Over the Counter Medication First Copy

WHAT ARE OVER-THE-COUNTER MEDICATIONS? Over-the-counter (OTC) drugs are medicines that are sold directly to a consumer without a prescription from a healthcare professional and are available without a prescription at drugstores or supermarkets. However, in many countries, these drugs are often placed on shelves in self-service areas of stores, like any other packaged products. Almost in all the countries in the world, the OTC medicines are nominated by a regulatory agency of that particular country to certify that they contain ingredients that are safe and effective when used without a physician's care. For example, in the United States, the manufacture and sale of OTC medicines is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration. DO OVER-THE-COUNTER MEDICATIONS SERVE AS GATEWAYS TO ILLICIT DRUG USE? No, the OTC medications do not serve as a gateway to illicit drug use because firstly, these medications are legalized and regulated by the drug regulatory agencies of the countries. As mentioned above that most of the countries’ drug regulatory agencies nominate medications as OTC while keeping in view the ingredients that do not pose any threat to the consumers. Secondly, the drug regulatory agency of every country has nominated particular categories of medications as OTS such as in Canada, France, Germany, India, Netherlands, Pakistan, United States, and United Kingdom, so that some minor health issues including pain, coughs and colds, diarrhea, constipation, acne, and others can be treated at home without physician’s prescription. Thirdly, OTC drugs are typically safe if used at recommended doses and do not poses threat unless they are abused. Abusing OTC drugs can lead to health problems including memory loss, kidney failure, heart problems and death. Fourthly, it depends upon the patient who is consuming them either in a positive way or a negative by taking over dosages because the OTC medications cannot be blamed but it is the person to be blamed who abuse it. Therefore, it is necessary that OTC products to be labeled with an approved "Drug Facts" label to educate consumers about their medications. Drug Facts labels should include information on the product's active ingredient(s), indications and purpose, safety warnings, directions for use, and inactive ingredients. Some commonly abused OTC medications include: Cough medicines (Dextromethorphan, or DXM) Cold medicines (Pseudoephedrine) Motion sickness pills (Dimenhydrinate)