2. HARMFULNESS FROM TAKING MEDICATION.

All medicines can cause benefits and harmfulness so to avoid the danger from taking medication, one should carefully take the medicine only when necessary. The harmful resulting from taking medication can be identified as follows:

1. Lacking knowledge can be categorized as:

1.1 Not taking the right medication for the disease, the person, the period of time, the method and the dose, each of which affects incurable treatment and danger.

1.2 Stop taking the medicine immediately. Some medicines can gradually be reduced if the symptoms are relieved. If we quit taking that medicine at once, it may result in another disease, For Example, prednisolone, or dexamethasone if continually used and stopped immediately, the patient will have less appetite, feel sick or vomit, have stomachache, dehydrated, and lack salt.

1.3 If taking various medicines simultaneously, sometime, the medicines may resist one another causing overdosing which may cost the patient’s life. On the other hand, some medicines may resist one another, they are not effective to cure the disease and cause “resistance to drugs” such as using anti –biotic like penicillin and tetracycline. Besides, some medicines may be less effective if used with alcoholic drinks, cigarettes some food. The patient who regularly take sedative with alcoholic drinks may be unconscious and dead.

2. Drugs’ Quality

Although the patient can appropriately take the medicine with the right dose and the suitable period of time, the medicine may cause harmfulness if the medicines are of less quality, which causes from

2.1 appropriate keeping such as vaccine has to be kept in the refrigerator or aspirin has to be kept away from dampness, light and heat, or else it will be changed to salicylic acid which can harm the stomach.

2.2 production: the production of medicines with below the standard may result from several factors such as raw materials mixed up, the inappropriate process of production; for examples, if the medicines are not baked dry, it may makes the medicines become bad and have a fungus. Besides those, in many types of medicines, there may be a mixing up of microorganism, some medicines consist of different substances which make them less effective because each substance cannot be effective if mixed with the other such as kaolin will absorb neomycin resulting in an effectiveness of the medication.

3. The pathology of the drug users and genetic factors.

The patients who endure the diseases of the livers or kidneys has less efficiency in excreting waste. Therefore, these groups should be more aware of taking medicine. Genetic factors also help motivate the patients’ reaction to the medicines differently. For instance, the Negro lack the enzyme to destroy the medicine’s group of I ozone acid if taking the same dose as other races do may suffer from neuritis and sleeplessness.

It is better to closely consult the physicians or the pharmacist before taking any medication in order to avoid any harmfulness that may occur.

The users should realize the harmful of using the medicines which may occur as follows:

1. DRUG ALLERGY OR DRUG HYPERSENSITIVITY

The condition that the body has to get medication like what it used to get before and has immunity called “Antibody” within 7 -14 days. When getting that medication again, there is a chemical compound called “Antigen” in the body and produces “Histamine” resulting in allergy. For example, those who used to be allergic to penicillin when taking the penicillin again, it will be changed into penicillanic acid which acts as “Antigen” causing allergy.

Drug allergy ranges from tiny to severe or losing one’s life depending on the following factors:

1. Type of drugs: penicillin, aspirin, sulfonate, serum for tetanus, anesthetic, procaine, saline solution, and blood.

2. How to take medicine can also cause touching or applying it to the skin causes less allergy. However, injection causes severe allergy and it is hard for treatment.

3. Genetics: allergy is typically personal characteristics. The person who is easily allergic to medication or has the history of allergy like asthma, chronic cold, or rash will have more chance to be allergic than others.

4. Having been activated: the person who used to be activated by some medicine will easily be allergic to that medicine if he takes the medication again. For example, a patient who is allergic to penicillin may or may not know that he used to be allergic to it; he claims that he has never been allergic to penicillin.

Prevention and treatment: prevention is better than treatment because it is difficult to cure the person who is allergic to medication.

However, what can be done for prevention are as follows:

1. Stop taking the medicine: the patient should notice and remember the medicine he used to be allergic to, and also avoid taking any other medication with similar chemical factors.

2. Being aware of taking medicine which can easily cause allergy like penicillin, sulfonamide, or salicylate especially the person who used to undergo the following diseases: asthma, chronic cold, rash, or allergic to any other medication.

3. In the case that the patient has to take the medicine he used to be allergic to, he needs to consult a physician who will gradually give the patient the anti – biotic until the patient himself can adjust with it.

The patient with less allergy (having only rash or nose congestion) should stop that medication. The symptom will more allergy, antihistamine should also be used or if it is severe, he should immediately consult a physician. In addition, activated charcoal can be a great help in reducing the absorbing of medicine in order to make the patient can help enlarge bronchial tubes and increase blood pressure. If there is any infection, medication with steroid can be used.

2. SIDE EFFECT

Any symptom caused by taking the medicine apart from expected result from the medication; for example, antihistamine usually results in drowsiness or children taking tetracycline also have side effect like having yellow teeth. They should stop taking that medicine at once.

3. DRUG RESISTANCE

Taking antibiotics which is not for the disease, not suitable duration, or not the right dose, can cause drug resistance because the medication is not strong enough to destroy the disease. The example of drug resistance is caused from the medicine like tetracycline, chloramphenicol, etc.

4. DRUG DEPENDENCE

Some medicine if misused or continually used will results in drug dependence such as opium, morphine, barbiturate, amphetamine, sedative etc.

5. DRUG TOXICITY

This is caused by overdosing on medication that is:

1. Some medicine can cause fever, but if we stop taking it, the person will recover from that symptom.

2. Blood disorders and blood composition including some medicine like phenylbutazone, chloramphenicol and medicine for cancer can stop causing the white blood cells and red blood cells diminish in number and making the patient anemia, fatigued, easily and severely infected. Some medicine to cure malaria like quinine, pamaquine, and primaquine can cause blood cells easily broken. Aminopyrine and Dipyrone also affect blood composition.

3. Medication is harmful to the liver even though it is the most efficient organ to get rid of toxin. Some medicine like chlorinated hydrocarbons, pills for birth control, some antibiotics like polymyxin and vitamin A can destroy the liver.

4. Medication is harmful to kidneys; this organ excrete waste from the body. Some medicine causes silts and infection in the kidneys, so when taking this medication, we should drink a lot of water. Some other medicines that directly harm the kidneys are Neomycin, Phenazidine, Boric acid, Penicillin, or Vitamin D. If taking it a lot and a long period of time, it may harm the kidneys and make them inefficient which might cost the patient’s life.

5. Some medication may be toxic to the ear neuron which resulting in tinnitus, hard of hearing and deaf such medicine as streptomycin, neomycin, kanamycin, quinine, salicylate, etc.

6. Toxic to the brain: some medication may be toxic to the central neural network disturbing the brain. For instance, taking amphetamine activates the brain causing sleeplessness, headaches, anxiety, and cramps. Taking barbiturates for a long period of time may result in drowsiness or depression possibly leading to feelings of suicide.

7. Toxic to heart and vascular systems: taking heart or asthma medication may result in a rapid heartbeat.

8. Toxic to the bladder: some medications such as aspirin, phenylbutazone, prednisolone, and indomethacin if taken often when there is no food in the stomach, may cause the bladder to become inflamed and injured.

9. Toxic to infants in the womb: pregnant women should not take some medication such as thalidomide for sleeplessness and neurosis, phenobarbital for cramps, diazepam for anxiety, or medicine for nausea because those are harmful to the infant and can result in abnormalities such as hand stub disease, cleft lip, cleft palate or dented head. Pregnant women should be very careful about taking any medication.

Drug Abuse and Drug Dependence

Drug Abuse refers to taking medicine, which is not for a disease, or, not following directions such as dosage. For example, taking barbiturates to help you sleep under a physician’s prescription is not drug abuse; however, if it is used to become intoxicated then that is drug abuse.

Drug Dependence refers to continually taking a medication for a period of time until some organs, especially the neural systems, become used to it and accept it as a necessity. Then, if we stop taking the medication, or lower the dosage, it can cause withdrawal symptoms, which can be both physical and mental in nature.

Drug abuse or drug dependence may be caused from:

1. Belief that it is good to take medicine to cure diseases or other problems.

2. Being able to easily buy medicine from different sources.

3. Being satisfied and happy with the effects from taking medicine.

4. Succumbing to peer pressure.

5. Belief that medicine can help your abilities and intelligence.

6. Feeling dissatisfied with your status or social standing or rebelling against your culture.

7. Misunderstanding medicine advertisements.

Drug abuse can be caused from:

1. Misusing: Using various medications improperly. For example, some people may use antibiotics instead of Vaseline for skin care. This can cause a resistance to antibiotics which could cause serious health problems later.

2. Continually using: Medicine, in general, is meant to be taken as needed. Only rarely, and Under the direction of a physician, should any medication be taken continually. Sleeping pills, tranquillizers, and sedatives as well as recreational drugs such as cigarettes, alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, amphetamines, and inhaling glue can all cause drug dependence and have varying degrees of damage to your body.

Be cautious about using herbs

In case of necessity or need, herbs may be used for whatever purpose, but one thing to remember is that if you want to be in good health and not get sick, whatever you take into the body should be useful and healthful. Do not wrongly believe in anything which may destroy our health. There was a story in the newspaper in the year 2529 of Doctor Noi who was 3 years 7 months old, and people believed that he could cure many diseases by pointing to branches or leaves. Many people, with strong belief, took and boiled these leaves for drinking. The fact is that we have to know what to choose in order to make use of them.

Caution: the following are simple ways to take herbs safety:

- Using the right types: beware of similar herbs or similar names. They may be harmful and cannot cure the disease.

- Using the right parts: each part of an herbal plant like leaves, roots or flowers has different effects on treatment. Some may be toxic; for example, chewing only one seed of jequirity will kill you while its leaves are not toxic.

- Using the right dose: if you take too much of an herb, it can cause harm; however, if too little is taken it will not have any effect on the disease.

- Using it for the right disease: each herb has different effects on each disease. If you have severe symptoms, it is best to consult a physician.

When taking herbs which you have prepared yourself you should start taking it in small amounts first and then gradually increase the dose. It is not safe to follow others’ dosage because each person has a different reaction to each dose. Medicine bought from a pharmacist’s should be taken carefully as well and follow the directions on the label.

Herb expiration dates are similar to common drugs. In general, when kept for a long period of time herbs may become decayed, moist, have fungus or be covered by flies, resulting in ineffectiveness to cure diseases. It is difficult to set an expiration date for herbs. Usually, they cannot be kept for more than 2 years unless special measures are taken. In addition, if fungus is found, or the smell and color have changed from the original condition, it should not be used.

Choosing herbs and traditional medicine.

Each medicine is differently regulated by the law. If we need to buy some medicine, it is advisable to study the law concerning it in order to know the qualification of each medicine.

What we should know about each medicine is as follows: