Nielsen probed consumers’ attitudes towards health and beauty products—where they purchased them and what factors went into their buying decisions—as part of its Global Online Survey of more than 27,000 people.

The number of drug stores in the U.S. has declined by more than 2,000 in the last 7 years (to 37,700 outlets), as independent pharmacies close.  And in the last decade, the percent of U.S. households shopping in drug stores has dropped from 89 percent to 81 percent.  But the drug store channel generates more than $43 billion in sales, excluding prescriptions, and the nation’s leading chains are continuing to innovate to grow their share of the consumer’s spend. 
So what are the top selling categories in the drug channel? Six …