Medication safety is something everyone should be aware of.
Millions of Americans take medications for multiple ailments such chronic pain and both acute and chronic illness.
Knowing how to safely take and store you medicines is an essential part of treatment.
Although medicines are designed to treat and cure illness, they also have the potential to cause get harm.
A few simple precautions can help protect those you love.
Anyone who takes medicine is at risk for an adverse reaction, also known as side effects.
Some side effects can be mild and go away in a few days.
But other adverse reactions can be severe and sometime life threatening.
Most pharmacies will provide you with information concerning side effects and reactions.
It is imperative to read this information so you are familiar with common side effects.
If you are in doubt about the medication, call your pharmacist immediately.
Proper storage of medication is crucial.
Most people think that the medicine cabinet in their bathroom is a good place to keep medicines.
But bathroom medicine cabinets are exposed to humidity from showers as well as temperature changes.
Bedroom drawers or kitchen cabinets offer a much better choice.
Keeping medicines dry and at a constant temperature prolong their life.
Also, check to see if the medication needs to be refrigerated.
Many liquid children's medications must be refrigerated to prevent them from losing potency.
If is important to keep a list of all medications you take.
Make sure you take this list with you to every doctor visit.
If you are prescribed multiple medications from several physicians each physician needs to know what you take.
Some drugs interfere with others or decrease their effectiveness.
For example some antibiotics can interfere with birth control.
Making sure each physician knows what you are taking helps them know what is best to prescribe.
Another important issue concerns making sure medications are safely out of reach of children.
Thousands of children are seen in emergency room each year because they ingested improperly stored medication.
If you have small children, make sure all drugs are kept out of their reach.
Make sure grandparents safely store their medications when little ones come to visit.
These simple tips can help you and your family safely benefit from medications.
By reducing the risk you are decreasing the likelihood of a mishap that could have devastating results.
Take some time to review these suggestions and protect your family from preventable mishap.