Over the Counter Medication

We have to be careful when we take over the counter medication. Soon the seasons will change and we will have to take some type of over the counter medication to help relieve symptoms due to changing weather. Over the counter medication have many ingredients which will help you but what the medication will help alleviate your symptoms? How do I take this medication?  We must know what we are taking to help us get better so it is very important we know how to read the labels on over the counter medication. I wanted to highlight some of the sections on the label so you understand what you are taking and where to look for the information on the label. Let me emphasize this post in no way replaces a doctor or a pharmacist advice if you have any questions you should always speak to your doctor or pharmacist. The purpose of this post is for information only.

The label on the over the counter medication is called the Drug Facts. The label is located in the back of the box.  The section on the label is separated by boxes so each section highlights information about the product. The block labeled the active ingredient this will include the dosage either a capsule or tablet and will tell you the generic name of the product in the same section you will see the purpose which is the active ingredient.  The next block under the active ingredient is the uses. The uses section will have a list of what symptoms this medication will alleviate.  The next block is the warnings this section will explain who should or should not take this medication in some cases it will explain some of the side effects from taking this medication. At the very end of this box you will see an arrow pointing to where you can get additional information about the product.  

The next block is the directions here you will see restrictions on who should or should not take this product based on the age of the patient. They provide instruction on how often this product is to be taken so that the medication is in your system for the proper amount of time to relive symptoms.  Again if you are not sure on how to follow the directions please contact your doctor. The block under directions is other information this explains where this medication should be stored and the proper temperature.  The next block is active ingredients this tells you what other ingredients are in the product which was used in creating the medication but will not help in alleviate any symptoms. Finally if you have any question or comments you see a website or phone number in the last box.

I hope this post was helpful please leave comments below      

                                           

Mark Carvajal