Over-the-counter Medicine: Safe or Unsafe?

Many of us have the idea that since a drug is sold from the drugstore shelf, it must be safe to use. I will bet you didn’t know the over-the-counter (OTC) drugs are sold directly to consumers not because they’re harmless but because the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) believes the benefits of the drug outweigh the risks. The fact is almost every OTC drug poses some risk, especially if taken in mega doses or with the wrong foods or other medications.

Granted, most of the OTC medications are no where near the same level of risk as many prescription drugs. And some prescription drugs have fewer side effects than their OTC counterparts. Benadryl, for example, can slow your reaction time as much as 3 to 5 alcoholic drinks. Prescription allergy drugs usually cause a lot less drowsiness.

There may also be ingredients in OTC medications that are unsafe. It’s up to the manufacturer to test for quality of products. Not that long ago Phenolphthalein, once used in laxatives and phenylpropanolamine, used in decongestants, were declared unsafe and were taken off the market.

You need to be especially careful when taking OTC meds because they are more susceptible to misuse. You need to be even more careful when you are diagnosing yourself rather than letting your doctor do the diagnosing. Misdiagnosis happens frequently if the drug you’re taking masks the symptoms of your problem.

You may also be getting inadequate treatment when you diagnose yourself. Or you could be taking too much of the drug because your doctor isn’t involved. Overdoses may also happen inadvertently when people are taking OTC meds. That could happen if you are treating a cold and taking Tylenol, flu tablets, extra zinc, plus meds for heartburn,

Drug interactions are another problem area. Without someone having a handle on the medications you take and the ingredients of the meds you’re buying on line, it is highly likely there will be some sort of negative reaction. Even food and drink can interfere with the OTC drug you’re taking. Trying to calm your stomach, for instance, by drinking lots of milk and taking antacids containing calcium or sodium bicarbonate may eventually cause serious kidney problems.

As you get older, your body is less efficient at getting rid of the drugs in your system. As a result they may reach higher levels in your blood. Even at normal blood levels, the side effects of many OTC drugs are more pronounced. To make matters worse, the suggested average dosage testing probably never included anyone past 50 which means the amount an older person takes might be too much – and in some cases too little for the drug to be effective.

Be sure to ask your physician if there are nonprescription drugs you should avoid. And tell you doctor about all the OTC drugs you’re taking including medicines, supplements and herbs. Aspirin, for example, can change the urine-sugar tests for diabetes.

Read the label and be sure you know what you’re doing before you diagnose and treat yourself with OTC medications.

If you use a special technique to keep track of your medications, prescribed and OTC, let us know. We’d like to share those ideas with the rest of the group.

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To your successful aging,

Ruthan Brodsky

www.upsideofaging.com     www.balanceyourhealth.com   www.theagingofanorexia.com