Thursday, May 15, 2014

50 Percent Of Americans Take Prescription Drugs Monthly

By Coleen Elkins

Fifty Percent of all Americans take at least one prescribed medication  monthly. Ten percent are prescribed more than four medications monthly. This comes from a recently released government report.

In 2011 Americans spent $263 billion on their prescriptions. Pharmaceutical companies spent $4.2 billion on advertising in 2005.
The use of antidepressants increased by 4 times between 1988-94 and 2007-10. Use of pain medications prescribed has increased 300 percent from 1999 to 2010 and the death of people age 15 and older has more than tripled between 2000 and 2010.

Should we be asking our doctors if medications prescribed  are necessary? Should we rely more on our bodies to heal themselves when possible?

The CNN article indicates we may have a drug epidemic.

Read more about this government report here