What are some common sense tips for home medication?

When living at home, it is inevitable to have headaches and fevers, so many families will have some common medicines, such as cold medicines, antipyretics, anti-inflammatory drugs, cough medicines, stomachic medicines, etc. However, many people lack some common sense in the use of medicines, which leads to some adverse effects when using medicines indiscriminately. Let me introduce to you some common sense in household medications!

1. Safe use of medication at home

Citizens should pay attention to the following issues in ensuring the safety and effectiveness of medication:

(1) Prevent drug abuse. What is drug abuse? Drug abuse means using drugs without regard to the condition, the target of the drug (elderly, children, adults), and the properties of the drug. This approach is ineffective in mild cases and prolongs treatment time; in severe cases, it delays treatment and worsens the condition, causing pain to the patient and even leading to death.

(2) Avoid combined medications as much as possible. Some drugs have an additive effect when used in combination, which improves the efficacy; some drugs have a subtractive effect when used in combination, which reduces the efficacy or increases toxicity. Therefore, it is best to use a single type of medicine for home use, even if it is necessary to use two medicines in combination.

(3) Use according to the instructions. Do not ignore the instructions on the medicine packaging. When considering the use of a certain drug, one should not only look at its method of use and purpose. For non-professional family members, the precautions are more important, as they are the guarantee of safe and effective use of the drug.

(4) Prevent drug allergies. Anyone with an allergic constitution or a history of drug allergy should be extra careful when taking medications, especially sulfonamides such as co-trimoxazole, antipyretic and analgesic painkillers, etc. It should also be noted that people with a history of allergy to a certain drug should not use it again.

Which types of medicines need to be protected from heat?

(1) Capsules or pills. For example, vitamin E capsules and cod liver oil, these drugs will soften, crack, leak oil, or even stick the entire bottle together when heated, and sometimes emit an unpleasant odor.

(2) Syrups and eye drops. Pay attention to hold it up to the light to see if it is still clear. If there are flocs, sediment, discoloration, mildew, crystals, or a large number of bubbles, it cannot be used anymore.

(3) Granule-type medicines. A large amount of sugar is added during the production process, which makes it easy for it to become sticky and clump when heated, and it is easy for insects to breed if it is not sealed tightly.

(4) Chinese medicine preparations such as ointments, pills, pills and powders. This is a characteristic of Chinese medicine preparations. Honey, brown sugar, etc. are common additives, which are prone to mold and insects in summer. Moreover, pills sealed with white wax may crack under high temperatures, causing deterioration.

(5) Suppositories. Due to its special way of use, it will gradually melt and be absorbed at the human body temperature of 37°C. Of course, it is also prone to quality changes in the hot summer, such as rancidity, dry particles, thinness, color change, water-oil separation, and even odor. In addition, eye ointments are prone to deterioration characteristics similar to suppositories after being heated.

2. Rational use of medicines at home

Drugs have a dual nature. On the one hand, they can treat diseases, but on the other hand, they can also produce adverse reactions. So, how can we use medication safely?

First of all, we should confirm what disease the patient has and then prescribe the right medicine. We cannot just prescribe medicine based on the patient's own feelings. For example, fever and headache are common symptoms of many diseases and cannot be simply treated by taking some painkillers and antipyretics. Abdominal pain is also a common symptom of some diseases. If painkillers are used indiscriminately, it will mask some symptoms of acute abdomen, delaying treatment and causing serious consequences.

Secondly, understand the nature, characteristics, indications, adverse reactions, etc. of the drug, and choose drugs with good efficacy and low toxicity. This is the reason why doctors often talk about "first-line drugs" and "second-line drugs". For example, there are many types of painkillers. For common colds, headaches, joint pain, neuralgia and women's menstrual abdominal pain, you can choose any of acetaminophen (paracetamol), ibuprofen, salidronate, aspirin, etc.; for abdominal pain caused by gastrointestinal spasm, you can choose any of belladonna, atropine, etc. However, if the former type of painkillers are used to treat the latter type of abdominal pain, it will not only be ineffective, but also harmful. On the contrary, the latter type of medicine is also ineffective in treating headaches, joint pain, and menstrual abdominal pain.

As can be seen from the above, home medication also requires certain common sense. Not all medicines can be used casually. The indiscriminate use of drugs can cause great harm to the human body. In severe cases, it may even lead to drug poisoning. Therefore, it is important to master some common sense in the use of medication. If the condition is more serious, seeing a doctor in time is the best choice.