A
recent study conducted by the USA Today
newspaper established that older Americans are particularly vulnerable to
prescription drug abuse.
The
simple fact of the matter is that as we age, we develop more health problems --
many of which cause pain and physical discomfort.
Due
to a combination of convenience and concern, many members of the medical
community are too prone to prescribing pain medication when rest and patience
would be better “medicine” than pills.
The
consequences can be quite serious with the development of long-term addictions.
The history of pain medication administration is that a small dose may
alleviate symptoms for awhile but as a tolerance is built up, dosages are
steadily increased.
To
illustrate the problem, in the past 10 years, the cases of pain medication
abuse and addictions grew by more than 200% in the 65+ age group according to
survey data. As the American population ages, the problem will only get worse.
As
a general rule, pain medication should be used on a short-term basis only to minimize the risk of addiction
and side effects. (This advice certainly doesn’t apply to advanced-stage cancer
or other end-of-life conditions.)
If
your doctor prescribes pain medication for you, be sure to discuss how long you
should take it and whether there are alternative medical steps that could be
taken to minimize or possibly eliminate the need for pain medication.
WARNING:
If you find yourself on a regimen of long-term pain medication, and you’re not
suffering from some incurable condition, something’s probably not right.
Discuss the matter with your doctor immediately. Help is available.
