It does seem that Americans do take too many prescription medications. In “Are You Taking Too Many Medications?” published in the June 19, 2008 issue of Forbes, Allison Van Dusem reported that “… from 1994 to 2005 the number of prescriptions purchased increased 71% (from 2.1 billion to 3.6 billion) compared with a 9% growth in the U.S. population, according to the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation… During roughly the same period, the average number of retail prescriptions per capita increased from 7.9 to 12.4.” According to research by Medco Health Solutions, last year 51% of American took prescription drugs to treat at least one chronic condition. As would be expected seniors have the highest prevalence of prescription use for chronic conditions, but ”…younger generations are catching up. Nearly half of women ages 20-44 are being treated for chronic conditions, in addition to one-third of men their age. Top treatments used by the general public include medications for high cholesterol and high blood pressure, with use of cholesterol drugs by 20- to 44-year-old men increasing by more than 80% over the past seven years. And nearly 30% of children ages 19 and under take a chronic medication.”
Van Dusem reported that there are many reasons for the high prescription drug consumption of Americans:
“Americans have had an increase in the incidence of obesity, which can lead to all kinds of health problems,” says Dr. Lon Castle, senior director of the department of medical and analytical affairs for Medco. “They also have a pension for going for the quick fix. They want medications to treat their problems rather than trying diet and exercise or lifestyle changes, which might also be effective.” Direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription drugs, especially on TV (a legal practice for about a decade now), has convinced many Americans that they need medications to lead better lives.
As noted in Van Dusem’s article, prescription drugs are certainly important and often vital to control many conditions, but it would also be helpful for patients to determine (with their doctor) if all those medications are necessary and if some life-style changes might help reduce the need for some of them. Besides the expense, taking multiple medications might lower medication adherence, increase the risk of drug interactions, and increase the chance that a medication taken for one condition might worsen a different chronic condition.
Filed under: Current Events, Health & Medicine, Media watch | Tagged: Current Events, health, Health & Medicine, news
