Taking over 40% of Big Pharma meds
Seniors represent only 13% of the population, but they take over 40% of pharmaceutical drugs in the US. In the UK, 45% of prescriptions are doled out to individuals over the age of 65 years. The practice of polypharmacy has never been more acute than it is in the modern era. So why are we drugging the elderly so profoundly?
With such a high number of the elderly taking multiple drugs, there have been few studies looking at how these drugs interact with one another. This is even more alarming in those over 65 because an older person metabolizes chemicals differently, with the chances of an adverse reaction to any one prescription drug rising to a reported 20%, compared with just a 3% risk in a healthy younger person.
In an article presented by Daily Mail in 2007, the tale of an 85-year old women staying in a nursing home would make the most stalwart among us shiver. From disguising drugs in the elderly woman’s meals, to not telling her loved ones exactly how many drugs she is taking, caregivers are challenged with taking care of the elderly in an increasingly aging population.
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Older people are taking these meds because the physicians that are ordering them, are getting a cut from the drug companies.
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