Did you know that approximately 70 million Americans may have arthritis in one form or another, and that you may be one of them? Think there’s nothing you can do about it? Well, here’s some great news! You can act right now to lessen the incidence of arthritis or to reduce the pain and discomfort that typically accompanies the disease. Here are ten simple steps that can improve your health, emotional outlook, and pain level, and generally make it easier to cope with arthritis.

1. Pay attention to symptoms and see your doctor. If you have pain, stiffness or swelling in or around a joint for more than two weeks, it’s time to see your doctor. Only a doctor can tell if it’s arthritis. Write down observations and symptoms as they occur. Put them in your purse or wallet before your next doctor’s visit. That way, you’ll have them with you when you see the doctor.

2. Get an accurate diagnosis. “You have arthritis” is not a diagnosis. Ask for a specific diagnosis of the type of arthritis you have. There are more than 100 types, and each one requires different treatments. Getting the right treatment requires getting the right diagnosis.

3. Start early. The earlier, the better. Early diagnosis and treatment can often mean less joint damage and less pain.

4. Avoid Excess Stress on Joints. Exercise to reduce pain and fatigue and to increase range of motion. It relieves stress and can help enable you to maintain your daily activities. Use simple stretching techniques to keep joints and muscles flexible. Exercising in the water can build strength and increase range of motion while the water’s buoyancy reduces wear and tear on sore joints. Use assistive devices to make tasks easier.

5. Watch your weight. Try to maintain the recommended weight for your age and body type. Every extra pound means added stress to your knees and hips. Excess weight can mean more pain, contribute to and aggravate osteoarthritis, and increase your risk of gout. Follow a healthy diet regimen. Research has shown the importance of antioxidants in reducing the risk of osteoarthritis and its progression.

6. Take your medication just as your doctor prescribes. If you’re tempted to stop because you feel it’s not working or you believe it’s causing side effects, call your doctor first. It can take weeks, or even months, for the full benefits of a medication to become apparent, and some side effects ease over time. Stopping a medication abruptly may not only cause you to miss out on its benefits, it can be downright dangerous. Be sure to tell your doctor about all the medications you’re taking, both prescription and over the counter.

7. Protect yourself when you go out into the sun. Some forms of arthritis, as well as certain medications, can leave you more vulnerable to the sun’s harmful rays. At a minimum, use sunglasses, sunscreen, and a hat for protection.

8. Talk to Someone About Arthritis. Each week, commit to learning something new about arthritis and sharing it with others. Understanding your disease is an important step in managing it. Talk with family, friends, and co-workers. A support group is important and the more they understand about how arthritis affects your life, the more they’ll be able to help you get through the hard times.

9. Relax. Pain can cause both physical and emotional stress. Pain and stress have similar effects on the body, e.g. increased heart rate and blood pressure; fast, shallow breathing; and muscle cramps. Relaxation can help you reverse these effects, give you a sense of well being, and make it easier to manage your pain.

10. Consider taking a nutritional supplement. If your current medication isn’t working as well as you’d like, or if it’s causing unacceptable side effects, ask your doctor about other treatment options. There are several all-natural functional health beverages available that have desirable anti-inflammatory properties. Check them out online.

Of course, there are many other ways to lessen the pain and discomfort of arthritis, but these ten are an excellent place to start. Most importantly, while arthritis may limit some of the things you can do, it doesn’t have to control your life. Build your life around wellness, and think of pain as a signal to take positive action to help you manage your condition. Think positively, eat well, and exercise regularly.

Lastly, resolve to enjoy our beautiful world. As the old saying goes, “Live like there’s no tomorrow; love like you’ve never been hurt; dance like no-one is watching.”

Bruce Bailey, Ph.D.

Information on this site is provided for informational purposes and is not meant to substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professional. You should not use the information contained herein for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing any medication. You should read carefully all product packaging. If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem, promptly contact your health care provider. Information and statements regarding dietary supplements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Customer reviews are provided for informational purposes only.

Here is yet another case of a home remedy waiting to be discovered. In 2005 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a drug for the treatment of Type II Diabetes. The drug is called Byetta (exenatide). There’s nothing amazing about that part. New drugs are created often.

The almost unbelievable part is where the drug originated. It wasn’t produced in a lab. Instead, the active ingredient of Byetta comes from the venomous saliva of the Gila Monster lizard.

The Gila Monster, once thought to be one of only two venomous lizards, lives in the deserts of the southwestern U.S. and northwestern Mexico. The Gila Monster is a thick-bodied, heavy and slow-moving lizard. It grows to a maximum length of 2 feet (0.6 m) and preys on small rodents, fledgling birds, and eggs. It tends to eat animals on the ground that cannot move fast (or at all). The quick, strong bite of the Gila Monster delivers venomous saliva that is normally not fatal to humans.

Instead, there is a component of the lizard’s venom that is extremely helpful to certain humans. A component in the Gila Monster’s venom has proven remarkably effective in the control of Type II Diabetes in humans. The Gila Monster is a protected species in the U.S. Fortunately, the exenatide drug can now be synthesized in the lab instead of from live animals.

Diabetes is a chronic medical disorder generally characterized by high blood sugar (glucose) levels, especially after eating. The diabetic patient must consistently monitor blood sugar levels to keep them within a safe range.

When high blood sugar occurs, insulin is used to bring it down to a safer level. If low blood sugar occurs, the patient generally consumes carbohydrates to raise the glucose level to a safe level. Type II Diabetes is a chronic disorder characterized by resistance to insulin, a deficiency in insulin, and hyperglycemia (high blood sugar or excess glucose).

Exenatide helps with glucose (blood sugar) management in several ways:

1. It signals the pancreas to create additional insulin when glucose levels are too high;

2. It regulates the liver so that it doesn’t produce unneeded glucose; and

3. It helps slow the rate at which sugar enters the bloodstream.

Studies showed that another significant effect of exenatide use was weight loss. Overweight diabetes patients can have more difficulty controlling blood sugar levels. The effectiveness of exenatide for diabetic blood glucose control stems from its ability to activate several glucose control pathways simultaneously.

Byetta (exenatide) is a wonderful drug, although its discovery sounds like some kind of horror story. One can only imagine gruesome (but fictitious) clinical trials where unsuspecting diabetics are asked to stick their arms into dark boxes containing Gila Monsters. This discovery sounds like one of those “good news/bad news” jokes. For example, the doctor says, “The bad news is that the lizard probably won’t release its bite on your leg for another week. The good news is that your diabetes has improved!”

To learn more about using available ingredients to cure everyday illnesses, please refer to the resource shown below.

Diabetes is a group of associated diseases in which the body is unable to regulate the amount of sugar (glucose) into the blood. The cells does not respond in type2 diabetes. In this type of case the blood sugar levels gets too high instigating prolonged severe complications.

Researchers have identified various genes related with the growth of type 1 diabetes. The customary belief about the etiology, cause, of type 1 diabetes is that although someone may have a genetic inclination for developing type 1 diabetes, environmental triggers such as virus, toxin, drug are responsible to initiate the autoimmune process which causes type 1 diabetes by destroying insulin-producing pancreatic beta cells.

Type 1 Diabetes influences only 5 % of all diabetics. By the researchers point of view it is by far the worst of the two types. In type 1 the cells which create insulin are destroyed - an autoimmune reaction causing dependence on outside sources of insulin. Up till now there is no clinical cure for type 1 diabetes.

In type 2 diabetes the cell receptors that respond to insulin either do not work completely or not causing insulin resistance up to the mark. The most frequent and common risk factors for Type 2 Diabetes are age factor, inactive lifestyle and being overweighed. Heredity also plays the vital role in it

Type 2 Diabetes is given the name as the disease of lifestyle. Certainly it is seen in lot of people, as you go older day by day your metabolism slows down, you start gaining weight, and as a result you are less active and more sedentary-an obvious reasons for the disease.

Genetics: A Risk Factor Diabetes

It is seen that native people with high percentage of Indian blood are more often to develop diabetes. There is no certain reason that why this genetic disorder occurs, but one theory is that at one time when food was not in plenty, the body adjusted for these incline times by storing extra fat for this purpose.

The Other Factors:

If you have been detected with any problems with your circulation, had an heart attack or a stroke, or if you have got high blood pressure you may be at an increased risk of diabetes or it may be the dawn of this disease in you.

Pregnant women can build up a short-term type of diabetes &ndash gestational diabetes. Having this symptoms and delivering a large baby, can boost the risk of a woman going to develop severe diabetes in the future.

Risk Factors Controlled By You:

Family history: In this type of case risk of having diabetes is high, if you have a close relative such as parent, brother, or sister with diabetes. Gestational diabetes, or delivered a baby who weighs more than 9 pounds. Women who have diabetes during pregnancy or have a large baby are at larger risk for diabetes later in future, usually type 2 diabetes.

For more info and Article Related Health visit :: HealthWikiNews.com

Diabetes mellitus is when the blood sugar level is high in unusual disorganized because the body stops producing enough insulin. Normally, blood glucose levels are strongly controlled by insulin, a hormone created by the pancreas. Insulin lowers the blood glucose level. When the blood glucose goes high in proportion, insulin is released from the pancreas to stabilize the glucose level. In patients with diabetes, the absence or insufficient production of insulin causes hyperglycemia. Diabetes is the most substantial cause of adult blindness in the non-elderly age, the most important cause of non-traumatic amputation in adult people, and diabetic nephropathy is the main illness requiring renal dialysis in the United States of America . Therefore insufficiency of insulin or the insensitivity of its receptors plays a innermost role in all forms of diabetes mellitus.

Brutal or recurring pancreatitis and other diseases that straightly damage the pancreas can lead to diabetes. As mentioned above, in patients with diabetes, the insulin is either nonexistent, relatively insufficient for the body’s requirement, or not used appropriately by the body. All of these factors cause elevated levels of blood glucose. People with diabetes may experience many severe, long-term complications. Some of these complications begin within months of the beginning of diabetes, although most tend to develop after a few years. Most of the complications are progressive. Elevated levels of blood glucose lead to release of glucose into the urine. People with diabetes often develop bacterial and fungal infections, typically of the skin. When the sugar level is high in the blood, white blood cells cannot effectively fight infections.

Diabetes really can cause a lot of complications. The acute complications can be prevented if the sickness is sufficiently checked. Diabetes mellitus is qualified by disordered metabolism and inappropriate high blood sugar resulting from either low levels of the hormone insulin or from abnormal resistance to insulin’s effects attached with insufficient levels of insulin secretion to to maintain a balance. Diabetes is also an important factor in accelerating the hardness and narrowness of the arteries, leading to strokes, coronary heart disease, and other blood vessel diseases. This is referred as macro vascular disease. The characteristic symptoms are excessive urination, too much thirst, increased fluid intake, and blurred vision. These symptoms are likely to be absent if the blood sugar is only slightly elevated. Poor healing of wounds, particularly of the feet, can lead to gangrene, which may require amputation.

Diabetes mellitus is presently one of the oldest disease and still the medical authority are are trying their best to cure this disease fully in short term as well as long term. Identifying whether the person is diabetic or not at different stages of life, and for those with any of numerous risk factors. The screen test differs from various circumstances and local policy, and may be a periodic blood glucose test, a fasting blood sugar test or an even more casual glucose tolerance test. Satisfactory treatment of diabetes, as well as increased emphasis on blood pressure control and livelihood factors, may improve the risk profile of most abovementioned complications. Another cure option is to use insulin pump with some of the most accepted pump brands which are easily available in the market.

For more info and Article Related Health visit :: .healthwikinews.com

The police arrive at the accident scene promptly. A driver has run his automobile into a guardrail while exiting a highway. The driver does not seem to be injured but is somewhat incoherent and is slipping in and out of consciousness. Did he strike his head? Is he inebriated? Is he on drugs? A quick review of the driver’s attire reveals a medical alert bracelet that identifies him as a Coumadin user. This is crucial information for those responding to the incident.

Coumadin (the brand name for Warfarin) is a medication that has offered protection from strokes, heart attacks, pulmonary embolisms other conditions resulting from blood clots. Coumadin is an anti-coagulant, or blood thinner, that helps to prevent the formation of blood clots. Those with certain heart conditions or who are subject to irregular blood clotting can benefit significantly from Coumadin. That’s the good news. The bad news is that Coumadin is a medication that must be carefully monitored to insure the correct balance in the user’s system to avoid serious complications.

Coumadin dosage is a very precise science and is determined by the specific condition being treated, certain characteristics of the person with the condition and the rate of clotting as determined by regular testing. In order to achieve the proper levels of Coumadin it may be necessary to take different doses each day. This requires that the user be very aware of the schedule and keep good records of dosage requirements and testing schedules.

Warfarin (generic Coumadin) was actually used as rat poison. Large doses of the compound caused rodents to hemorrhage internally and die. While the doses for humans are relatively miniscule, the dangers of excess bleeding are still a concern. The delicate balance of Coumadin in the system is the reason that many users will wear some form of medical alert identification. In the event of an emergency or an accident, attendants can readily identify a Coumadin user and attempt to discern whether to avoid certain other medications that may interact adversely with Coumadin. Emergency personnel can also determine if Coumadin may be the culprit.

There are many medical conditions and medications that can cause a situation or a reaction whereby a person cannot communicate. Conditions such as epilepsy, diabetes, food allergies and the use of medications like Coumadin can be easily and readily identified by wearing medical alert jewelry with the proper information engraved or stored. A small problem can become a large problem if someone takes the wrong course of action, or no action, based on a lack of information. A small, attractive, fashionable piece of jewelry can help you look sharp?and save your life.

Have you been struggling to lose weight, but diet and exercise aren’t giving you the results you need to be healthy? Are you sick of people telling you that you could lose weight if only you had the will-power? It may be time to ask a physician about a phentermine prescription.

What is Phentermine?

Remember those 50s movies in which women lost weight by taking amphetamines? We know now that amphetamines can be very dangerous, so they don’t make safe weight-loss drugs. Chemically, phentermine is a little like amphetamines, but isn’t one. So it has the weight-loss effect but fewer “Valley of the Dolls” worries for you.

Phentermine is an appetite suppressant - it changes the chemicals made by your brain to make you feel less hungry. Some researchers think that it might also speed up your metabolism. Short-term use of phentermine has been shown to help people who are already on diet and exercise programs lose weight.

It sounds perfect! How do I get started?

Although phentermene isn’t an amphetamine, it can have serious side-effects, so before you can buy phentermene, you need a prescription. If your body-mass index (calculated from your height and weight) is high (over 30) your doctor may agree that a drug should be added to your diet and exercise program. You’ll stay on the drug for a few weeks or months, after which you’ll be ready to continue your weight-loss program on your own steam!

If you have atherosclerosis, a history of drug or alcohol addiction, allergies to certain medications, high-blood pressure, diabetes, or are on certain anti-depressants (especially MAO inhibitors), your doctor may suggest a different drug for you.

All these names! Which phentermine is which?

If you can read your doctor’s handwriting, you might notice she has prescribed a drug with a different name than “phentermine.” Phentermine is just the name of the chemical found in a number of different products. Adipex, Phentercot, Teramine, Fastin and Pro-fast are all brand names for drugs that have the same active ingredient, phentermine.

Ionamin has phentermine in a special “resin” formula that helps it last longer. Phentermine 37.5 is just a generic version of phentermine that comes in a large dose. Phentermine 37.5 is great if you need a larger dose of the drug.

Where do I go from here?

To make sure you get the most out of your phentermine prescription, make sure to keep this to-do list handy:

? Get your prescription refilled before you run out of pills; online pharmacies can set up a regular refill for you, as prescribed by your doctor.

? Check in with your doctor if you start having side-effects like sleeplessness, nightmares, difficulty breathing, or chest pain.

? If you feel the appetite-suppression is wearing off, it’s time to talk to your doctor about going off the medication.

? Don’t forget - this drug works its magic with exercise and diet - so keep up your own good work for best results!

Cybill Shepherd has revealed that she suffers from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). The star of Moonlighting and Taxi Driver says that she has struggled with her symptoms for many years, and is now hoping to raise awareness of IBS and encourage sufferers to talk more openly with their doctors.

She says: “For years I have been battling recurring constipation, abdominal pain and bloating. Go ahead and laugh. We laugh because we’re embarrassed. In order for us to get relief, we have to talk about our symptoms and stop suffering in silence.

“I have tried nearly everything: changing my diet and watching what I ate. I exercised regularly. I even tried taking fiber supplements and over-the-counter laxatives, but nothing helped with all of my symptoms.

“My doctor used to tell me it was all emotional and psychological. So I got a new doctor. And a year and a half ago, I was diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome with constipation. It was a huge relief to find out that my IBS with constipation was not all in my head and that it was a treatable medical condition. My doctor prescribed Zelnorm and it has provided me with relief for all my symptoms. In a lot of ways, I feel like my old self again.”

And good for her! I think that many IBS sufferers will identify with what she says: from embarrassing, unmentionable symptoms to doctors who insist that our bowel problems are really in our heads.

We may identify less with her relief from one drug alone (although the new drugs Zelnorm and Lotronex have had a good success rate in America), but we could all benefit from talking more openly with our doctors and looking for more solutions rather than accepting that IBS will rule our lives.

What Cybill Shepherd has done, though, is more than just draw attention to the fact that IBS sufferers need more help. Just by revealing that she is an IBS sufferer she has shown that IBS can affect anyone. Here is a glamorous, successful actress, someone who has kissed Bruce Willis and won three Golden Globes, saying that she has trouble with her bowels.

The power of celebrity

In these celebrity-soaked times it can be easy to forget that famous people sometimes achieve genuinely selfless and compassionate things just by using their fame. The greatest power that they have is the ability to shine the light of their stardom on an issue which would otherwise have been ignored.

And yes, the issue may sometimes be whatever cause is most fashionable at the time - “Gay whales against racism” as one satirist put it ? or the one which helps the star more than the people (or whales) who are suffering. But sometimes there is no doubt that the celeb has really stuck their neck out to help others who are dealing with an issue that is considered untouchable.

And I can’t thing of a more untouchable issue than IBS, something that no-one in the public eye would readily admit to. Can you imagine Julia Roberts standing up and saying “Diarrhea is the blight of my life and hemorrhoids have driven me to drink”? No, of course not, because anything remotely digestive is considered highly embarrassing and distinctly unglamorous. Cybill Shepherd’s admission, therefore, is to be applauded.

Dare not speak its name

Before Cybill Shepherd ‘came out’, the only famous person I knew of who had IBS was Kelsey Grammar’s wife (Kelsey Grammar used to play Frasier in the eponymous sitcom and Cheers). Whoever you are, whatever your gender or problems or pain, it is vital that you find someone with whom you can identify. If you watch TV and never see a reflection of yourself, if you are a black man and only ever see white faces on screen, then you will start to feel alienated ? and the same goes for people who are ill.

If you constantly hear about diabetes sufferers and asthma sufferers but never hear a word about bowels then you begin to learn that your illness is far less important than these other worthy causes.

We need more people in the public eye standing up and saying “Me too”, so that everyone can start to realise just how widespread a problem this is.

Don’t suffer in silence

But it’s not just about how other people perceive us, and how we perceive ourselves. It’s also about making sure that anyone who has bowel symptoms seeks help, and at the moment that just doesn’t happen.

There are still many people with bowel problems who are too ashamed or embarrassed to go to the doctor, and just soldier on through their lives when they could be receiving treatment. And there’s always the risk, of course, that their symptoms could actually be the result of something other than IBS that may get progressively worse if it is left alone.

IBS often goes undiagnosed for years, and even when we pluck up the courage to visit the doctor we can be so tongue-tied that we don’t properly describe our symptoms. If we could leave our embarrassment in the waiting room it would be so much better for our health.

Cybill Shepherd says: “My goal is to urge all women to get over their embarrassment, to stop suffering in silence the way I did, and to talk to their doctors. Although it may be uncomfortable, it is very important for you to be open and honest with your doctor about all your symptoms”.

And things can change. Just think about breast cancer, which is now regularly discussed on TV and radio, but 20 years ago was stuck behind a wall of silence where breasts were not to be mentioned, cancerous or not.

Another Vioxx-like occurrence may be on the rise, as warnings about Pfizer’s arthritis pain drug, Bextra, continue to mount.

According to a study of more than 1,500 patients who had previously undergone cardiac surgery, those who were treated for pain with Bextra were more likely to have heart and blood clotting problems than those who received no drug at all.

Associated problems included:

* Stroke

* Heart attack

* Blood clots in the lung

* Deep vein blood clots in the leg

Regardless of the fact that taking Bextra presents such serious health risks, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) still believes the benefits of the drug outweigh the risks when used by the right patients. In light of these health concerns, however, the FDA approved a new label for the drug, which warns that those who recently had heart surgery (or who are allergic to sulfa products) should not take the drug. The revised label also strengthens the warning of the likelihood of severe skin reactions — two of which may result in death.

Bextra is a cox-2 inhibitor, which is a class of painkillers that are popularly used due to their efficiency in treating arthritis pain and other ailments. Vioxx is also a cox-2 inhibitor and was pulled from the market due to the cardiovascular risks linked to taking the drug.

Considering the health risks involved with cox-2 inhibitors, the FDA will be holding a public advisory meeting to discuss the safety concerns of these and other related drugs.

USA Today December 9, 2004

Dr. Mercola’s Comment:

I have previously posted an article warning that Bextra’s risks are even higher than Vioxx’s. And, as this article stated, the FDA is now modifying Bextra’s label to state that taking the drug after having cardiac surgery could increase one’s likelihood of heart and blood clotting problems.

Folks, I saw this one coming years ago: In 2001 I warned my readers of the adverse effects from taking Bextra. This drug is just another cox-2 inhibitor disaster waiting to happen. Pain-killing drugs — meant to relieve symptoms but never the true condition — are rarely necessary.

Why take the risk of serious side effects from anti-inflammatories when you can create your OWN anti-inflammatory, merely by changing the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats in your diet?

These two types of fatty acids are BOTH essential for human health. However, the typical American consumes far too many omega-6 fats and not enough omega-3 fats to be healthy.

While the ideal ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats should be 1:1, most people’s intake ratio averages from 20:1 to 50:1! This unbalanced intake could lead to several health problems, whereas proper consumption of omega-3 can help prevent disease or improve many chronic conditions such as:

* Breast cancer

* Diabetes

* Heart disease

* Ulcerative colitis

* Arthritis

* Childhood asthma

* Depression

* Hyperactivity

The easiest way to balance your ratio is to consume more omega-3 fats from good sources and to reduce your intake of omega-6 fats. The primary sources of omega-6 are corn, soy, and canola, safflower and sunflower oils; these foods are overabundant in the typical American diet, which explains our excess omega-6 levels. You want to avoid or limit these oils in order to be optimally healthy.

On the other hand, the best omega-3 fats are those found in fish. That’s because the omega-3 in fish is high in two fatty acids crucial to human health: DHA and EPA. Unfortunately, eating most fresh fish — whether from the ocean, lakes and streams or farm-raised — is no longer recommended.

This is because (if you are an avid reader of the newsletter then you already know) mercury levels in almost all fish around the world have now hit dangerously high levels, and the risks of mercury now heavily outweigh the benefits gained from fish-derived omega-3 fats.

Fortunately there are clean sources of fish oil you can access without having to worry about mercury levels and added toxins, Vital Choice Alaskan Wild Red Salmon comes from the relatively pristine waters of Alaska that have virtually no mercury pollution

Not only is this salmon mercury-free, but it is also loaded with omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA, is high in antioxidants to help you live longer and tastes absolutely delicious!

You can also achieve omega-3 benefits by taking fish oil and cod liver oil, as this is a clean, safe and pure alternative to fresh fish. I have researched brands and types of fish oil and cod liver oil extensively and can say with absolute confidence that I recommend Carlson’s brand fish oil and cod liver oil. Carlson’s fish oils are rigorously tested for potency and purity and is a healthy addition to most any diet.

What Medication Can Cure Me?

1. Am I expecting a cure? Some medications relieve symptoms ? that is, they stop the itching, pain, redness, etc ? but do not actually get to the source of the illness. Some illnesses, like the common cold, can’t be treated/cured, so looking for an OTC drug may be a waste of time; getting rest and drinking fluids may be a better way to spend your afternoon! Other things, like yeast infections, can be treated by over the counter medications; if the infection is making you uncomfortable as well as needing treatment, make sure that you pick a product that gives you both symptomatic relief and treatment.

Is It Safe For Your Child?

2. Is it for your child? If so make sure that you’re getting a drug that can be given to children. Some drugs that help adults can be dangerous for children; others need to be given at a special dosage. Read the fine print on the box before buying for your child.

What About Interactions With Other Drugs?

3. What else am I taking? If you’re on any other medications, whether over-the-counter or prescription, stop by the pharmacist’s desk before heading to the check-out counter. She can check to make sure that the drugs you are taking don’t change the effect of the drugs you are taking.

Wait… Shouldn’t My Illness Be Over Already?

4. Should my illness have ended by now? If you think you have something that has a natural lifecycle - that is, something like a cold that should end on its own - but you don’t feel better after that time is up, you may have misdiagnosed your illness. If you’re having to take pain-reliever nonstop to keep functioning, your body is trying to tell you something and you should listen. What feels like a cold might be bronchitis; that achy foot may require orthotics, not aspirin.

Long Term Medication Use

5. Is it a chronic problem? If you’re having to take over-the-counter medications over a long period of time to prevent symptoms, it is time for your health care practitioner to find out what the underlying cause is. Even something as simple as scaly skin may be a warning sign that you’re developing diabetes. And some relatively harmless medications can have serious long-term consequences; for example, some over the counter pain medications can cause stomach bleeding if you take them for a long time. If you’re taking an OTC medication constantly to reduce long-term discomfort, talk to your health care provider to make sure that a) you’re not missing something important and b) that if it’s a chronic problem, you’re taking medication that your body can handle chronically.

Compare Ingredients

6. What’s the active ingredient? If the same active ingredient is found in both the name brand and the generic, chances are they will have the same effect.

Pregnant Or Breast Feeding?

7. If you’re pregnant or nursing, check with your physician before taking ANY medication, including OTC drugs and alternative products (such as herbal remedies). Some drugs can cross the placenta or through the milk glands, giving your fetus or baby a whopping dose of medication. While the medication might be fine for you, it may not be fine for your baby.

Watch Out For Alcohol

8. Does the medication contain alcohol? If it does, it’s probably going to make you sleepy, it will probably make you feel dehydrated, and adding more alcohol on top of it can be dangerous.

Double-Doses: Be Careful!

9. Am I doubling up? If you’re taking more than one over-the-counter medication, make sure that they don’t have the same ingredients; if they do, you might be doubling the recommended dose of that medication and setting yourself up for unpleasant side effects. This is a particular problem when you take something that combats multiple symptoms of an illness (like “flu” medications that relieve pain, fever, stuffy nose, and sore throat) - often they contain multiple active ingredients, one of which may overlap with another medication (like a pain killer) that you’re taking

Side Effects And Allergies

10. Check the label for side effects and symptoms of allergic reaction. If side effects include drowsiness and you drive a truck or care for several active toddlers, this medication might not be right for you. Similarly, if you start running a fever or develop a rash, having read the label ahead of time will help you know if you need to stop the medication and call a doctor to avert a full-blown allergic attack.