Over the counter medicines.

India
January 15, 2011 11:39am CST
We often see even educated people using medicines available over the counter for minute ailments. Is this justified? Should not this practice be discouraged & the offenders be punished severely?
1 person likes this
10 responses
@maximax8 (31055)
• United Kingdom
15 Jan 11
In my local paper this week a doctor prescribed eye drops for a poorly seven week old baby. The mother put what she thought were eye drops were in fact were ear drops. She worried in case it had blinded her baby girl. What a mistake the chemist made in this case. Paracetamol is widely available for sale. Some over the counter medicines are legal in my home country. The more serious medicines are prescription only.
2 people like this
@jujunme (2501)
• United States
15 Jan 11
i see absolutely nothing wrong in taking OTC medicines, especially for minor ailments such as headaches or colds. Reputable companies such as Bayer,Advil, Tylenol, etc.. are very safe and have little or no side effects.there is very little chance this practice can or will be "discouraged" and shouldn't be,since many many people benefit from taking them.
• India
16 Jan 11
But do you that all these medicines have side effects which may sometimes be fatal and so should be taken under the supervision of a doctor?
@jujunme (2501)
• United States
16 Jan 11
How can you say "all" OTC medicines have side effects,? this just isn't true. All FDA approved OTC medications sold by reputable companies have warning labels which list the possible side effects and most of the time they are minor ones and the really dangerous ones relate to certain people, who have certain health problems and perhaps shouldn't take them.but, that's true for OTC as well as prescribed medicines.To say people shouldn't purchase them or be "punished severely" for selling them is outrageous.Do you really suggest someone with no more than a minor ailment, such as a headache or cold,should go to a doctor for a prescription? Doctors themselves,have and do suggest taking an OTC medicine to anyone coming to them for minor ailments.There will always be health risks no matter what medication one takes prescribed or not.
@Hatley (163781)
• Garden Grove, California
15 Jan 11
you are going way too far, punish poorpeople who cannot afford to see a doctor for every little thing. you would stop us from taking' tylenol for fever cough syrup for coughs and tums for upset tummy whY? educated people read the directions and only take what is needed' no we do not punish pepole for taking care of themselves. ask any doctor and he will tell y ou to get idoine for cuts and bandages and tylenol for pain. this discussion is not called for. Most people who buy over the counter medications do read the labels and only take what is prscribed.What an ugly idea, I live in free U SA and we do not punish people who buy the medications they need as they follow directions. you want them to go to the doctor who will prescribe the same thing only charge you three times as much for it? yes we know all about side effects. educated people are not morons and will not abuse the meds. they buy.
1 person likes this
@jujunme (2501)
• United States
16 Jan 11
Hi Hatley:i 100% agree with you, i just didn't have the patience to get into all you were able to comment on here. it just doesn't make sense and is way wrong to say OTC medicines should be "discouraged"or worse the makers be "severely punished" i'm just surprised more people didn't respond to this discussion with outrage at such an outrageous idea. "All" pharmacies would most likely go out of business if OTC medications were taken off their shelves as millions of people including myself use them regularly for all sorts of ailments.
@savypat (20216)
• United States
15 Jan 11
I buy over the counter pain meds and rubs. I don't know of any reason why I should not use these when needed.
@megamatt (14292)
• United States
15 Jan 11
Yeah I'm kind of suspect about over the counter medication to begin with. Then again, I would not really like to take medicine unless under the most extreme circumstances but that is just me. Still, you might mistake what your symptoms are and it could be something more serious. Thus you could be taking something that could be more harmful then good. So yeah, I would strongly discourage all over the counter medication. Its just something...I wouldn't really trust a lot of it. Therefore, I would not trust my own diagnosis to be true. Of course, I doubt that it will ever happen. That is a good source of revenue for stores and I'm sure if there is any movement to get over the counter medications discouraged or outlaw, it may be fought.
1 person likes this
@jak2010 (1550)
• Papua New Guinea
20 Jan 11
It may be wrong, but some minor cases like flu, headache, we pay unnecessary doctor bill for something we can get it over the counter. It depends, after all it is your body, you determine whether to get a medical expert advise and prescription or just a over the counter medication.
@lingli_78 (12822)
• Australia
16 Jan 11
i often buy over the counter medicine especially if i only have minor illness and i don't want to go to the doctor... i think there is nothing wrong with the medicines as long as the pharmacists can give us correct information with regards to the medicines so that we won't be taking wrong medicines... take care and have a nice day...
@celticeagle (157571)
• Boise, Idaho
15 Jan 11
I think the ones that should be discouraged is the companies that sell medicines that are the same make up as the original but not the real deal. They should be punished severely. They probably won't be until someone or several someones are hurt by this practice. People trying to save a $ on something that they should get the highest quality.
• United States
16 Jan 11
There's actually been talk lately about taking some medicines back off the shelves and making it so that a prescription has to be obtained to get the med. I hate that! I do not have a doctor or insurance. I think people should be responsible with what is available but I don't think the rest of us should be punished for the irresponsible few.
@Graceekwenx (3160)
• Philippines
16 Jan 11
I use OTC and i dont see any harm in that. I would always follow the instructions though, "if symptoms persist, ask your doctor."