painful and itchy scalp has gone since I switched to shampoo bar soap. I'm allergic to all the liquid shampoos, even the treatment ones. The shampoo bars are much less harsh, but get your scalp and hair clean. I even use the Dove bar on my hair sometimes and that's fine. No scalp irritation.

Yes it says it’s the tar one - this is the pic off Neutragena website listing Boots and Asda, and I then checked my local Boots and they had it listed (did not cross check Asda, but if the Neutragena website says it’s stocked there it should be).

Boots don't stock the formulation we're discussing, if you look closely, and haven't for months. It has been discontinued.

It is still listed on the Neutrogena website but if you read the recent reviews you'll find some pretty desperate people writing about how they can't get it anymore. I don't know why Neutrogena haven't updated their website but the links to shops stocking it are also a dead end for the coal tar version. They're trying to convince people that the new salycilic acid formula is as effective as the old coal tar formula. Regular users, who relied on that version, will tell you without exception that it isn't.