Each drug: pill, syrup or drops has side effects. But, by following the recommendations of the doctor and the manufacturer of the drug, they can be kept to a minimum. Moreover, if we take the medications correctly, the treatment will be more effective. Here are 10 rules for taking medication.
How to take medication? How well a medicine works depends heavily on how you take it. This applies to all medications, from those for minor ailments available over the counter to those used in chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and asthma.
What time of the day should you take your medication?
There is no golden rule here and each drug has its own requirements. Information on this subject should always be found in the leaflet. Some medications work depending on the time of the day they are taken. Some are only effective, for example, when taken in the evening. Yes, incl. statins work. Their mechanism of action is based on the inhibition of cholesterol synthesis that takes place while we sleep. This is why statins have the best therapeutic effect when taken in the evening. Interestingly, this limitation does not apply to all statins. Simvastatin (the oldest generation of these drugs) must be taken in the evening, but newer generations (atorvastatin, rosuvastatin) may already be used during the day due to the longer half-life (present in the body).
With what to drink medication?
In the leaflet of each oral medicinal product you can find quite enigmatic information about the need to drink it with "the right amount of fluid". What fluid is it about? First of all, you absolutely should not take your medications with warm tea and coffee (or, of course, alcohol). On the one hand, these drinks contain compounds that can interact with the ingredients of drugs, which will result in their lack of effect or an increase in side effects.
Warm liquids affect the durability of the coating, so do not drink any medications with them.
As a result, they can accelerate their dissolution and release of the drug substance in the wrong part of the gastrointestinal tract (e.g. enteric drugs will already dissolve in the stomach). Such a drug will not work! That is why it is recommended to drink all medicinal products with water at room temperature.
Milk is not recommended,because it can lower the acidity of the stomach contents, affecting the absorption of some medicinal substances or the solubility of the coating of film-coated tablets. In addition, the constituents of milk can interact with some antibiotics (e.g. tetracyclines), almost completely inhibiting their absorption. And the worst choice is grapefruit juice, which interacts with many medications to increase their effects and side effects. Medicines should be taken with cooled water.
Is it possible to bite medication?
Another mistake when taking medication is breaking or chewing the film-coated tablets. You absolutely shouldn't do this! Very often they are coated with a special coating, which is to facilitate swallowing, mask the taste of the drug substance, increase the resistance of the tablet to weather conditions or simply improve its appearance. However, by far the most common purpose of tablet coating is to delay the release of the drug substance contained therein. Such tablets are often referred to as "enteric" tablets. Their shells do not dissolve in the acidic pH of the stomach, which allows the drug to be safely transported to the intestines - only there the coating disintegrates, releasing the medicinal substance.
Tablets with a dash or cross indicating the place to be cut allow them to be divided without affecting the effect of the coating.
There are also coatings that allow you to extend the action of the drug. Their task is to slow down the release of the drug substance from the tablet. In this way, the effect of the drug can be extended by up to several hours. Preparations using this technology usually have abbreviations such as "SR" (Sustained Release), "MR" (Modified Release), "CR" (Controlled Release) or "ER", "XL" or "XR" in their names. "(Extended Release). Breaking the coating of such a tablet by dividing or chewing it results in a complete loss of its properties. This may lead to the premature release of the drug substance, and as a result - the drug not working. What's more, chewing e.g. Davercin or Neo-Pancreatin causes that these drugs do not work at all (they are destroyed by hydrochloric acid in the stomach).
Taking medications on an empty stomach - that is when?
There is a group of medications that should be taken on an empty stomach. These include some antibiotics, thyroid hormones, drugs used to treat osteoporosis or hyperacidity. Fasting means taking your medication on an empty stomach - preferably right after waking up and before breakfast. This is how you take medicinal substances that are very difficult to absorb from the gastrointestinal tract. The presence of food contents in the stomach and intestines usually completely prevents their functioning.The correct way to take medications on an empty stomach is to take them at least half an hour before breakfast with 200 ml of water. It is also recommended to eat the last meal of the previous day no later than at 6 p.m. absorbed).
Should we stop taking medication when we feel better?
Definitely not - this is a huge mistake. Very often, after a few days of using an antibiotic and the resulting improvement in he alth, patients stop taking the drug. Meanwhile, an untreated bacterial infection can return after a few days with double strength - this time resistant to the antibiotic used. Therefore, always take antibiotics as prescribed by your doctor until the end (generally 7 days). They are given at regular intervals every 4, 6 or 8 hours, less often 1-2 times a day, including the night. If we forget one dose, we should take it as soon as possible and count the time until the next dose from then on. If you miss two or more doses, contact your doctor. Antibiotic treatment usually lasts 5-7 days (the indication to change the preparation is its ineffectiveness after 4 days of taking).
Worth knowing1. Do not take drugs in doses higher than recommended by the doctor.This can lead to the so-called polypharmacy, i.e. increasing the risk of undesirable effects. You should also know that some drugs (eg Vibramycin and iron) cancel each other out. Always discuss the order in which you will take your pharmaceuticals with your doctor.
2. Most antibiotics cannot be taken simultaneously with iron preparations, calcium supplements, milks used in hyperacidity, activated charcoal.These drugs bind to each other and are not absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. Vitamins should be taken after antibiotic treatment. Otherwise, they will be an excellent breeding ground for bacteria to be killed by the antibiotic.4. Some antibiotics reduce the effect of the contraceptive pillbecause they indirectly react with estrogen - a hormone that is a component of most of these types of drugs. Therefore, when starting therapy, you need to additionally protect yourself, e.g. with a condom.5. Always check the expiry date of the drugs.Those that, for example, have become cloudy, have changed color or consistency - even though they are important - throw them away. Some medications, eg nose and eye drops, must be used very quickly after opening (nose within 5 - 7 days, eyes - within 14. Throw the rest away). We also do not take onyour own antibiotic from your previous treatment. The current disease can be caused by viruses, and then the antibiotic will not help.6. The effectiveness of vitamins increases significantly due to the appropriate combination of them with other vitamins(e.g. vitamin A should be combined with vitamin D and vitamin E, and B vitamins with vitamin C) or mineral ingredients (e.g. vitamin D with calcium, and vitamin E with iron). It is better to take not individual vitamins, but vitamin and mineral preparations.7. Painkillers are most effective if you take them as soon as the pain starts (they work after 20-30 minutes) . Sufferers of gastric ulcer and duodenal ulcer should consult their doctor about taking them - medications with acetylsalicylic acid (eg Polopyrin) may aggravate the symptoms of the disease.
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