Drug interaction occurs when the absorption and elimination of a drug is affected by changing the time and intensity of its effect on the body. Thus, drug interaction does not cause the production of a substance poisonous to the body, but is also dangerous, especially if the drug's effect is increased, causing an overdose.
This type of interaction is most common when taking two different medicines together, which should not be mixed but can also happen due to the intake of food along with some medicines and even due to the presence of diseases in the body, for example.
1. Understand what each drug is for
Knowing the reason you take each medicine is more important than knowing your name, as several medicines have similar names that can be changed to tell the doctor about what is being taken.
Thus, when informing the doctor it is important to try to say the name of the medicines, but also to say what they are for, because it is easier to identify the correct medicine, avoiding the prescription of a medicine that can interact with the ones already taken.
2. Learn how to take each medicine
Before starting to take any medicine it is important to ask the doctor the correct way to do it, especially if it should be ingested with or without food. This is because several medications, such as those used in the treatment of osteoporosis, have their effect reduced if they are ingested less than 30 minutes after milk, juice or any kind of food.
On the other hand, some medicines, such as antibiotics or Ibuprofen, should be taken soon after eating to avoid irritation of the stomach walls.
3. Buy the drugs in the same pharmacy
Often the remedies that are used are prescribed by different doctors in hospitals and also different clinics. In this way, the chances of a failure in the registration of medicines of each person are very high, facilitating a drug interaction.
However, some pharmacies have an electronic record of the medicines sold to each person over time, so by always buying at the same place there is a greater guarantee that the pharmacist will identify drugs that can interact and warn about this risk, indicating the best way to take each.
4. Avoid using supplements
Most supplements can interact easily with medications prescribed by your doctor, mainly because of the high amounts of vitamins and minerals they have.
In addition, supplements can be easily bought without the need for a prescription, which increases the chances that the doctor will not know what you are taking when it comes to prescribing another medicine. This way, supplements should only be used when prescribed by a doctor.
5. Make a list of the medicines you use
If none of the above tips work, it may be helpful to write a list with the name of all drugs being used along with the name of the active principle and the time. It is important not to forget to add any supplement that is being used as well.
This list should always be shown to your doctor the pharmacist when to start using a new drug.
Medicines that should not be ingested together
Some examples of medicines that should not be consumed together are:
- Corticosteroids and anti-inflammatories should not be taken at the same time, especially when corticosteroid treatment lasts longer than 5 days. Some examples of corticosteroids are Decadron and Meticorden and anti-inflammatories are Voltaren, Cataflan and Feldene.
- Antacids and antibiotics also should not be taken at the same time, because the antacid decreases the effect of the antibiotic by up to 70%. Some antacids are Pepsamar and mylanta plus, and antibiotic, Trifamox and cephalexin.
- Medicine for weight loss and antidepressant should only be taken together under medical guidance, since one can potentiate the side effects of the other. Some examples are Deprax, Fluoxetine, Prozac, Vazy and sibutramine-based medicines.
- Inhibitor of appetite and anxiolytics can also be dangerous if taken together as they can generate mental confusion and trigger psychosis and schizophrenia. Examples are: Inibex, Dualid, Valium, Lorax and Lexotan.
To avoid this kind of problem no remedy should be taken without medical advice. The tip is worth even for the intake of medicines and herbal medicines at the same time, as they can also be dangerous.
