Chairman Mao: The real inventor of “traditional Chinese medicine” – Respectful Insolence
Most, if not virtually all, of what is now referred to as “traditional Chinese medicine” is quackery. I realize that it’s considered “intolerant” and not politically correct to say that in these days of “integrative medicine” departments infiltrating academic medical centers like so much kudzu enveloping a telephone pole, but I don’t care. I’m supposed to be impressed that the M.D. Anderson and Memorial-Sloan Kettering Cancer Centers, among others, have lost their collective mind and now “integrate” prescientific nonsense along with their state-of-the-art cancer therapy? I don’t think so. I can be puzzled by it. I can be dismayed by it. I can even be enraged by the infiltration of woo into prestigious medical centers. I am not, however, impressed by it, at least not in the sense that I’m about to jump on the bandwagon and embrace pseudoscience, too. I will admit, however, to being impressed—but not in a good way—with the ability of clinical leaders at such institutions who really should know better to embrace pure pseudoscience, including acupuncture, tongue diagnosis, the balancing of hot, cold, , and the other things that TCM claims to balance, and the vitalism that is at the heart of TCM in the form of qi, the undetectably imaginary life “energy” whose flow is supposedly redirected to healing effect by acupuncture.
Particularly galling about the ascendency of TCM in the US is the myth that is swallowed whole by its advocates. That myth is the very history of TCM, whose true origins are unknown by all but a very few. Contrary to popular belief (particularly about acupuncture), those beliefs do not go back thousands of years into antiquity, when the ancient healing wisdom of the Chinese was supposedly first discovered. In actuality, very few people are aware that the single person most responsible for the current popularity of TCM was not some ancient Chinese healer but rather Chairman Mao Zedong. That’s why an article published by Alan Levinovitz
entitled .
Before I get to the good stuff, I do have to point out one thing that irritated the hell out of me about the article. Never let it be said that there is anyone more dismissive of naturopathy. My favorite description of naturopathy is that it is a veritable cornucopia of quackery, selected in a manner not unlike that of the proverbial menu in a Chinese restaurant: One quackery from column A, two from column B. Naturopathy mixes homeopathy, TCM, herbalism, diet woo, and just about every other form of quackery you can think of, mixing it into one homogenous pseudoscientific slurry of quacky badness. I was also the one who noticed that Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), a woo-friendly legislator almost on par with the Dark Lord of Legislative Quackery and Creator of the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) himself, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), had gotten a resolution through the Senate declaring the week of October 7-13 as Naturopathic Medicine Week. I declared it , and a few bloggers agreed. Oh, well, it wasn’t one of my more successful ideas.
Be that as it may, Levinovitz uses Naturopathic Medicine Week to introduce his article, and it’s a mistake:
Mikulski and the rest of the Senate may be surprised to learn that they were repeating 60-year-old justifications of Chinese medicine put forward by Chairman Mao. Unlike Mikulski, however, Mao was under no illusion that Chinese medicine—a —actually worked. In , Li Zhisui, one of Mao’s personal physicians, recounts a conversation they had on the subject. Trained as an M.D. in Western medicine, Li admitted to being baffled by ancient Chinese medical books, especially their theories relating to the five elements. It turns out his employer also found them implausible.
“Even though I believe we should promote Chinese medicine,” Mao told him, “I personally do not believe in it. I don’t take Chinese medicine.”
TCM is not naturopathy. It is part of naturopathy, but it is not naturopathy, any more than homeopathy is, even though, as I have pointed out, . The introduction is a stretch that gives the mistaken impression that naturopathy is mostly TCM. It’s not. For instance, take a look at this :
Detoxification is a big part of naturopathic theory and practice. Helping the body eliminate toxins safely and effectively can play an important role in improving health and preventing disease. One of the most useful detoxification therapies I use in my practice is the use of UNDA numbers, which are unique combinations of liquid homeopathic formulas founded on the theories of Chinese medicine, homeopathy, and anthroposophy.
This brief paragraph to me sums up the essence of naturopathy, which is to mix and match quackeries from a variety of sources like an insane game of Mad Libs for quacks. One coud as well insert Ayurvedic medicine, Native American medicine, shamanism, iridology, reflexology (popular among naturopaths), detox foot baths, biotherapeutic drainage, and, of course, chelation therapy.
My little fit of pique over an aspect of the article thus disposed with, I’ll say that the rest of the article is quite good, and it is quite true that much of the reason for the popularity of TCM in China and its spread to the US and beyond was because of Chairman Mao’s promotion. The reason, as has been explained on one of my favorite bloggers, Kimball Atwood, and others, is because there simply weren’t enough doctors in China trained in scientific medicine, as admitted by Mao (quoted by Levinovitz):
Our nation’s health work teams are large. They have to concern themselves with over 500 million people [including the] young, old, and ill. … At present, doctors of Western medicine are few, and thus the broad masses of the people, and in particular the peasants, rely on Chinese medicine to treat illness. Therefore, we must strive for the complete unification of Chinese medicine. (Translations from Kim Taylor’s Chinese Medicine in Early Communist China, : A Medicine of Revolution.)
Who knew? (Well, I did.) I also knew, as Levinovitz relates, that this was the very first “integrative” medicine, “integrating quackery with science-based medicine more than four decades before the term “integrative medicine” caught on in the US. A particularly pertinent quote sums this idea up:
“This One Medicine,” exulted the president of the Chinese Medical Association in 1952, “will possess a basis in modern natural sciences, will have absorbed the ancient and the new, the Chinese and the foreign, all medical achievements—and will be China’s New Medicine!”
Indeed, what’s interesting about Levinovitz’s article is his description of how the exportation of TCM to the world was quite deliberate, as part of a strategy to popularize it among the Chinese. There was a problem, however. As Levinovitz noted, there was no such thing as “traditional Chinese medicine.” Rather, there were traditional Chinese medicines. For many centuries, healing practices in China had been highly variable, and attempts at institutionalizing medical education were mostly unsuccessful and “most practitioners drew at will on a mixture of demonology, astrology, yin-yang five phases theory, classic texts, folk wisdom, and personal experience.” While it’s irresistible (to me, at least) to make an analogy to how naturopaths draw from a wide variety of quackeries, TCM is not naturopathy. Mao realized that TCM would be unappealing to foreigners, as even many Chinese, particularly those with an education, realized that TCM was mostly quackery. For instance, in 1923, Lu Xun realized that “Chinese doctors are no more than a type of swindler, either intentional or unintentional, and I sympathize with deceived sick people and their families.” Such sentiments were common among the upper classes and the educated. Indeed, as we have seen, Mao himself didn’t use TCM practitioners. He wanted scientific “Western” medicine.
Mao’s strategy to deal with these criticisms was quite deliberate—and clever. It consisted of two strategies, both designed to mythologize TCM as being a scientifically sound and harmonious “whole medical system” and to provide “evidence” in the form of testimonials that it worked, as Levinovitz relates:
His solution was a two-pronged approach. First, inconsistent texts and idiosyncratic practices had to be standardized. Textbooks were written that portrayed Chinese medicine as a theoretical and practical whole, and they were taught in newly founded academies of so-called “traditional Chinese medicine,” a term that first appeared in English, not Chinese. Needless to say, the academies were anything but traditional, striving valiantly to “scientify” the teachings of classics that often contradicted one another and themselves. Terms such as “holism” (zhengtiguan) and “preventative care” (yufangxing) were used to provide the new system with appealing foundational principles, principles that are now standard fare in arguments about the benefits of alternative medicine.
The second part of the strategy was the dissemination of spectacular anecdotes to “prove” the efficacy of TCM. The most famous of these was the case of James Reston, a
New York Times editor who underwent an . Even though the surgeons there used a fairly standard anesthesia technique, described by my
as sounding like a “standard regional technique, most likely an epidural,” acupuncture was used to treat cramping on second evening after the surgery, which I interpreted as being the evening of postoperative day one. The story is fam about a day and a half after surgery Reston had some cramping, likely due to postoperative ileus that kept the gas from moving through his bowels the way it normally does. It passed after an hour or so. Around that time, the staff at the hospital used acupuncture to treat his discomfort, and the logical fallacy known as
fallacy (and a bunch of credulous Westerners, eager to believe that some magical mystical “Eastern” wisdom” could do what “Western medicine” could not, did the rest. Most likely what happened is that Reston finally farted, letting the built up gas move through and relieving the cramps and bloating. About a day or two after an uncomplicated appendectomy is about right for that.
Over time, reports of “acupuncture anesthesia” trickled out of China to a welcoming, credulous “Western” press. When examined closely by doctors who know about anesthesia (such as an anesthesiologist), these stories universally have big holes in them. Just a few examples were
by an anesthesiologist, again my good bud Kimball Atwood. In fact, you can view Levinovitz’s article as the CliffsNotes version of the campaign by Mao to convince the West that acupuncture (and, by extension, TCM) worked as well or better than any “Western medicine.” Read Kimball Atwood’s epic
(, , , , and ) for the detailed version. Of particular interest to students of “integrative medicine” is , in which Dr. Atwood has an entire section entitled “From ‘Co-operation’ to ‘Integration,'” in which he lists the five main party slogans about TCM:
1945-50 ‘The Co-operation of Chinese and Western Medicines’
1950-8 ‘The Unification of Chinese and Western Medicines’
1950-53 ‘Chinese Medicine studies Western Medicine’
1954-8 ‘Western Medicine studies Chinese Medicine’
1958- ‘The Integration of Chinese and Western Medicines’
Mao’s idea was nothing less than the complete unification of TCM and “Western” medicine, as quoted by Kimball Atwood further from The Private Life of Chairman Mao:
Mao laughed. ‘The theory of yin and yang and the five elements really is very difficult,’ he said. ‘The theory is used by doctors of Chinese medicine to explain the physiological and pathological conditions of the human body. What I believe is that Chinese and Western medicine should be integrated. Well-trained doctors of Western medicine should learn C senior doctors of Chinese medicine should learn anatomy, physiology, bacteriology, pathology, and so on. They should learn how to use modern science to explain the principles of Chinese medicine. They should translate some classical Chinese medicine books into modern language, with proper annotations and explanations. Then a new medical science, based on the integration of Chinese and Western medicine, can emerge. That would be a great contribution to the world.’
It’s certainly a “contribution,” but it’s certainly not “great.” Unfortunately, it is a contribution that keeps on giving. “Integrative medicine” today echoes the very same arguments pioneered by Chairman Mao, the Chinese medical establishment 60 years ago, and one of the greatest mass propaganda machines that ever existed. Of all the TCM modalities, acupuncture benefited the most from Chinese propaganda. Most people are unaware of TCM tongue diagnosis (which is basically reflexology, with organs mapped to areas of the tongue rather than to areas of the soles of the feet or palms of the hand) or its ideas of balancing five elements. Almost everyone, however, knows what acupuncture is, and many of them believe that there might be something to it, the more so given that so many academic medical centers are embracing quackery like acupuncture wholesale.
Moreover, acupuncture is probably not nearly as ancient as its advocates portray it. Common portrayals of acupuncture paint it as being 3,000 years old, as implausible as that is. Why implausible? For one thing, the technology to make such incredibly thin needles didn’t exist 3,000 years ago. For another thing, as , the earliest Chinese medical texts from the 3rd century BC don’t mention acupuncture, and the earliest reference to “needling” is from 90 BC referring to bloodletting and lancing abscesses. Indeed, even by the 13th century the earliest accounts of Chinese medicine reaching the West didn’t mention acupuncture, and the first account of acupuncture by a Westerner in the 1600s described large golden needles inserted into the skull and left in place for 30 respirations. It
that acupuncture evolved from bloodletting based on astrology.
While it is true that there was such a thing as Chinese folk medicine that’s existed for hundreds of years, the phenomenon of TCM as we know it today was invented—or perhaps I should say “re-invented”— nearly out of whole cloth by Chairman Mao, whose powerful propaganda machine used a combination of “harmonizing” inconveniently unharmonious sources and manufacturing a dog and pony show of testimonials and demonstrations of “acupuncture anesthesia” to sell it first to the Chinese people and then to the rest of the world. The entire undergirding of TCM is little more than vitalism, magical thinking, and five elements instead of four. It is very depressing to think there are more than a few Very Serious Academic Doctors out there who have bought into this myth and have even widened Mao’s vision of “integration” beyond “integrating” SBM with TCM to include virtually every form of magical quackery in existence.
October 25, 2013
The mysticism around all things labeled “Chinese” was strong in the late 60’s and early 70’s. Consider the TV series Kung Fu, (you gotta admit, seeing Kwai Chang carry that cauldron of boiling water out into the snow was cool) as well as Bruce Lee’s films. And then, of course, there is that “ancient Chinese secret” Calgon commercial ().
This makes me wonder how much of all these baby boomers falling for CAM isn’t due to marketing messages of all-things-Chinese in the US combined with Mao’s invention of TCM (which quacksters can cite for almost anyt snake oil they push).
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U.S. Food and Drug Administration
&&&&& & & &&&&& & Aging and Health: You and Your MedicinesAs you age, it is important to know about your medicines to avoid possible problems. As you get older you may be faced with more health conditions that you need to treat on a regular basis. It is important to be aware that more use of medicines and normal body changes caused by aging can increase the chance of unwanted or maybe even harmful drug interactions.The more you know about your medicines and the more you talk with your health care professionals, the easier it is to avoid problems with medicines.As you age, body changes can affect the way medicines are absorbed and used. For example, changes in the digestive system can affect how fast medicines enter the bloodstream. Changes in body weight can influence the amount of medicine you need to take and how long it stays in your body. The circulation system may slow down, which can affect how fast drugs get to the liver and kidneys. The liver and kidneys also may work more slowly affecting the way a drug breaks down and is removed from the body.Because of these body changes, there is also a bigger risk of drug interactions for older adults. Drug-drug interactions happen when two or more medicines react with each other to cause unwanted effects. This kind of interaction can also cause one medicine to not work as well or even make one medicine stronger than it should be. For example, you should not take aspirin if you are taking a prescription blood thinner, such as Warfarin, unless your health care professional tells you to.Drug-condition interactions happen when a medical condition you already have makes certain drugs potentially harmful. For example, if you have high blood pressure or asthma, you could have an unwanted reaction if you take a nasal decongestant.Drug-food interactions result from drugs reacting with foods or drinks. In some cases, food in the digestive track can affect how a drug is absorbed. Some medicines also may affect the way nutrients are absorbed or used in the body.Drug-alcohol interactions can happen when the medicine you take reacts with an alcoholic drink. For instance, mixing alcohol with some medicines may cause you to feel tired and slow your reactions.It is important to know that many medicines do not mix well with alcohol. As you grow older, your body may react differently to alcohol, as well as to the mix of alcohol and medicines. Keep in mind that some problems you might think are medicine-related, such as loss of coordination, memory loss, or irritability, could be the result of a mix between your medicine and alcohol.For more information about alcohol and medicines, visit the .What Are Side Effects?Some medicines can interact with other medicines, foods, drinks or health conditions. Side effects are unplanned symptoms or feelings you have when taking a medicine. Most side effects are not serious and
others can be more bothersome and even serious. To help prevent possible problems with medicines, seniors must know about the medicine they take and how it makes them feel.Keep track of side effects to help your doctor know how your body is responding to a medicine. New symptoms or mood changes may not be a result of getting older but could be from the medicine you're taking or another factor, such as a change in diet or routine. If you have an unwanted side effect, call your doctor right away.Talk to Your Health Care ProfessionalsIt is important to go to all of your medical appointments and to talk to your team of health care professionals (doctors, pharmacists, nurses, or physician assistants) about your medical conditions, the medicines you take, and any health concerns you have.It may help to make a list of comments, questions, or concerns before your visit or call to a health care professional. Also, think about having a close friend or relative come to your appointment with you if you are unsure about talking to your health care professional or would like someone to help you understand and/or remember answers to your questions.Here are some other things to keep in mind:All Medicines Count: Tell your team of health care professionals about all the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, such as pain relievers, antacids, cold medicines, and laxatives. Don't forget to include eye drops, dietary supplements, vitamins, herbals, and topical medicines, such as creams and ointments.Keep in Touch with Your Doctors: If you regularly take a prescription medicine, ask your doctor to check how well it is working, whether you still need to take it, and, if so, whether there is anything you can do (like lowering fats in your diet or exercising more) to cut back or, in time, stop needing the medicine. Don't stop taking the medicine on your own without first talking with your doctor.Medical History: Tell your health care professional about your medical history. The doctor will want to know if you have any food, medicine, or other allergies. He or she also will want to know about other conditions you have or had and how you are being treated or were treated for them by other doctors. It is helpful to keep a written list of your health conditions that you can easily share with your doctors. Your primary care doctor should also know about any specialist doctors you may see on a regular basis.Eating Habits: Mention your eating habits. If you follow or have recently changed to a special diet (a very low-fat diet, for instance, or a high-calcium diet), talk to your doctor about this. Tell your doctor how much coffee, tea, or alcohol you drink each day and whether you smoke. These things may make a difference in the way your medicine works. Tell your health professionals about your medical history and about all medicines or supplements you take.Recognizing and Remembering to Take Your Medicines: Let your health care professional know if you have trouble telling your medicines apart. The doctor can help you find better ways to recognize your medicines. Also tell your doctor if you have problems remembering when to take your medicines or how much to take. Your doctor may have some ideas to help, such as a calendar or pill box.Swallowing Tablets: If you have trouble swallowing tablets, ask your doctor, nurse, or pharmacist for ideas. Maybe there is a liquid medicine you could use or maybe you can crush your tablets. Do not break, crush, or chew tablets without first asking your health professional.Your Lifestyle: If you want to make your medicine schedule more simple, talk about it with your doctor. He or she may have another medicine or ideas that better fits your lifestyle. For example, if taking medicine four times a day is a problem for you, maybe the doctor can give you a medicine you only need to take once or twice a day.Put It in Writing: Ask your health care professional to write out a complete medicine schedule, with directions on exactly when and how to take your medicines. Find out from your primary care doctor how your medicine schedule should be changed if you see more than one doctor.Your Pharmacist Can Help TooOne of the most important services a pharmacist can offer is to talk to you about your medicines. A pharmacist can help you understand how and when to take your medicines, what side effects you might expect, or what interactions may occur. A pharmacist can answer your questions privately in the pharmacy or over the telephone.Here are some other ways your pharmacist can help:Many pharmacists keep track of medicines on their computer. If you buy your medicines at one store and tell your pharmacist all the over-the-counter and prescription medicines or dietary supplements you take, your pharmacist can help make sure your medicines don't interact harmfully with one another.Ask your pharmacist to place your prescription medicines in easy-to-open containers if you have a hard time taking off child-proof caps and do not have young children living in or visiting your home. (Remember to keep all medicines out of the sight and reach of children.)Your pharmacist may be able to print labels on prescription medicine containers in larger type, if reading the medicine label is hard for you.Your pharmacist may be able to give you written information to help you learn more about your medicines. This information may be available in large type or in a language other than English. Your pharmacist can help keep track of your medicines.What You Need to Know About Your Prescription MedicinesThe following questions will help you get the information you need when you visit your doctor and pharmacist. (These questions are based on information found on the .)Before you leave the doctor's office with a new prescription, ask:What is the name of the medicine and what is it supposed to do? Is there a less expensive alternative?How and when do I take the medicine and for how long?Whether to take it with water, food, or with a special medicine, or at the same time as other medicines.Can it be taken with over-the-counter medicines? If so,when?What to do if you miss or forget a dose.Whether you take it before, during, or after meals.The timing between each dose. For example, does &four times a day& mean you have to take it in the middle of the night?What your doctor means by &as needed.&Are there any other special instructions to follow?What foods, drinks, other medicines, dietary supplements, or activities should I avoid while taking this medicine?Will any tests or monitoring be required while I am taking this medicine? Do I need to report back to the doctor?What are the possible side effects and what do I do if they occur?When should I expect the medicine to start working, and how will I know if it is working?Will this new prescription work safely with the other prescription and over-the-counter medicines or dietary supplements I am taking?At the pharmacy, or wherever you get your medicines, ask:Do you have a patient profile form for me to fill out? Does it include space for my over-the-counter drugs and my dietary supplements?Is there written information about my medicine? Ask the pharmacist if it's available in large print or in a language other than English if you need it.What is the most important thing I should know about this medicine? Ask the pharmacist any questions that may not have been answered by your doctor.Can I get a refill? If so, when?How and where should I store this medicine?Keep a Record of Your M Give Your Medicine Chest a Yearly Check-UpTo help you organize information about your medicines, list all the prescription and over-the-counter medicines, dietary supplements, vitamins, and herbals you take. Bring this list with you when you see your doctors and any other health care professional. It is very important that each of them knows what medicines you are taking. The list should include: the name of the medicine, the doctor who prescribed it, how much and how often to take, instructions on how to take the medicine, what it is taken for and any expected side effects.Remember to bring all over-the-counter medicines you take as well as any dietary supplements, vitamins, and herbals. It is also important to get rid of any expired medicines you may have.Taking Prescription MedicinesFollow your doctor's instructions and read (and keep) the package insert information, if available. Have your doctor write down instructions if you don't understand or are worried about forgetting them.Take your medicines for the whole time they are prescribed, even if you feel better.Take only your own medicines. Taking someone else's medicine may hide your symptoms and make diagnosing your illness more difficult for your doctor.Know about your medicines. If you take more than one medicine, be able to tell them apart by size, shape, color, number or name imprint, form (tablet or capsule), or container.Plan for medicines you need to take during the night. If you need to take more than one medicine, try not to keep them by your bedside. If you must, and there are no small children or pets in your home, place the pills you will need during the night on your bedside table. Turn on the light and make sure you're taking the right medicine at the right time.Before you travel, ask your doctor or pharmacist how to adjust your medicine schedule to account for changes in time, routine, and diet. Bring the phone numbers of your doctors and pharmacists with you. When flying, carry you do not pack them in your checked luggage. When traveling, always keep medicines out of heat and direct sunlight.If there are children in your home, remember to put medicines out of their sight and reach, and don't take medicines in front of them.&Get prescriptions refilled early enough to avoid running out of medicine, which may cause problems with your medicine schedule.Organize your medicines at home. Many people use a chart or written schedule to keep track of their medicines. Some find containers with different colored caps, different sections or with alarms that go off at set times helpful.Keep medicines in a cool, dry place, away from bright light. A kitchen cabinet or bedroom shelf may be good storage places. Medicines should not be kept in places where heat and moisture can alter their effectiveness. Do not keep medicines in the refrigerator, unless your doctor or pharmacist, or the label, tells you.If you to buy medicines on the Internet, check the web site for the Verified Internet Pharmacy Practice Sites (VIPPS) program and seal of approval to make sure the site is properly licensed and has been successfully reviewed and inspected by the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy ().Always keeps medicines in their original containers, and never put more than one kind of medication in the same container.Taking Over-the-Counter MedicinesToday's medicine cabinets contain a growing choice of over-the-counter, OTC, medicines to treat a growing number of health problems. Common OTC medicines include pain relievers, laxatives, cough and cold products, and antacids. Some OTC medicines however, can affect the way prescription medicines work or are used by the body. Always talk with your doctor about all OTC medicines you take. Here are some important tips to remember:Always read and follow the directions on the medicine label. OTC medicine labels give you all the information you need to take the medicine the right way and tell you:Active and inactive ingredients,What the medicine is used for,Interactions or side effects that could happen,How and when (or when not) to take the medicine,Other warnings.Choose OTC medicines that have only the ingredients you need. It is a good idea to only use medicines that treat the problems or symptoms you have. Ask your pharmacist for help. If you are taking more than one medicine, pay attention to the &active ingredients& to avoid taking too much of the same ingredient.Check for package tampering and the expiration date. Don't buy medicines if the packaging has been broken or if the expiration date has passed. The expiration date tells you the date after which the product may not be as effective.Talk to your doctor if taking an OTC medicine becomes a regular habit. Most OTC medicines are only to be used for a short time.If you have questions about specific medicines, visit the
and click on &Drug Information.&Cutting Medicine CostsMedicines are an important part of treating an illness because they often allow people to remain active and independent. But medicine can be expensive. Here are some ideas to help lower costs:Tell your doctor if you are worried about the cost of your medicine. Your doctor may not know how much your prescription costs, but may be able to tell you about another less expensive alternative.Ask for a senior citizen's discount.Shop around. Look at prices at different stores or pharmacies. Lower medicine prices may not be a bargain if you need other services, such as home delivery, patient medicine profiles, or pharmacist consultation, or if you cannot get a senior citizen discount.Ask for medicine samples. If your doctor gives you a prescription for a new medicine, ask your doctor for samples you can try before filling the prescription. (Make sure you know the right way to use the sample medicine and ask for any other important product information.)Buy bulk. If you need to take medicine for a long period of time and your medicine does not expire quickly, you may be able to buy a larger amount of the medicine for less money.Try mail order. Mail-order pharmacies can provide medications at lower prices. However, it is a good idea to talk with your doctor before using such a service since there may not be a health care professional there to talk to and it may take a few weeks for medicine to get to you. Make sure to find a back-up pharmacy in case there is a problem with the mail service.Buy OTC medicines when they are on sale. Check the expiration dates and use them before they expire. If you need help choosing an OTC medicine, ask the pharmacist.Tips for Seniors on Safe Medicine UseLearn about your medicines. Read medicine labels and package inserts and follow the directions. If you have questions, ask your doctor or other health care professionals.Talk to your team of health care professionals about your medical conditions, health concerns, and all the medicines you take (prescription and OTC medicines), as well as dietary supplements, vitamins, and herbals. The more they know, the more they can help. Don't be afraid to ask questions.Keep track of side effects or possible drug interactions and let your doctor know right away about any unexpected symptoms or changes in the way you feel.Make sure to go to all doctor appointments and to any appointments for monitoring tests done by your doctor or at a laboratory.Use a calendar, pill box or other things, to help you remember what you need to take and when. Write down information your doctor gives you about your medicines or your health condition.Take along a friend or relative to your doctor's appointments if you think you might need help to understand or to remember what the doctor tells you.Have a &Medicine Check-Up&at least once a year. Go through your medicine cabinet to get rid of old or expired medicines and also ask your doctor or pharmacist to go over all of the medicines you now take. Don't forget to tell them about all the OTC medicines or any vitamins, dietary supplements, and herbals you take.Keep all medicines out of the sight and reach of children.More InformationU.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Aging,
202-619-0724, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Food and Drug Administration, , 1-888-INFO-FDASubstance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, , 1-800-662-HELPNational Institutes of Health, National Institute on Aging Information Center, 1-800-222--222-4225 TTYNational Library of Medicine, &
National Institute on Aging: Publication information
Page Last Updated: 06/23/2015
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