Medication rules that everyone should know!

Many of us consume daily supplements or prescription drugs to treat diseases such as diabetes or high blood pressure, as well as over-the-counter treatments such as painkillers.

Although supplementation can improve your health in many ways, it can be dangerous to mix with prescription drugs, or vice versa.

Researchers at the University of Hertfordshire have warned that mixing medicinal plants with prescription drugs can increase the risk of bleeding, increase blood sugar levels or prevent drugs from functioning effectively.

What should I do if my child takes medication by mistake?

Although many interactions are theoretical, based on limited evidence, or occur only when taking high doses, it is important to properly control the risks associated with the mixing process.

Here are the most important rules for the consumption of tablets and medications that everyone should know:

– double checking

"As with all medications, patients must take the advice of a health care professional when they take other medications," says Chris Ezeridge, president of the British Herbal Medicine Association. .

For example, if you have diabetes, you should also check if a dietary supplement will affect your blood glucose control.

Unfortunately, many health professionals feel unable to give advice on interactions.

For these reasons, take the medication on time!

– Ensure possible harmful interactions

The most likely reactions are the use of anticoagulants, sedatives, antidepressants and prescription drugs to treat heart problems, high blood pressure and epilepsy.

These drugs affect the liver system, where enzymes break down many drugs in the body.

There is a potentially important interaction between birth control pills and St. John's wort, which increases the production of liver enzymes and increases the risk of unplanned pregnancy.

– How to take the most popular supplements

Supplements should not be used if you are taking prescription medication without first checking for interactions.

– Know when the mixture is good and has beneficial effects

Although you need to be cautious about the expected interactions between supplements and medications, some supplements actually enhance the effects of medications.

For example, vitamin C enhances the effects of analgesics, such as paracetamol and aspirin, and helps to distribute doses of analgesics separately, requiring less general painkillers.

A study published in the Canadian Journal of Anesthesia, in which 80 people participated, showed that patients who took 2 grams of vitamin C before the gallbladder process used significantly less morphine during the postoperative period than those who had a placebo before the surgery.

The long-term use of antibiotics can stop the production of vitamin K-based clotting factors in the liver and kill the improved bacteria. It is therefore very wise to consume more foods rich in vitamin K and take several vitamin supplements.

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– Taking into account taking medication and supplements with water or orange juice

The body absorbs the iron better when it is ingested with orange juice rich in vitamin C, which increases the absorption.

It is not advisable to take drugs with coffee or tea, because the components of these drinks can interfere with the absorption of certain minerals and may have a high temperature to destroy the microorganisms, that is to say good bacteria, making the supplement useless.

Grapefruit juice supplements or medications are not recommended because they contain compounds that may affect how certain medications are absorbed by the body.