If you’re using a pill organizer, you might want to throw it in the garbage. A new study has found that older people who start using a pill organizer are actually more likely to become ill.1
Big Pharma loves pill organizers. They make a fortune when people take so many drugs they need a special box to keep track of them. But what’s good for Big Pharma can be toxic to your health.
The new study followed 29 seniors taking multiple medications. Fifteen were asked to use pill organizers, while 14 continued taking their pills out of the original packaging.
Among those using the organizers, there were five “adverse events.” These included falls and low blood sugar. One woman in the study became so unwell that she was unable to get out of her bathtub for 12 hours until rescued.
There were no adverse events among those who did not use pill organizers.
Researchers at University of East Anglia in England conducted the study. It was published in the journal Health Technology Assessment.
Pill organizers are boxes that arrange medications by date. They are designed to make sure patients take their drugs correctly.
So why are they dangerous? Researchers conducting this study say they don’t know for sure. But they have a theory. They believe that people who don’t use the devices take less of their medications. But when they start using a pill organizer and take the recommended dosage, they experience more side effects from the drugs.2
5 Dangers Caused by Pill Organizers
A previous study uncovered other problems tied to pill organizers:3
- Which pill is this? The identification of a medication can be lost when it’s put in a box with other pills. This can lead to dosing mix-ups, the very thing organizers are supposed to prevent.
- Blister pack preservation is lost. Manufacturers use blister packs on drugs particularly sensitive to spoilage. Some patients cut up blister packs so their pills fit in their organizer. The medications can quickly deteriorate.
- Humidity. Many pill organizers are not airtight. This means medicines are exposed to more humidity. This can cause chemical changes that can make a drug less effective and safe.
- Skin absorption. Some tablet medications can be absorbed by the skin. This means patients can dose themselves with a small amount of the medication when they handle them to put them into an organizer. This can make a difference with dose-sensitive drugs. In general, tablets are designed to be handled only once, when the patient is taking them.
- Heat. Pill boxes carried on your person expose the medications to body heat. Heat can interfere with the chemicals in your pills. For the same reason, never keep a pill organizer in your car.
In an ideal world, no one would take so many drugs they need a pill organizer to keep track of them. Ask your doctor if there are natural alternatives to medications you are taking.
If you’re concerned about the drugs you or a loved one is taking, there’s something you should read. Our special report, The Top 10 Dangerous Pharmaceutical Drugs—And Their Natural Alternatives, contains important information for you and your family.
There’s a good chance someone you love is endangering his or her life. And they may have no clue.
In Good Health,
Angela Salerno
Executive Director, INH Health Watch
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References:
1http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-07/uoea-poc070416.php
2http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2016/07/05/pill-organisers-causing-dangerous-overdoses-in-elderly1/
3http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S0034-89102013000100016&script=sci_arttext&tlng=en