 | Glen Mathis has been the co-owner of Mathis Drug Store in Girard since 1983. For more information or to reach Glen, please call 620-724-4313. |
Health & Medicine
2010-11-01 13:31:00
Mistakes in label reading
Answer: To make sure you are reading your labels correctly, be sure to read it several times. Often, people will read once weekly and think once daily. As a pharmacist, the biggest mistake I have seen people of all ages make, is simply not reading the label. They often think that they remember how the doctor told them to take it, and obviously do not consider it necessary to read the label once they receive their medication from the pharmacy. A recent survey showed that as many as 50 percent of all labels are never read. This is a good reason why it is so important to get your medications from a local pharmacist. The pharmacist will counsel you face to face about how and when to take the medication. They will also be able to explain to you what the medicine is being given for, how long you are going to be taking it, if it needs to be taken with food or on an empty stomach, any possible side effects you may experience, if your new medicine interacts with your current medications or if it replaces any of them, if it is a different strength or a different manufacturer and it looks different.
As people get older, they usually do require more medication. It is easy to forget if you took your medication. A daily pill planner can be purchased at your pharmacy. The pill planner has easy compartments such as morning, noon, evening and bedtime doses for all of your medications and you can fill it on a weekly basis. This will help take the guesswork out of taking your medicine. Additionally, remember that your pharmacist is only a phone call away and is always happy to answer any questions if you become confused about label instructions.
