Prescription drugs are supposed to make our lives better. However, if not properly used, these life-savers can become silent killers. Follow these 10 vital tips for safe prescription drug use.

1. Tell Your Doctor & Pharmacist What Else You’re Taking: Harmful drug interactions are surprisingly common, and extremely dangerous. Before going to the doctor’s or a pharmacy, make a list of all the drugs and supplements you’re currently taking and present this list to your health care provider. It just might save your life.

2. Review the Side Effects: Before popping that first pill, take a few minutes to read the warning labels provided with every prescription. These warnings are there for a reason.

3. Don’t Take Drug Given by Others: Well meaning friends and family members may think they know what you need, but don’t trust a drug given to you by anyone besides your pharmacist.

4. Get Your Pharmacist’ Advice: Recently while filling a prescription for an anti-dandruff shampoo, my pharmacist gave me a tip. “Don’t just rinse it out of your hair in the shower,” he said, “Apply it after a shower and let it soak in your scalp.” I took his advice and couldn’t believe the difference it made. The drug went from being slightly effective to 100% effective. It’s easy to forget that Pharmacists do much more than dish pills. They often pass on valuable information that your doctor doesn’t know.

5. Scratch the Alcohol: Don’t drink alcohol while taking a prescription or over the counter drug. Alcohol tends to exacerbate the side effects, especially drowsiness.
6. Don’t Use Expired Drugs: It’s tempting to keep drugs beyond their expiration date in order to save money. Make it a habit to go through your medicine cabinet on a regular basis to purge expired drugs. If you make this a habit when you’re well, you’ll never be tempted to take an expired drug when you’re ill.

7. Don’t Divide Doses: It’s tempting to save money by dividing doses. However, some drugs are intended to be taken whole, and can have serious side effects if split or crushed.

8. Store Drugs Properly: Always store drugs in a cool, dark, and dry place. Avoid using bathroom cabinets which are prone to moisture.
9. Dispose of Drugs Properly: In the past, experts have recommended flushing drugs down the toilet in order to prevent scavenging in the trash. However, recent environmental evidence suggests this isn’t a good idea. Instead, consider concealing old drugs in a bag of coffee grounds or something that wouldn’t be rummaged through.

10. Ask your Doctor if You Really Need that Drug: We sometimes get into habits without thinking. Quite possibly that drug you’ve been taking for years isn’t needed anymore, and could have long term side effects. Consider talking with your doctor about your regiment, and possibly phasing out a drug that isn’t required. Keep in mind you should NOT go off any drug without first talking to your doctor.

The Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) treatment that comprises of electric shock has been used for many years for the treatment of chronic lower back pain. However, according to a new study it does not work. Those who are undergoing this treatment have to consult there doctors about discontinuing with this and finding other suitable treatments, the researchers have said.

TENS is a kind of physical therapy using electrical stimulation that numbs those areas of the body where pain exists. It is a pocket-sized device that delivers a mild electrical current to nerves through electrodes. The nerves in particular areas are stimulated through the skin to stimulate the opioid nervous system that helps in reducing pain and discomfort. For in depth treatment among patients, the protocol that is burst is used in stead of electrical impulse steady streams. Doctors refer this type of TENS treatment as electronic acupuncture. The main advantage of using the TENS machine is that, that there are no side effects and it is non addictive. It should be remembered that the effects are temporary and there is no actual healing. However, some patients experience reddened skin where the electrodes are placed. It should however be ensured that such a treatment should be taken under the supervision and guidance of an experienced doctor.

According to researchers, there is strong evidence that people using TENS for low back pain have not been getting relief through this method. Although this is a problem, another study indicates that using TENS for diabetic nerve pain proved to be effective and also proved to be a good alternative to pain medication. Further research into the mechanism is still needed to support this, and more rigorous studies of TENS should be conducted in patients who have never received the treatment before.

The following people should avoid using a TENS machine:

• Pregnant women - unless specifically advised to by their doctor,
• People with epilepsy,
• People who have a pacemaker fitted, and
• People with a history of heart disease

Different techniques are used for different nerve types, to bring about pain relief. The three main techniques being used are conventional TENS, Acupuncture –like TENS and intense TENS.

In the US alone about 75 million adults suffer from chronic pain, one of which is low back pain. Scientists have admitted that it is not fully understood how pain works or why people experience it. According to research the best remedy for chronic pain is exercise. Back pain can affect anyone at any age but is more common in people between the ages of thirty five and fifty five. Most of the times there is no underlying cause and tests show no abnormalities. There are many things you can do stay away from the pain. For example, stay active, take adequate rest, apply hot water bags and avoid over exertion.

In spite of the comparatively weak scientific and clinical evidence, TENS can still be considered a valuable therapeutic alternative in neurological pain disorders.

Back pain has become one of the major and serious problems faced by people of all age groups. Let it be a young girl or a guy, even they also are facing this problem. Once, these types of problems were generally experienced by the older people but now the scenario has changed.

Now let’s talk about various reasons that can cause back pain.

Kids can have severe back pain due to the load of heavy school bags.

People who spend most of the time working in front of the computers also face this problem. If a person sits at one position for a longer period of time then he or she can experience this back problem too.

Back pain can happen more severely if a person has arthritis, this is one kind of disease that happens in the joints of a person’s body. The joints starts paining after a span of time thus back pain also can be the reason for arthritis. Even sometimes tumors in places like lungs, breasts can cause huge back pain.

Osteoporosis too can be the reason for an acute back pain. Here in this condition, the bones become too fragile and can get fractured at any point of time. If some one is affected by Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm then he or she can also experience a lot of pain in the back.

Even if some has gained too much of weight then he or she can have a severe back pain too. Some other dieses which can lead to severe back pain are Hip Osteoarthritis, Rheumatoid arthritis, Ankylosing Spondylitis. All these conditions are related to bones thus resulting in back pain.

Now let’s talk about some of the remedies of this kind of back pain. If a person who is suffering from huge pain in the back does a little bit of exercise daily then he or she can get rid of the pain. As proper exercise lets this muscles move properly.

Many times acupuncture can help you get rid of this kind of back pain. Some other remedies for curing back pain includes morning walk, neck and back exercise, and even if you listen to lot of music this too can reduce your back pain. As most of the times the reason for back pain is too much of stress, so release your stress then your back pain will also go automatically.

It has been seen that back pain occurs due to vitamin D deficiency. So in order to get rid of this pain you can eat food which is rich in vitamin D. Also you must not sit in one place for a long time. You can do a little bit of walking as this will help your muscles to stretch properly.

So if you follow these simple steps you can get rid of the severe back pain. Don’t forget to eat vegetables and fruits and calcium as it will make your bones stronger and thus it will reduce your back pain.