Quote:
Originally Posted by blueash
As much as half of the Rx's for antibiotics are unnecessary. So often I have been told by neighbors that they are on a "strong" antibiotic because they have a "bad" virus.
ADD/ADHD medications to not just help kids who actually have those disorders. Adderall helps anyone concentrate a bit better. I am very aware of a high performing school in my home town where the expression was "There are two kinds of students, those who get straight A's and those who get medication" And yes, parents from that school would request drugs to help their kid's GPA even if they were simply B students if the meds might make them A students.
Do you want more examples? How about all those Vit B shots to those who do not have pernicious anemia. How about PPIs for everyone with any GI symptoms and SSRIs for anyone with the sadness or Thyroxine for subclinical hypothyroidism. Or while we are on unnecessary... bioidentical hormones, chelation products etc.
So sadly, the medical profession has a lot to answer for reaching for a prescription pad, ok now a keyboard. And I hadn't mentioned opioids which are both over and under used.
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Perhaps I wasn't clear. My intention was to call out an example of a physician prescribing an "unnecessary" medication for the purpose of making a profit for himself or a pharmaceutical company, which seemed to be what the post I was responding to implied. Of course there are weak physicians who prescribe antibiotics for viruses and long term PPIs for a little indigestion. They are usually DO's with a 2 year "family practice" residency at a DO hospital. Thyroxine is a little more gray zone. And those chelation products are usually prescribed by those "holistic" and "alternative medicine" quacks.