Dangerous medication?

Many thanks to all who posted with positive suggestions and personal experiences.

Ginny42.
What has Mr Trump got to do with ones own common sense when it comes to taking medication.

In general doctors prescribe the cheapest drug first and then work down the list. Getting fed up with being told they can't do this and that because of the cost ....

My point being that although large pharmaceutical companies e.g. Pfizer, have manufacturing plants in the UK, they are American companies.

If Mr Trump, as he has indicated, relaxes laws pertaining to testing of drugs by companies in the USA and shortens the time between new drugs being tested and being made available to the public, there may be safety issues with their products in the UK, although I would hope they would still have to conform to the strict pharmaceutical laws here.

Ah but Ginny42 the laws about clinical trials and drug safety whilst enshrined in UK law are based on EU Directives and we all know which way they are going...

Glamorousgray For my back I asked my really really nice doctor (who had been suffering fro the same as me and ended up with the same surgery) if instead of Tramadol, could I have Flexeril.

He had to look that up and said, WOW, we don't have that here in the UK and it looks like a useful medication without the drugginess. But alas, there was nothing else. Tramadol just made me 'stupid', so I said I will take the codeine please, as at least I can think and work on that. Won't drive, though, as over a certain dose can count against you as alcohol if you get stopped. Pregabalin is for night time use for me as it makes me sleepy. Have to be careful and for some reason it causes weight gain!

Message to Elrel: Have a read of this - you might find it very interesting:- onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1398-9995.2010.02518.x/full

Has anyone experienced withdrawal symptoms from Ibuprofen, I have been taking them nearly every other day since I had sinus problems last feb, just stoped..and feel awful.

Message deleted by Gransnet. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

You can buy Pholcodine over the counter in supermarket pharmacy. (unless things have changed) I bought some last year.

Are you on medication for high blood pressure?
After trying all kinds of cough suppressants over about 2 years (all with no results) I read that a certain BP drug has the side effect of 'persistent non-productive cough'.
I'm sorry but I can't remember which drug it was (it was decided I did NOT have high BP just white coat syndrome) so they were discontinued.
Check the side effects of any pills you are taking for blood pressure.

Reflux also can cause a cough . I have asthma and had a cough that would not improve even with doubling of asthma meds. Then a GP in the surgery suggested I try Lansoprozole . It was magic , the cough almost disappeared .A gastroscopy showed I have a hiatus hernia that’s causing the reflux . I avoid eating late in the evening and heavy large meals and with lansaprozole it is now fairly well controlled .

A dry cough is a common side effect of most ACE inhibitors for high BP.

Thanks Growstuff I knew it was one of them, and when I stopped taking it - the cough gradually settled down and no longer troubles me. Just a thought, we get prescribed medication for so many things as we get older we tend to disregard them as they become part of our daily routine.

It's not as if Pholcodine is a prescription medicine. It's available over the counter and on line without any prescription. I'm sure I have had it over the years, without any side effects, but nowadays if I have a ticklish cough, I have an ice-cold drink of water or suck an ice cube. Hot drinks merely exacerbate any inflammation.