5 Dangerous Medication Mishaps

August 17, 2010

Filed under: alcohol, anxiety, headaches, health risks, high blood pressure, infection, insomnia, iron — Tags: alcohol, blood pressure, combining medicine, dementia, dizziness, injuries, iron, medicine, over-the-counter, overdose, prescription medication — Amanda @ 6:17 pm

100,000 people die each year due to medication mistakes and 1.5 million become sick or injured due to improper use. Many of theses deaths and injuries are accidental. It’s shocking that the public is unaware of how use prescription and over-the-counter medicines safely. Read about these medication mistakes and enlighten yourself on how to safely use medications.

Age - One mistake people make is that they forget to ask their doctor or pharmacist if certain medications are safe for certain age groups. Many doctors are still uninformed about medications that cause risks to elders and children. Older adults process medication differently, and they are at an increased risk of problems like dementia, dizziness, falling, and high blood pressure. Some drugs can increase these risks and are more likely to cause dangerous side effects in people older than 65. To avoid this problem, check with your doctor and the Beers List before taking any medication you are unsure of.

Similar Medications – Many medications have similar appearances or names causing medications to accidentally be misused. The doctor’s handwriting may be hard to read, or the name of the drug could be incorrectly placed into the computer. The pharmacist could even grab the wrong medicine off the shelf as most pharmacies are organized alphabetically. For example, it is easy to mix up Proloprim and Proferrin; however one medication is an antibiotic used to treat infections, and the other is an iron supplement. To avoid this costly mix-up, ask your doctor to tell you the name of the medication after he or she writes it down. After receiving your medication at the pharmacy, check the prescription label and directions to make sure you received the correct medicine.

Combining Medications with Similar Side Effects– All drugs have possible side effects, but if you take two or more medications at the same time without consulting your doctor, they can interact with each other and cause unwanted or dangerous effects. Some drugs, including ones that involve blood pressure and dizziness, can magnify the other’s potential effects. If you are taking a drug with the potential side effect of high blood pressure, and then you being taking a medication with the same possible effect, your blood pressure will become dangerously high. If you combine medicines that may cause dizziness, it can lead to falls and fractures. Before taking any combination of medicines, talk to your doctor about their possible effects and reactions with each other.

Combining Medications with Similar Components- It’s easy to accidentally combine medications with similar effects or properties. You might be taking one medication for pain, one for anxiety, and another for insomnia – but little do you know that they are all sedatives and can cause toxic effects when taken in large doses. The risk for overdose is highest in drugs that are designed to deal with the central nervous system. Narcotic painkillers and sedatives are examples of these. To avoid accidental overdose, tell your doctor before taking any new prescription medication about all prescription and over-the-counter medication that you are already using.

Mixing Alcohol with medicine – Many people don’t realize the dangers of alcohol in general, let alone the dangers of mixing it with medication. Alcohol can be a deadly poison when taken with painkillers, sedatives, and other medications. Many experts now believe that there should be no alcohol consumption with any medication because alcohol can decrease the effectiveness of any medication or increase the risk of side effects. Alcohol can cause a dangerous reaction with over-the-counter drugs like Benadryl and cough and cold medicines. The cough and cold medicines can also contain alcohol themselves – so you can end up with alcohol poisoning. Other drugs like antidepressants can cause a dangerous rise in blood pressure when mixed with alcohol, and some sedatives like Ativan or Valium can depress the heart rate enough to cause a coma when taken with alcohol.

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August 12, 2010

7 Health Benefits of Blueberries

Filed under: anti-aging, being healthy, belly fat, cholesterol — Tags: aging, anti-aging, belly fat, cancer, cholesterol, copper, heart disease, iron, lose weight, vision, vitamin A, vitamin b, vitamin c, zinc — Amanda @ 4:35 pm

Blueberries are ripe and local during the summer months, the perfect reason to eat them as snacks or in pies. You may not know, however, that blueberries are also exceptional for the health in numerous ways

Anti-Oxidant Rich - Blueberries have the highest ant-oxidant capacity of all other fresh fruit. Blueberries contain large amounts of vitamin C, vitamin B complex, vitamin E, vitamin A, copper, selenium, zinc, and iron. All of these components boost the immune system and prevent infections.

Help Slim Belly Fat – New studies suggest that blueberries can help reduce belly fat as well as risk factors for developing cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome. A blueberry rich diet in a study on rats resulted in lower cholesterol, less abdominal fat, and lower triglycerides in the subjects. There was also an improvement in glucose and insulin control.

Anti-Aging – Blueberries have components that neutralize the free radicals in your body that can cause aging. Being full of anti-oxidants these sweet berries are your best defense against wrinkles.

Healthy Heart – Blueberries have the amazing ability to improve cardiac muscles, and reduce bad cholesterol. Blueberries are often used as a supplement to cure heart disease.

20/20 Vision – According to clinical studies, blueberry extract high in anthocyanosides has been found to slow down vision loss. Blueberries can prevent and slow down all age-related eye problems due to their high anti-oxidant levels. Other components in blueberries like flavanoids, vitamin A, zinc, phosphorus, and selenium are beneficial and essential for good eye health.

Increased Mood – Blueberries increase the production of the feel-good hormone dopamine. This hormone is a natural neurotransmitter that moderates mood, brain function, and motor skills. Those who are low in dopamine levels tend to have brain disorders such as Parkinson’s disease.

Cancer – Blueberries can be beneficial to cancer patients because they contain compounds such as Pterostilbene, Ellagic Acid, Anthocyanin (anti-oxidant), copper, and Vitamin C that work together to help prevent and even cure cancer.

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July 22, 2010

Your Feet and Your Health

Filed under: anemia, diabetes, health — Tags: anemia, athletes foot, diabetes, feet, foot health, hair, hair loss, hypothyroidism, iron, thyroid — Amanda @ 7:02 pm

Your feet can tell you a lot about your health by sending you important signals. These signs can indicate that you have anything from anemia to diabetes. Pay attention to the signs your feet are sending you in order to stay in good health. Unsolved foot problems can lead to bigger problems in the future.

No hair – If you have hairless feet or toes, it might be an indication of poor circulation caused by vascular disease. Growing hair on your toes isn’t your body’s biggest concern when you have a vascular problem. Since your feet are the farthest from your heart, they are usually harder to reach when your circulatory system isn’t up to par.

A foot sore that doesn’t heal – if you have a sore on the sole of your foot that isn’t healing, it could be a sign of diabetes. High blood sugar levels can damage the nerves in the feet leaving you with cuts that don’t heal and can even go unnoticed. If you have an infected, foul-smelling sore on the bottom of your foot that’s been there a while, it might be a good idea to see a doctor about having your blood glucose level checked.

Cold Feet – Women usually tend to experience this every now and then because they have a lower core temperature than men. It’s usually nothing, but if you are having persistently cold feet in even normal conditions, you may be suffering from hypothyroidism. An under active thyroid can lead to irregular body temperature and metabolism.

Flaky Skin – If you have dry, flaky skin on your feet, don’t ignore it. This is a sign of athlete’s foot. This fungal infection usually starts with dry, itchy skin and then turns into swelling and blisters. It usually shows up first between the warm, moist cracks of your toes and can spread to other parts of the body.

Sunken, spoon-shaped indents on your toenails - This is a sign of anemia that makes your nail beds look like strange, spoon-like shapes. This happens when you don’t have enough iron in your body. You don’t have enough iron-rich hemoglobin proteins that transfer oxygen to the body through the blood.

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