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Product Description
Consumer advocate Sidney M. Wolfe, MD, director of Public Citizen's Health Research Group, has thoroughly revised and updated this accessible, indispensable bestseller that alerts you to the potential risks of hundreds of medications available today. "Worst Pills, Best Pills" give you the information you need to become actively involved in caring for yourself - by asking your doctor smart questions about the drugs prescribed for you. Arranged by disease/condition, if offers chapters on adverse drug reactions, alphabetical indexes listing pills by the brand and generic names, new information about commonly used drugs, guidelines for helping you to say "no" if your doctor prescribes a drug you should not take, and safer alternative choices. "Worst Pills, Best Pills" also includes startling information about certain drugs that can usually cause depression, hallucinations or psychoses, sexual dysfunction, dementia, auto accidents, insomnia, parkinsonism, and more.
Amazon.com Review
Adverse drug reactions are the fourth leading cause of death for Americans, killing 100,000 people each year. How do these adverse reactions happen? Sometimes the prescribed dose is too high, or the drug is given to people who don't need it, or different drugs that are fine separately become dangerous in combination. Worst Pills, Best Pills: A Consumer's Guide to Avoiding Drug-Induced Death or Illness may be your worst nightmare or best friend. This hefty 772-page resource (weighing more than three pounds) is filled with the potential risks of hundreds of medications, pairs of drugs that can cause life-threatening reactions when taken together, and 160 pills you shouldn't take at all, with safer alternatives. The organization of this book can be confusing at first--it's difficult to browse, but if you're checking out your medications, go first to the index of drugs at the beginning, which will direct you to the section where your drug is discussed. After that, the book is organized by ailment. Each drug that is discussed includes brand name(s), generic name, use, possible adverse effects, precautions, warnings (stronger than precautions), when not to use this drug, what to tell your doctor that might affect your reaction, how to take it safely, interactions with other drugs, and adverse reactions that warrant calling your doctor. Considering all the information in here that might save your life, this book is a bargain. --Joan Price
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