11 Silent Signs Your Medications Are Making You Sick

Your medication list is not up to date

While keeping track of your medications can be cumbersome, it’s the only way your health care providers can help prevent possible drug interactions. We live in a time when more people than ever are taking prescription drugs. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), physicians ordered or provided 2.8 billion drugs for their patients in 2013 and those numbers have risen steadily over the years. Of the billions of drugs that are being prescribed, a rising number of patients are taking more than just one medication, and that’s why it’s essential to keep track. What’s involved? “Make a list of all the medications, vitamins, supplements, and herbal remedies you are taking and keep it up to date,” says Heidi N. Anksorus, PharmD, clinical assistant professor at the University of North Carolina’s Eshelman School of Pharmacy. You should be prepared when you go to see your health care professional or pharmacist. “Telling your doctor that you ‘take a little white blood pressure pill that starts with a A’ won’t help—there are a million little white pills that start with an A,” says Anksorus.