These days, there are over-the-counter medications for just about everything. If you have a cold, you can get an OTC medication. If you have heartburn, you can get an OTC medication. If you have an upset stomach, pain, a cough, allergies, or a multitude of other complaints, you can find an OTC medication. Unfortunately, we assume just because these medications are sold in pharmacies or on shelves at grocery stores or discount stores that they are safe, but how safe are over-the-counter medications.

Most over the counter medications are considered safe, if they have been approved by the FDA, but this only means that they are safe for human consumption. It does not mean that they are safe for you, as an individual, and this is where most over-the-counter medications are not safe.

Few of us take the time to read the labels on OTC medications, past what is says about what symptoms or ailments it relieves and how much you should take. We fail to read the warnings. Those warnings will often state that if you have certain medical or physical conditions that you should not take the medication or you should consult your physician before taking the medication. They aren’t just printing that information on those labels for amusement or to fill space! They generally mean it, and you need to follow those instructions!

The same is true for the dosing instructions. These aren’t just doses that they pulled out of a hat. The drug has been tested, and these are the safe or effective amounts that are needed for your ailment, and to prevent over dosing on the over-the-counter medication. Failure to follow these dosing instructions, including the time to wait between doses, can be detrimental to your health, at the very least, and fatal in the worst cases.

As you can see, it is typically our own lack of judgment that causes an FDA approved over-the-counter medication to become unsafe. Read the entire label. Know what ingredients are in the medication. Know what the dosage is, what the potential side effects and risks are, what the serious side effects are, when to see your doctor about side effects, and any other information that is supplied. Ask your pharmacist or your doctor for an explanation of anything that you don’t understand, and if you are ever in doubt, simply don’t take the medication. Finally, when you take any medication, take the smallest dose that is possible for your condition.

Senior citizens purchase 35-40% of all prescribed and over-the-counter (OTC) drugs. Seniors between the ages of 65-84 take from 14-to-18 prescriptions annually. Up to 25% of these medications are considered unnecessary or inaccurate.

The Internet offers numerous articles and other information on how senior citizens can protect themselves from over-medication and other unnecessary treatments. Some of these articles are written by physicians who realize that medical drugs are not the answer to all health conditions. Additionally, a recent midwestern newspaper article points out that less than half of our medical care is supported by adequate scientific evidence, according to the experts. These kind of articles also offer recommendations for protection from the harmful side effects of too much medication.

Recommendations

1. Good insurance pays. Although health insurance is a good thing to have nowadays, do keep in mind that your insurance and drug plans could be prevailed upon for medical business reasons. If you already have medicare and other health insurance, your health condition could inadvertently be targeted for more treatments than really necessary.

2. Common sense. Listen to your best instincts about the treatments you might or might not need. Do not passively accept medication without knowing its exact health goal and purpose first. Ask questions about your prescription and why you need it for your specific condition Make sure this treatment makes sense to you.

Although senior citizens account for only 13% of the population, they purchase up to 40% of all medications. Therefore, document any side effects from your prescriptions, and report them to your doctor, e.g., headache, cough, drowsiness, dizziness, pain, itching, gas, upset stomach, or constipation. Your doctor can change these medications if they cause you discomfort.

3. Take someone with you to an appointment. Take a friend or family member with you when you see your doctor. This person will add to your advocacy by giving you emotional support, and by helping you thwart questionable prescriptions or treatments. Three heads are better than one. Also, remember that 77% of the seniors between the ages of 65-70 have at least one chronic illness. Thus, you could really need one or two prescriptions of some kind.

Yet, other prescriptions are questionable. For example, if you have a desirable cholesterol level lower than 200-mg/dL, and your doctor prescribes a statin drug to enhance your cholesterol level, you’ll need to question that recommendation to find out exactly why you need it for your apparent condition. Will it affect your other bodily systems in some way In another reported situation, a study at a northwestern state university found that some doctors were prescribing powerful anti-psychotic drugs to patients for mild depression, anxiety, and insomnia. These drugs are approved only for serious mental and emotional disorders. Otherwise, the effects from these drugs can be harmful.

Still other adverse medical effects can be somewhat innocent. In one case, a senior started taking two common OTC pills daily to help reduce hip pain. However, these pills thinned that person’s blood, which caused his or her small colon fissures to bleed. After the resulting blood showed up in the stool, this senior was much relieved to find out it was not caused by cancer.

4. Learn about your medical condition. If you have a computer available, search the Internet for reliable information about your condition, and how to treat it. If not, try a public or medical library to find out as much about it as you can. This kind of knowledge is defensive power in favor of your continued good health.

5. Keep and carry your own set of records. Carry your basic health history and information with you, in writing. List your chronic conditions, medications, allergies, blood type as well as your doctor’s name and phone number. Also keep a copy of these life-saving records in the open at your residence in case of an emergency, or in case you become unconscious and cannot provide this information verbally. Additionally, if possible, add copies of your laboratory test results to these records. Your life could depend on them.

6. Report suspected abuse or fraud. Medicare fraud costs tax payers multiple millions of dollars, and causes health insurance premiums to rise sharply. Learn how and where to report suspected abuse or fraud after carefully studying the suspect situation beforehand. Such abuse can be reported to a senior-medicare patrol in your area or state if they exist. These offices or patrols can sometimes be found at the government agencies on aging. For starters, see the links below.

Diabetics need to fight not ony the disease but also various complications that it brings allong. Diabetic neuropathy is one such complication that is caused by poor blood supply and nerve damage to a diabetic’s body. One such silent complication that attacks from within the body is diabetic autonomic neuropathy. Here are the symptoms and treatments for diabetic autonomic neuropathy.

Over a period of time, high blood glucose fluctuations can lead to nerve damage and impaired blood circulation, which can result in specific organs of the body getting impaired or damaged. There are 4 types of diabetic neuropathy, namely peripheral, focal, proximal and lastly autonomic neuropathy that can affect different functions and organs of the body. Diabetic autonomic neuropathy affects the nerves related to the functioning of the heart, lungs, digestion, perspiration, bladder, bowels, salivation and vision. It is very difficult to diagnose the onset of this type of neuropathy since there is no associated tingling, pain or numbness, which is usually found in other types of neuropathy. Another problem in catching the symptoms is that it is sometimes confused with other minor ailments such as an upset stomach, etc.

The symptoms depend on the organs that get affected with the onset of diabetic autonomic neuropathy. Hence patients could develop gastrointestinal problems such as nausea, heartburn, vomiting, which in turn can also cause blood sugar levels to fluctuate wildly. Other symptoms include urinary tract infections and incontinence in case the urinary bladder is affected. In case the disease affects the patient’s sexual organs, then it could cause erectile dysfunction or vaginal dryness depending on the sex of the patient. This disease can also affect the sweat glands thus leading to excessive sweating or even extremely dry skin, which again can open the way for skin infections. Patients that have diabetic autonomic neuropathy can also become victims of hypoglycemic unawareness or even suffer silent heart attacks, which could prove to be extremely dangerous.

While medications and surgery can be used to treat specific cases of diabetic autonomic neuropathy, antioxidants such as alpha lipoic acid too have shown positive results in trials in Europe. This treatment can be used on humans and select pets such as dogs and hamsters although cats cannot be treated due to a toxic reaction by this antioxidant with its liver. Patients should also consume enough liquids to keep their skin hydrated and should also go in for smaller, low-fat and low-fiber meals to improve digestion and regularize bladder movements. Adequate exercises to build up muscle tissue and burn excess fat along with a strict insulin monitoring and delivery schedule is a must for diabetics that need to avoid the onset of diabetic neuropathy. Diabetics should also take adequate care of their skin and also observe the physical condition of their hands and feet on a daily basis.

Diabetics should regularly check-in for check-ups and consult their doctor before making any changes to their diet or insulin delivery schedules. Each medicine or injection should also be cleared by their doctor. Any symptoms related to diabetic autonomic neuropathy should be followed up immediately instead of waiting until it becomes too late to reverse or arrest the effects.

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