With the change in season, the ailment of a sore throat, fever, chills, and cold is a common occurrence. If you are down with any of them, chances are you will take that pain killer or an antibiotic to cure the ailment without any professional consultation.
Self-medication is the use of medication without any doctor consultation. It is a practice we all have undertaken at some point or the other.
Extended Influence
Self-Medication is often attributed to taking medicines on friends and family advice and recommendations. This form of medication is common in both developed and developing nations. The practice of self-medication is more popular in developing countries. The easy availability of OTC drugs why is self-medication so popular? Studies point this to the easily accessible knowledge of drugs, access to the Internet, and self-awareness of one’s health condition. Every day, we are practicing self-medication in the form of self-care of our health.
From Rx to OTC most common Drugs
Sore-throat, gastrointestinal ailments, cold, and cough are the most common ailments for self-medication. The most common drugs for self-medication are-
- Paracetamol
- Tetracycline
- Amoxicillin
- Ampicillin
The Preference for Self-Medication
Why self-medication is considered so popular? Researches point out self-medication is often preferred as it is cost-effective, time-efficient and easier. Other factors include busy secludes which do not give individuals the much time to go to doctors, knowledge about the treatment, easy availability of medications, and affordability.
More Harm than Good
The popularity of self-medication rises a question, is it really helpful or does more harm than good?
Leading research points that self-medication can potentially contribute to an increased resistance towards antibiotics, which is a warning concern.
As the dependency on OTC drugs increases, so is the greater probability of inappropriate and incorrect diagnosis, delays inappropriate treatment, the combined consequences of which can be fatal. The lack of information may lead to the wrong dose, and fatal side effects causing serious effects such as skin problems, hypersensitivity, allergy and antibiotic resistance.
If you are a person who prefers self-medication, be prepared for the potential risks at the Individual level-
- Wrong self-diagnosis
- Incorrect choice of OTC drugs and successive therapy
- Failure to comprehend allergy reactions
- Less or excessive dosage
- Increases overall dependence
Promoting wellness by Digital Healthcare
Self-medication is harmful, they ruin our health more than curing them. To maintain a healthy life-style it is essential to get a detailed health check-up done by expert medical professionals. A Smart digital app like Gigadocs helps you to manage your and your family’s healthcare in a digital format.
Through the Gigadocs app, you can-
- Book an appointment with your favorite doctors, at the click of a button
- Maintain and manage your health records in a secure digital format
- Access your and your family’s health records 24*7 while on the move
- Keep a tab on your vitals, store and share with your doctor on a real-time basis
- Manage your doctor’s appointments and follow-up visits though multiple reminder notifications
- Analyze the total expenses related to a clinic and healthcare visits
Through Gigadocs you can consult the doctor of your choice, based on your location and area. Book a doctor’s appointment based on specialty (like dentist, genera physical, etc.) and maintain your and your family’s health history through digital record maintenance.
Gigadocs is a complete healthcare solution assuring you the best medication, digital storage of important documents like insurance policies, and the ease of booking doctor’s appointments online.
To know more about Gigadocs reach out to us at info@gigadocs.com
