themedicinecounter

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Some disturbing reports have concluded that a broad range of chemicals, including over the counter medication and prescriptions drugs, have been found downstream from highly developed urban areas in US rivers. Drugs of all kinds are so plentiful in modern life that we may literally be swimming in them.

Studies have found that 80% of the waterways sampled contained one or more common drugs, including mood stabilizers, anti-convulsants, sex hormones, and antibiotics. Yet the level of risk to humans and other life forms that rely on a water environment is still unknown. In the southern US, this is a bigger concern because because stringent monitoring of the drinking water supply is not done and consequently, the levels of drug compounds in the drinking water are also higher. Still, the concentrations of drugs that were recorded in all of the waterways sampled were very low and thus likely to have little impact on humans.

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New research adds to growing evidence that the risk of developing rectal and colon cancers can be lessened by up to 50% with the regular use of pain relievers. This was the finding of a National Cancer Institute report that demonstrates that individuals at higher risk of these cancers due to family history also benefit from the use of painkillers like ibuprofen and aspirin.

Colorectal cancers are the third-leading cause of cancer deaths in the US. The study found that the decrease in cancer risk was variable, depending upon how frequently individuals used the pain relievers and also the type of cancer involved. In general, regular use of any one of 19 painkillers examined showed a 20% decline in the risk of colorectal cancer over a ten year period, and the more of the drugs that were taken the less likely the diagnosis of colon or rectal cancer was.

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Federal health experts paid attention to the pain relievers given to infants. U.S. advisory panel commonly recommended that Tylenol and other products containing acetaminophen should be added for kids under age two. The pain relievers given to kids should minimize the risk of overdose of acetaminophen. Many parents and caretakers give too much or too little of the pain relievers.
The instructions for children's pain and fever relievers are based on an age range and sometimes comprise dosing by weight, which is considered more accurate. Daniel Frattarelli, MD of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Drugs said "The larger child who's given the same dose as a smaller child may not get as much effect of the drug and pain relievers because he's not getting as much as his body needs. And smaller children have a higher risk of an overdose if they get too much acetaminophen.