When should you take pills? Top tips for taking medications

They should be washed down with water (not milk).

You should also take it half an hour before meals. antacids (ALMAGEL, PHOSPHALUGEL, etc.) and choleretic agents .

TAKEN WITH MEALS
During meals, the acidity of the gastric eye is very high, and therefore significantly affects the stability of drugs and their absorption into the blood. In an acidic environment, the effect of ERYTHROMYCIN, LINCOMYCIN HYDROCHLORIDE and others is partially reduced antibiotics.

Should be taken with food drugs gastric juice or digestive enzymes , as they help the stomach digest food. These include PEPSIN, FESTAL, DIGESTAL, ENZISTAL, PANZINORM.

It is advisable to take with food laxatives to be digested. These are Senna, buckthorn bark, rhubarb ROOT and JOSTER FRUITS.

During meals you have to take some diuretics , QUINIDINE (antiarrhythmic and antimalarial), EUPHYLLINE (antiasthmatic), antibiotic wide range actions of LEVOMYCETIN.

AFTER MEAL
If the medicine is prescribed after meal, then to get the best therapeutic effect Wait at least two hours.

Straightaway same after meal take mainly medicines, which irritate the mucous membrane of the stomach and intestines. This recommendation applies to such groups of drugs as:

diuretics- DIACARB, HYPOTHIAZI D, BRINALDIX, TRIAMPUR, FUROSEMIDE (only after meals)
painkillers (non-steroidal) anti-inflammatory drugs - BUTADIONE, ASPIRIN, ASPIRIN CARDIO, VOLTAREN, IBUPROFEN, ASKOFEN, CITRAMON (only after meals).
cardiac glycosides - Lily of the Valley tincture, DIGITOXIN, DIGOXIN, CORDIGIT, CELANIDE.
sulfonamides - STREPTOCIDE, SULFADIMETOXINE, NORSULFAZOLE. FTHALAZOL, ETAZOL; These drugs are recommended to be washed down with an alkaline drink, for example, mineral water like Borjomi.
drugs that are components of bile - ALLOCHOL, CHOLENZIM, LIOBIL, etc.); taken after meals - required condition so that these drugs “work.”

There are so-called antacids , the intake of which should be timed to coincide with the moment when the stomach is empty and hydrochloric acid continues to be released, that is, an hour or two after finishing a meal - MAGNESIUM OXIDE, VICALIN, VIKAIR.

Antibiotics They are usually taken regardless of food, but at the same time, your diet must include dairy products. Along with antibiotics, NISTATIN is also taken, and at the end of the course - complex vitamins (for example, SUPRADIN).

Antihypertensive drugs can be taken during the day: before or after meals, morning and evening - ADELPHAN, BRINERDY N, CLOPHELINE, RENITEK, PAPAZOL, RAUNATIN, RESERPINE, TRIRESIDE K, ENALAPRIL, ENAP N).

Antacids(GASTAL, ALMAGEL, MAALOX, TALTSID, RELTSER, PHOSPHALUGEL) and antidiarrheals (IMODIUM, INTETRIX, SMEKTA, NEOINTESTOPAN) - half an hour before meals or one and a half to two hours after. Please note that antacids taken on an empty stomach last for about half an hour, and those taken 1 hour after a meal last for 3 to 4 hours.

TAKING ON AN EAST SCHOOK
Taking medication on an empty stomach is common in the morning 20-40 minutes before breakfast.

Example:
on an empty stomach, when the acidity of gastric juice is low, should be taken heart medications , sulfonamides , as well as drugs that do not irritate the gastric mucosa - ERYTHROMYCIN, NISTATIN, POLYMYXIN (1.5–2 hours before meals).

Medicines taken on an empty stomach are absorbed and absorbed much faster. IN otherwise acidic gastric juice will have a destructive effect on them, and the medications will be of little use.

■ PHARMACISTS WARN AND ADVICE
Patients often ignore the recommendations of doctors and pharmacists, forgetting to take a pill prescribed before meals and rescheduling it for the afternoon. If the rules are not followed, the effectiveness of the drugs will inevitably decrease. To the greatest extent if, contrary to the instructions, the drug is taken during or immediately after meals. This changes how quickly drugs pass through the digestive tract and how quickly they are absorbed into the blood.

Some drugs may break down into their component parts. For example, in an acidic gastric environment, PENICILLIN is destroyed. ASPIRIN (acetylsalicylic acid) breaks down into salicylic and acetic acids.

The acidic environment of the stomach can neutralize such antibiotics like erythromycin and ampicillin, cardiac glycosides . The preparations LILY OF THE LILY and STROPHANTA are very sensitive to food juices: taken with food, they are digested along with it.

A number of drugs form poorly soluble and non-absorbable complexes with food components. This can happen if, for example, you take TETRACYCLINE after dairy food. CALCIUM GLUCONATE taken after meals can form insoluble precipitates with food acids. NISTATIN and POLYMYXIN form the same sediments with bile.

USE 2-3 TIMES A DAY
If the instructions indicate " three times a day", this does not mean breakfast - lunch - dinner. The medicine must be taken every eight hours so that its concentration is maintained evenly in the blood. It is better to take the medicine simply boiled water. Tea and juices - no the best remedy.

If it is necessary to resort to cleansing the body (for example, in case of poisoning, alcohol intoxication), usually used sorbents: ACTIVATED CHARCOAL, POLYPHEPAN or ENTEROSGEL. They collect toxins “on themselves” and remove them through the intestines. They should be taken twice daily between meals. At the same time, you need to increase your fluid intake. It is good to add herbs that have a diuretic effect to your drink.

DAY OR NIGHT
Drugs with hypnotic effect need to be accepted 30 minutes before bedtime.

Laxatives - BISACODIL, SENAD, GLAXENA, REGULAX, GUTALAX, FORLAX - usually taken before bed and half an hour before breakfast.

Don't have your time medicines, appointed " under the tongue» NITROGLYCERINE, VALIDOL.

Heart medications And asthma remedies accepted closer to midnight.

Remedies for ulcers taken early in the morning and late in the evening to prevent hunger pangs.

After inserting the suppositories, you need to lie down, so they are prescribed at night.

■ PHARMACISTS WARN AND ADVICE
Facilities emergency assistance taken regardless of the time of day - if the temperature has risen or colic has begun. In such cases, adherence to the schedule is not important.

IF THE INSTRUCTIONS DO NOT SAY
In the absence of any instructions in the package insert, the medicine should be taken 30 minutes before meals. This applies to the bulk medicines.

IF YOUR APPOINTMENT TIME IS MISSED
If you " we were late» for 1-2 hours, then the drug can be accepted, as usual. If the break is longer, you should skip the medication until the next one to avoid an overdose. After this, it is advisable to restore the medication dosage schedule.

It is forbidden take the drug in double dose just because you missed your appointment time - this may increase side effect medicines.

Hormonal And " cardiac drugs , majority antibiotics should be taken strictly by the clock. The best thing is to draw up a reception diagram and hang it in a visible place (on the door, furniture, refrigerator, etc.). To avoid missing your next medication dose, use an alarm clock or timer.

IN WHAT SEQUENCE SHOULD I TAKE MEDICATIONS?
Many medications interact with each other, so try to accept medicines one by one.

Often incompatible there are antibiotics. They should not be unnecessarily combined with antipyretics, hypnotics, antihistamines. And, of course, in no case with alcohol.

The gastric mucosa will be safer if you take into account the specifics of taking vitamins. Fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K) are more useful after meals, and water-soluble(C and group B) - before meals or during meals. Complex multivitamin preparations It is better to drink immediately after eating.

■ PHARMACISTS ADVICE
When visiting a doctor, it is advisable for patients write down recommendations. This is important to ensure your own safety, because medications are a delicate thing. As for food, almost all of them can change the effect of the drug. Some (for example, fatty and sweet foods) delay and increase the absorption time of the drug components into the blood, while others increase the effect of the drug several times, causing an overdose

You can speed up the action of the pill or enhance its effect, minimizing the risk adverse reactions or, on the contrary, get poisoned by taking the usual dose of the drug... The regimen and method of use radically affects the work of many medications: from ordinary vitamins to potent drugs.

After the tablet enters the body, it must dissolve in digestive tract, penetrate through the walls of blood vessels into the blood. Then the active substance is distributed throughout the body and exerts its effect, after which it enters the liver, where it is destroyed and excreted with unnecessary metabolic products through the kidneys or intestines. This is the most common route taken by oral medications in the body.

What we eat and drink during treatment can slow down or speed up the absorption of the drug, interfere with its inactivation in the liver, or even remove the drug from the body in transit, without any effect. Therefore, it is important to know how to take pills correctly.

What should I take with my medications?

The universal liquid for washing down tablets is clean, non-carbonated, warm or room temperature water. Cold water slows down absorption in the stomach and may, during illness, provoke nausea and vomiting. The amount of water should be at least half a glass (100 ml).

Only some medications can be taken with milk and are even beneficial. These are drugs from the group of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs that we most often use for pain and fever: aspirin, ibuprofen, ketanov, analgin, indomethacin, voltaren and others, as well as steroid hormones: prednisolone, dexamethasone. Milk has a protective effect on the gastric mucosa and reduces the likelihood of the damaging effects of these drugs on it. The exception is drugs from these groups in the form of tablets or capsules coated with an enteric coating (such information can be found on the packaging) - their contents are released only in the intestines.

Generally not recommended for use with tablets mineral water, since they contain ions of calcium, iron and other elements that can enter into chemical reaction with the components of the drug and interfere with their absorption.

The most complex interactions are observed when tablets are taken together with vegetable and fruit juices: They can both weaken and enhance the effect of drugs. On the “black list”: apple, cherry, pear, grape, lemon, orange, pineapple, beetroot, tomato, viburnum and many other juices. The most dangerous is grapefruit. About 70% are incompatible with it existing drugs, including blood pressure lowering medications, heart medications and oral contraceptives. Drugs to lower blood cholesterol (atorvastatin, simvastatin, etc.) together with grapefruit juice cause massive destruction muscle tissue And renal failure. Moreover, for the development of an unfavorable effect, 1 glass of juice is enough, it all depends on the individual characteristics of the body. Therefore, it is recommended to stop drinking grapefruit juice three days before starting treatment with any medications (including injections).

It is not harmless to take some medications with tea and coffee. Tannins, catechins and caffeine contained in these drinks can play a role cruel joke, for example, by reducing the efficiency oral contraceptives. On the other hand, oral contraceptives increase side effects caffeine, which can lead to insomnia. Tea and coffee reduce the absorption of many other medications: antispasmodics, cough suppressants, glaucoma, etc. But paracetamol washed down with tea will relieve symptoms faster. headache, since caffeine increases the penetration of the drug into the brain.

The most explosive mixture can result from the combined use of drugs and alcohol of any strength. Ethanol and its metabolic products enhance the effects (including side effects) of psychotropic, antiallergic drugs, drugs for pain and fever, reduce the effect of antibiotics, diabetes drugs, drugs that affect blood clotting and anti-tuberculosis tablets. And the most dangerous thing is that in some cases alcohol, together with completely harmless drugs, causes poisoning, even fatal outcome as a result of liver failure. This most often happens when taking antibacterial, antifungal medications and paracetamol with alcohol.

When to take the tablets: on an empty stomach or after meals?

Considering the fact that active ingredients drugs can enter into unwanted interactions with food, and the consequences of these connections are poorly understood; most drugs are recommended to be taken on an empty stomach.

If the instructions say “on an empty stomach,” this means that the medicine should be taken an hour before meals or 2-3 hours after. This regimen of administration, firstly, minimizes contact of the tablet with food. Secondly, it is believed that in the intervals between meals the secretion of hydrochloric acid gastric juice is minimal, which also affects the work of many medications. Thirdly, the medicine taken on an empty stomach works faster.

The exception is those drugs that have irritant effect to the mucous membrane gastrointestinal tract, for example, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (ibuprofen, aspirin, etc.). For the same reason, it is recommended to take iron supplements after meals to treat anemia, although they are better absorbed on an empty stomach.

The connection with food intake is especially important for drugs for the treatment of the gastrointestinal tract, because each of them affects individual stages of digestion, and therefore must enter the body at a certain time. So, medications that reduce acidity and relieve heartburn are taken 40 minutes before meals or an hour after. Enzymes (mezim, pancreatin, festal) are drunk during meals, as they must be mixed with food. Pre- and probiotic preparations are usually taken during or after meals.

Antacids (almagel, maalox, de-nol and others), as well as sorbents (smecta, Activated carbon, polyphepan) interfere with the absorption of most drugs, so the interval between their use and the use of other drugs should be at least 1-2 hours.

Time of day and interval for taking medications

The daily amount of medication is usually divided into several doses to ensure a more or less constant concentration of the active substance in the body, as well as to reduce the single dose and the likelihood of side effects. Therefore, the instructions for the drugs and the note from the doctor usually say: 2-3 times a day. However, for some medications, the dose should be divided not throughout the daylight hours, but throughout the day. That is, a three-time dose means taking the medicine every 8 hours, a 4-time dose means taking the medicine every 6 hours, and so on.

Such a strict regime must be maintained, for example, when treating with antibiotics, which is often overlooked. If you take antibiotics irregularly, for example by doing long break on night sleep, the concentration of the active substance in the blood will fluctuate greatly. It is unlikely to cause overdose symptoms during the day, but at night with high probability will lead to the development of treatment resistance. That is, while you sleep, microbes adapt their metabolism to the antibiotic residues in the blood. Further treatment this drug will not be effective.

For convenience, many medications come in the form of long-acting tablets or capsules that can be taken only once a day. In the morning, they take diuretics, hormonal drugs, medications containing caffeine and adaptogens (ginseng, Eleutherococcus, Rhodiola rosea, etc.).

Forgotten pill rule

If you forgot to take a pill, estimate how much time has passed since “X”. Depending on the period of delay, three options are possible. First: If it's very close to your next dose, skip it. forgotten pill completely, but keep in mind that the effect of treatment may be reduced. The second option is that you take the medicine as soon as you remember it, but next dose drink according to the old schedule. This can be done if you take the medicine 1-2 times a day and up to next appointment at least half of the time period remains. You cannot double the dose of medication at one time. The third option to fix everything: you take a single dose of the medicine and start a new countdown, that is, shift the dosage schedule by the number of hours missed. This is the most rational method for short-term treatment, for example, if you have been prescribed antibiotics for 5-7 days.

Can I split tablets and open capsules?

If the tablet does not have a groove (scores, notches) to separate it into parts, most likely it is not intended for consumption in pieces. As a rule, these are all drugs that are coated with a protective coating. If they are broken, dissolved, chewed or crushed, they reduce their effectiveness. However, this can be neglected when emergency assistance is required.

When taken orally, the tablet begins to act after an average of 40 minutes. If you require quick effect, you can put the medicine under your tongue or chew it thoroughly and hold it in your mouth along with warm water. Then the absorption of the medicine will begin directly in oral cavity and the effect will occur within 5-10 minutes.

Gelatin capsules consisting of two halves are also not recommended to be opened. The shell protects the contents from contact with air, accidental entry into Airways(can cause irritation) or is destroyed only in the intestines, ensuring the medicine is delivered exactly to the target without loss.

However, exceptions are sometimes made to this rule. Tablets and capsules are divided into parts if a person cannot swallow a large capsule or titration of the medicine is required (individual dose selection). These cases should be discussed with your doctor.

Is it possible to avoid side effects of medications?

Compliance with the doses, regimen and rules for taking medications allows you to minimize the risk of side effects, but you cannot completely protect yourself from troubles during treatment. You need to be alert. Most complications become noticeable in the first days of therapy. This different kinds allergic reactions, nausea, abdominal pain, stool disturbances, headaches, swelling and other manifestations that usually disappear when the drug is replaced with a similar one or after treatment is stopped.

Delayed and most severe complication treatment is liver failure, kidney function is less likely to suffer. These organs are involved in the neutralization and removal from the body of almost all medications, including those that many of us take lightly: oral contraceptives, drugs for blood pressure and arrhythmia, lowering blood cholesterol, drugs for joint pain. By the way, these are the drugs that long-term use most often caused by drug-induced hepatitis.

The insidiousness of drug-induced damage to the liver and kidneys is that initial stages diseases, when they can still be easily corrected, are asymptomatic. Therefore, everyone who takes medications for a long time needs to do it once every six months. biochemical analysis blood and general analysis urine. These basic tests allow you to monitor liver and kidney function. At significant deviations from the norm, it is necessary to interrupt treatment and consult a doctor.

Colds, flu, sore throat, whooping cough - in winter, and at any time of the year, you can get sick without leaving the couch. And always, even at the first symptoms of the disease, we begin to stuff ourselves with pills. We would like to warn you against the most common misconceptions associated with taking medications and tell you how to take them correctly.

If there are no other instructions in the instructions or in the doctor's prescription, it is better to take medications on an empty stomach 30 minutes before meals, since interaction with food and digestive juices can disrupt the absorption mechanism or lead to changes in the properties of the medications.

Take on an empty stomach:

- all tinctures, infusions, decoctions and them similar drugs made from plant materials. They contain the amount active ingredients, some of which, under the influence of hydrochloric acid of the stomach, can be digested and converted into inactive forms. In addition, under the influence of food, the absorption of individual components of such drugs may be impaired and, as a result, insufficient or distorted effects;

- all calcium supplements , although some of them (for example, calcium chloride) have a pronounced irritant effect. The fact is that calcium, when bound with fatty and other acids, forms insoluble compounds. Therefore, taking drugs such as calcium glycerophosphate, calcium chloride, calcium gluconate and the like during or after meals, according to at least, useless. To avoid irritating effects, it is better to take such drugs with milk, jelly or rice water;

- medications that, although absorbed from food, for some reason have an adverse effect on digestion or relax smooth muscles . An example is a drug that eliminates or weakens smooth muscle spasms ( antispasmodic) drotaverine (known to everyone as No-shpa) and others.

-tetracycline , since it dissolves well in acids. But you should not drink it (as well as doxycycline, metacycline and other tetracycline antibiotics) with milk, as it binds with calcium, which is quite abundant in this product.

Take all multivitamin preparations during meals or immediately after meals.

Immediately after eating it is better to take drugs that irritate the gastric mucosa: indomethacin, acetylsalicylic acid, steroids, metronidazole, reserpine, cardiac glycosides (lily of the valley tincture, digitoxin, digoxin, cordigit, celanide).

Diuretics(diacarb, hypotheazide, triampur, furosemide) - only after meals.

Antihypertensive drugs(adelfan, brinerdine, clonidine, renitek, papazole, raunatin, reserpine, triresitol K, enalapril, enap) can be taken before and after meals, morning and evening.

Means that improve cerebral circulation (cavinton, instenon, tanakan, trental, stugeron (innarizin), nootropil) are taken regardless of when you sat down at the table.

Antiulcer drugs(denol, gastrofarm) should be taken half an hour before meals. They should be washed down with water (not milk).

Laxatives(Bisacodyl, Senade, Glaxena, Regulax, Gatalax, Forlax) are taken before bed and half an hour before breakfast.

Antacids(almagel, phosphalugel, gastal, maalox) and antidiarrheals (imodium, intetrix, neointestopan, smecta) - half an hour before meals or 1.5-2 hours after.

Bronchodilators(berodual, broncholitin, ventolin, salbutamol) - regardless of food.

Take 10-15 minutes before meals choleretic drugs, so that they get into duodenum before food and stimulated the process of bile secretion by the time food enters the intestines.

All medications whose dosage time is not indicated in the instructions or prescription should be taken on an empty stomach (3-4 hours after meals or 30-60 minutes before meals).

Drink water while standing.

A special group consists of medications that should act directly on the stomach or on the digestion process itself. Thus, drugs that reduce the acidity of gastric juice (antacids), as well as means that weaken the irritating effect of food on a sore stomach and prevent copious discharge gastric juice, usually taken 30 minutes before meals. 10-15 minutes before meals, it is recommended to take drugs that stimulate the secretion of the digestive glands (bitterness), andcholeretic agents. Gastric juice substitutes are taken with meals, and bile substitutes (for example, Allochol) at the end or immediately after meals. Preparations containing digestive enzymes and facilitating the digestion of food (for example, Mezim Forte) are usually taken before meals, during meals or immediately after meals. Drugs that suppress the release of hydrochloric acid into the gastric juice, such as cimetidine, should be taken immediately or soon after meals, otherwise they block digestion at the very first stage.

Not only the presence of food masses in the stomach and intestines affects the absorption of drugs. The composition of food can also change this process. For example, with a diet rich in fat, the concentration of vitamin A in the blood plasma increases (the speed and completeness of its absorption in the intestine increases). Milk enhances the absorption of vitamin D, the excess of which is dangerous, first of all, for the central nervous system.

A protein diet or consumption of pickled, sour and salty foods impairs the absorption of the anti-tuberculosis drug isoniazid, while a protein-free diet, on the contrary, improves it.

I hope that the examples above have given you general idea about how the properties of a particular medicine can change depending on the diet and time of administration.

It is very important to take the drug at the time indicated by the doctor or recommended in the instructions. Otherwise, the medicine may simply become useless, or even cause harm.

Of course, there are drugs that act “regardless of food intake,” and this is usually indicated in the instructions.

The method of taking the medicine is also of great importance.

Remember that it is better to take the medicine orally while standing, in as a last resort- sitting, but not lying down! After taking it, you should not lie down for 2-3 minutes, otherwise the medicine will “stick” to the inner surface of the esophagus and after 10 minutes it may completely collapse without reaching the stomach and intestines. When several drugs are prescribed at once, an interval of 10-15 minutes is required between taking each of them.

You should drink it with warm water. Tea, especially strong tea, is not suitable for this, since the tannin it contains forms with many medicinal substances insoluble and therefore non-absorbable compounds. Tannin is especially active in binding papaverine, amidopyrine, cardiac glycosides, enzymes, and active ingredients in herbal infusions and decoctions.

When prescribing certain medications, the doctor gives certain recommendations – "Twice a day after meals", “Not on an empty stomach, but on an empty stomach!”(these are different things, by the way!), “Chew, do not swallow!”, etc. The instructions also always indicate the specifics of reception.
"Who cares? - you ask, - after all therapeutic effect The prescribed medications will still work!”.
And yet, there is a difference. And today we will devote an article to nine important points when taking medications.

1. FREQUENCY OF DOSING IS THE KEY TO EFFECTIVENESS
Our body, unlike us, works around the clock. 24 hours a day the heart beats, the lungs breathe, the liver and kidneys work. And that is why, when prescribing us to take medicine twice a day, the doctor does not mean the 15-16 hours that we are awake. He means all 24 hours.

This means that taking the medicine should be divided into equal periods of time - for example, with a double dose, the interval between each dosage should be 12 hours, three times - 8, four times - 6. Of course, jumping out of bed in the middle of the night to take a pill is not the best best idea. Therefore, the timing should be calculated taking into account your daily schedule.
Why is it important? Imagine a pill antimicrobial action. It is active for a certain period of time. After the interval specified in the instructions, it simply stops protecting you from the growth of bacteria inside the body. And the longer you wait to take the next dosage, the more chances your illness has to take power back over your body. Do you want an effective and quick cure? Set an alarm clock with reminders and take your medications at the intervals specified by your doctor or instructions.

2. FOLLOW THE PRESCRIBED TREATMENT REGIME
If the medications are prescribed for a week of daily use, then problems usually do not arise. But during long courses of treatment, the situation when the patient forgot to take a pill, or, on the contrary, drank an extra one, is not uncommon. Even doctors who know how important it is to follow the prescribed dosage regimen, like all people, have noted the effect of this “forgetfulness” when it comes to dreary long-term treatment.
Why is it important? If you forget to take your pill on time, you essentially interrupt your treatment for a day. And then drink two in a row - in best case scenario is useless, and at worst (if the drug is potent) it is fraught with toxic damage to the liver, stomach, intestines….
It is possible to prevent such “sclerosis” with long-term medication use different ways– celebrate taken pill ticking a chart or calendar, storing medications in a visible (but out of reach of children!) place, or setting reminders on your phone for the right time.

3. AFTER A MEAL OR ON AN EMPTY STOMACH – THIS IS IMPORTANT!

Taking pills varies in relation to meals: “before”, “after” and “independently”. It would seem, “just think, what a difference it makes!”, but the problem is not only that. It often happens that in the minds of the doctor, the patient eats regularly, and does not indulge in tea or cookies during breaks, but the patient may not have breakfast in the morning, have lunch with compote, or eat a cutlet at three o’clock in the morning while awake - and all this also contributes to the incorrect use of medications and a decrease in the effectiveness of treatment.
Why is it important? Some medications are only absorbed if they are not interfered with digestive process, gastric juice or acidic environment. Therefore, the instructions for them indicate "before meals". This means that if you take such a pill even after a small snack, you are essentially throwing money away - the active substances simply will not be absorbed by the body. "While eating" It is often recommended to take those medications that require, for example, fats from food to dissolve and assimilate. "After meal" medications are taken that irritate the gastric mucosa or are intended to normalize the digestion process. Moreover, in all three cases, “meal” does not necessarily mean a three-course meal. An eaten banana is also a meal. Always check with your doctor for any dosage recommendations and what they mean by them.

4. ON AN EAST STOMACH AND ON AN HUNGRY STOMACH ARE DIFFERENT THINGS!
Many people think that these two terms mean the same concept. However, this is not so, and there is a significant difference between these concepts in the state of the body. An empty stomach (or on a lean stomach) is the time without food or drink between the end of sleep and the first breakfast, but no later than 10 am.
If even after 10 o’clock in the morning a person has not eaten or drunk, then this state is already called “on an empty stomach.”
Why is it important? The fact is that “on an empty stomach” the body treats the lack of food easily, but “on an empty stomach” the mechanism of “self-feeding” of the body is activated due to internal reserves, and if they are not there, then due to cell loss internal organs, acidity in the stomach increases, the medicine is absorbed completely differently.

5. NOT ALL MEDICATIONS CAN BE TAKEN AT ONCE!
You should almost always take medications separately, unless otherwise agreed with your doctor. Of course, in real life This is not always convenient, but it is better to make an effort and draw up a dosage schedule if you do not want to get an unpredictable effect at the initial stage.
Sometimes the patient, having decided that the medicine prescribed by the doctor has a bad effect, for example, on the liver, begins to take the pill with an additional vitamin or hepatoprotector. And in vain! After all, even natural preparations- these are still medications that may turn out to be completely incompatible with the prescribed treatment, neutralize it, or even worse - aggravate the disease. And that is why, if you are being treated by several specialists for different reasons, they must know about each other’s prescriptions!

6. NOT ALL TABLETS CAN BE DIVIDED IN HALVES

Some tablets can be broken to give multiple doses, but not all. And even more than that: some tablets are coated, damaging which can affect the properties of the medicine. For example, some drugs are coated with a coating that is insoluble in the stomach due to the fact that they are absorbed only in the intestines. But if you remove this shell, the medicine simply will not reach the intestines. It will be digested in the stomach, without providing you with any benefit.

7. MOST TABLETS ARE TAKEN WITH WATER
No tea, no coffee, no juice or soda. For the same reasons why it is prohibited joint reception medicines. Any liquid has certain chemical properties that affect the absorption of the drug. For example, if you take a calcium tablet with soda and an oral contraceptive with chamomile infusion with St. John's wort, the effectiveness of the tablet in both cases will be zero. And this is the most harmless outcome. Here's something to drink sedatives alcohol, or drugs that reduce blood clotting - sour juice - this means increasing their effect so much that possible consequences begin stomach bleeding, but end fatal. And this, imagine, is not a joke at all.

8. CHEWABLE TABLETS – CHEW!
On the contrary, you can’t bite into the jelly beans. The release form of the drug is also not chosen by chance.
Why is it important? A chewable (suckable) tablet that you swallow whole will take a different time to work or may not work at all. And the special coating on the tablet means it cannot be crushed, broken or cracked. Because this coating protects something: the active substance of the tablet from stomach acids or the stomach from the active substance, the esophagus or tooth enamel etc. The capsule form of release also says that the active substance should be absorbed only in the intestines and for a certain time, so capsules can only be opened as prescribed by a doctor, with an eye to the instructions.

9. EVERY RULE HAS AN EXCEPTION
Rare, but there. It happens that the treatment regimen, dosage and method of administration of drugs allows for adjustments for certain groups of patients, for example, if there are features in the patient’s anamnesis or medical history ( accompanying illnesses, individual reactions, etc.). You need to take pills, like any other medicines, without doing anything on your own; all innovations must be agreed upon with your doctor.

Stay healthy and take your medications correctly!

Description of the question

No matter how much we monitor our health, unfortunately, each of us is sooner or later destined to take our dose of medicine. On the one hand, there is nothing complicated in taking pills: put it in your mouth, drink it and wait for a miraculous recovery. However, in practice everything is not so simple. After all, any medicine will begin to act only when it is in sufficient concentration in the tissues of the diseased organ. The path of the active substance to its destination is sometimes very complicated. Through the mouth you need to get into the stomach, from there to small intestine, then dissolve in its contents and at the same time avoid destruction due to the effects of hydrochloric acid of the stomach, enzymes and other food components. It is very important what time of day you take the medicine, do it before, during or after meals, what do you take with it, etc. You always really want the treatment to last a short time, to be effective against the disease and not to harm the rest of the body. For everything to be exactly like this, the pills must be taken correctly. The instructions for use, which you will find in the box with the medicine, will tell you in detail about the features of taking certain tablets. However, there are a number general advice, which are often not reflected in the insert, because are considered generally known. It's about them we'll talk below.

You will need

• alarm clock or timer on your mobile phone
• a special calendar where you can mark the fact of taking pills
• instructions for use of the medicine

Step by step solution

note

• Always strictly follow the instructions for use that come with any medicine. Never throw away the information leaflet after opening the package of tablets and briefly looking at this leaflet. It is very possible that you will need to re-read it later.
• The best way to stay on schedule is to draw up a pill dosing plan and hang it in a visible place (on the refrigerator, on the door, etc.). And in order not to miss the time to take your medication, use a timer or alarm clock on your mobile phone.
• Do not take advice on using pills from your friends. When a doctor prescribes you a medicine, he relies on medical knowledge, which at first glance is not always obvious to you. The instructions for use are compiled by specialists, and every word in it is the result of long and painstaking scientific research. Therefore, if your mother with hypertension took the same medications that were prescribed to you, according to a different regimen, this is not at all a reason to take them the same way. Do not engage in any activity when taking pills. If in any doubt, consult a doctor.

Why do medications prescribed by a doctor sometimes not give the expected effect? Why are medications that are very effective for one patient practically useless for another? Do not rush to blame the doctor for choosing the wrong one for you. remedy, which does not fully take into account your individual characteristics and previous diseases. Maybe it's all about you - that you're just taking your medications incorrectly?

Well, firstly, you need to follow the medication regimen and correct dosage. If you want to take them three times a day – this is actually three times a day, that is, one tablet every 8 hours. Not “morning, noon and evening” - this could be at “11 am”, “12 noon” and “5 pm” - but every 8 hours. For the most effective action In order for the medicine to be applied to the body, it is necessary to maintain a certain concentration in the blood.

This is especially important to consider when taking antibiotics. Otherwise, the medicine is unlikely to be able to cope with the microbes; rather, it will teach them to resist the drug.

Sometimes patients stop taking recommended medications - they say, “everything has gone for me,” “I feel sorry for the money, the pills are too expensive,” or if side effects suddenly begin to appear before the end of the course. Consult your doctor; sometimes you need to “endure” some inconveniences.

It is very important when you take your medications - “before meals”, “during meals” and “after meals”. Doctors emphasize: only timely use of medications ensures not only the maximum effect, but also, often, safety for your health.

Before meals: if gastric juice does not affect the medications, they are digested better and absorbed faster. They are recommended to be taken 30 minutes before meals. Such drugs include choleretic, antiulcer, and normalizing heart function. Often, during this half hour, do not even drink liquids, not even water, so as not to wash the remedy out of the stomach. Example: antacids /heartburn medications/.

Sometimes tablets “on an empty stomach” can severely irritate the mucous membranes. The same aspirin /acetylsalicylic acid/ should under no circumstances be taken before meals, only strictly after meals /!/, during meals it breaks down into acetic acid. Moreover, it is necessary to take aspirin tablets big amount water, a glass wouldn’t be amiss here. If the tablet does not have time to dissolve and for some reason lingers for a long time in the esophagus or sticks to the wall of the stomach, the formation of an ulcer is inevitable! Aspirin can even corrode the walls of blood vessels.

True, there is one exception: in the form effervescent tablets You can take aspirin before lunch: active substance has already dissolved, and gas bubbles will only speed up the absorption of the medicine.

While eating: medications that are recommended to be taken after the first spoons are the majority. These are drugs that improve digestion, diuretics, laxatives (not all!/). It is strictly forbidden to take antibiotics with food - their effect is completely neutralized by gastric juice.

After meal: most often, two hours after eating, as soon as the contents of the stomach are empty. This is done to ensure that the mucous membranes of the stomach and intestines are irritated as little as possible. Such medications include anti-inflammatory and painkillers, drugs that reduce acidity.

Regardless of meal medications are taken that improve blood circulation in the brain, bronchodilators and antihypertensive drugs - those that cause a decrease in blood pressure and are used mainly for pathological increase system pressure.

Under no circumstances should you take “handfuls” of medicine. If you need to take several medications, and the doctor has not given any recommendations, you should wait between taking different medications. take a 30-40 minute break . It is unlikely that even scientists will tell you how thousands of types of tablets, mixtures, powders are combined with each other - whether they will be absorbed by the body, whether they are easily excreted by the intestines, and in general - whether such an “assortment” will lead to any serious complications.

What should I take with my medications? The question is fundamental. For example, very healthy freshly squeezed grapefruit juice in combination with certain drugs can be life-threatening. Juices, like milk, generally have the ability to destroy the structure of medications. Even “simple” tea can form insoluble compounds in combination with some medications that are difficult to absorb by the body. And our beloved coffee has the ability to speed up the removal of drugs from the body - before they are absorbed.

So take your medications only with water. If the creators of the drug provide for taking a different liquid, this will be indicated in the instructions.

And anyway, Do not combine medications and alcohol ! Doctors say that these concepts simply do not go together, and the alcohol strength does not play any role. Alcohol combined with antibiotics will cause dizziness and nausea; with tranquilizers and antidepressants - will enhance their effect, with drugs that lower blood pressure - will cause drowsiness. Taking with aspirin will cause stomach ulcers, taking with paracetamol will cause stomach ulcers. toxic hepatitis, with insulin - hypoglycemic coma.

Most tablets, especially coated ones, cannot be chewed - only swallowed . They are designed this way - a special shell protects the drug from the acidic environment of the stomach. This is why you should not cut film-coated tablets in half. In addition, the active ingredient in the tablet itself is often coated with a flavoring agent to “neutralize” the unpleasant taste of the drug.

Well, and finally - on storage of medicines . Tip number 1: after the expiration date, which is certainly indicated on the packaging of the drug, it should be thrown away without regret. Although in fairness it should be noted that unopened packages and tablets in blisters can be stored without much concern long years. American researchers have found that more than 80% of drugs remain usable from 5 to 25 /!/ years after the expiration date, and the remaining part simply decreases in the amount of active ingredients. If you want to check this data and take a chance own health- can experiment on yourself.

But it is better to get rid of packages that have already been opened, even if the indicated expiration date has not yet expired. The reason is not only that the tablets dry out or, on the contrary, absorb moisture from the air - depending on storage conditions. That is, they spoil. The same Americans found that on the surface of drugs stored in an opened container, within a year salmonella, staphylococcus, coli and other microorganisms.

In general, don't get sick!

Read also on our website on the topic of “medicines”:

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Nowadays you can often hear from doctors and pharmacists that when taking medications, you must strictly follow the instructions that come with them. Only in this case will the drugs help maximum benefit and there will be minimal amount side effects. However, some instructions contain non-specific wording, such as “before meals”, “after meals”, “during meals”, “before bed”, “at night”, etc. What does this mean?

If the instructions prescribe taking medications “on an empty stomach,” this means that you need to take the medications in the morning, but not immediately after waking up, but 30-40 minutes before breakfast.

If the accompanying instructions indicate that the drug should be taken “at night”, for example, sleeping pills, then this means that this medicine should be taken not before going to bed, but 25-30 minutes before.

If the instructions say that medications should be taken “before meals,” this means that they must be taken not before the first spoonful of food is put into the mouth, but 15-20 minutes before sitting down at the table, but best of all - 30 -40 minutes before the start of the meal process. When pharmaceuticals, such as Festal, Panzinorm, Pancreatin and others are prescribed to improve digestion, in which case they are taken during a meal, when half of the intended food has already been eaten.

If medications must be taken “after meals,” then for maximum therapeutic effect, most medications should not be taken immediately after the spoon is put aside, but not earlier than 1.5-2 hours after finishing the meal. However, if drugs have an irritating effect on the mucous membrane of the stomach and intestines (aspirin, butadione, voltaren and others), then they should be taken immediately after meals.

If there are no special instructions for taking medications, then it is most advisable to take them 15-20 minutes before meals or 1.5-2 hours after finishing the meal. It is better to take preparations containing calcium before meals, then it will almost completely bind with the acids of plant foods.

Only medications intended “under the tongue” (validol, nitroglycerin and others) do not have a dosage time. They are used every time an attack occurs.

If the instructions recommend taking a drug “three times a day,” this does not mean “breakfast, lunch, dinner.” Medicines must be taken every 8 hours to maintain a constant concentration in the blood.

In addition to the above, you need to remember about the compatibility of drugs. Experts have calculated that taking 3 drugs at once threatens the development of adverse reactions in 15-25 percent of cases. When to take 5-6 drugs at the same time without first consulting about their compatibility, then unwanted effects may occur in approximately 80 percent of cases.

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As long as nothing hurts, you don’t think about pills. Meanwhile, each tablet has its own hour - time and order of administration. In a word, if you started to be treated with medications, then take into account all the subtleties!

Accept any medicinal medicine it is necessary strictly according to the rules and instructions attached to the medications, or the doctor’s instructions. The success of your treatment and your health depends on whether you know how to take this or that type of medication, the correct dosage, what it is incompatible with, what foods and medications.

In order for the drug to be fully effective and not cause side effects, you need to know how and when to take it and what it is combined with.

You can't drink it down antidepressants, sleeping pills and tranquilizers alcoholic drinks. In combination with alcohol, they enhance each other’s effects, which means that if you wash down a couple of tablets with a decent dose of alcohol, you risk waking up in intensive care. The combination of some antidepressants with cheese, yeast buns, soy sauce, fish roe, coffee, cream can cause a sharp headache and increase arterial pressure.

There is no point in taking any medications at the same time as drugs that coat the gastric mucosa (almagel or phosphalugel). True, this does not threaten resuscitation, but there is no point.

Antibiotics are not compatible with coffee, Pepsi and Coca-Cola, in combination with these drinks, antibiotics provoke nervous excitement and stomach irritation. By the way, if you take pills for stomach pain with the same drinks, the effect will be the same. Antibiotics are not at all easy and should only be taken as directed by a doctor. Because they act not only on the bacteria that caused the disease, but also on vitamins. So the jars in vitamin preparations can be postponed until later until the course of antibiotics is completed.

Tetracycline antibiotics(doxycycline, etc.) cannot be taken with milk and dairy products, since calcium ions, which milk is rich in, combine with tetracyclines, forming sparingly soluble compounds, and sharply reduce their activity.

Upon admission diuretics It is necessary to replenish potassium reserves in the body. They will help with this green pea, spinach, sorrel, potatoes, onion, carrots, beets, dried apricots, apples.

Grapefruit juice is also included in the list of products incompatible with medications.. It may reduce the effectiveness of medications prescribed to fight cholesterol. Those who take cyclosporine, which prevents the rejection of transplanted organs, should also forget about grapefruit juice, otherwise these people are at risk of losing their orientation. Research shows that grapefruit juice for unknown reasons) sharply increases the degree of absorption of drugs and contributes to their overdose.

Iron supplements, which are used in the treatment of anemia, are well absorbed when taken simultaneously meat products and are poorly absorbed if washed down with milk, coffee or undiluted fruit juices.

Reception hormonal drugs causes metabolic disorders. To prevent complications, you need to eat food rich in complete proteins, potassium salts, vitamins: cottage cheese and other dairy products, fish, dried apricots, raisins, pumpkin, berries.

Oral contraceptives Do not combine well with products containing caffeine. The fact is that contraceptives reduce the body's ability to break down caffeine, which can lead to hyperactivity and insomnia.

Fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, F, K must be taken after meals, as well as with foods rich in animals and vegetable fats, which accelerate their absorption.

During treatment antitumor drugs eat foods that promote hematopoiesis: liver, fish, carrots, dill, pomegranates, black currants, strawberries. A mixture of honey, aloe and Cahors juice is very useful. equal parts.

Do not drink alcoholic beverages while taking any medications. This may cause side effects and reduce the effectiveness of the drug. Especially not desirable simultaneous administration alcoholic beverages and drugs such as furazolidone, metronidazole, cephalosporin antibiotics. Possible Negative consequences: dizziness, nausea, irritation of the mucous membranes, drowsiness.

If possible, try to take only one or two medications. If different doctors wrote you every prescription, be sure to tell them what medications you are already taking. Various drugs take separately.

A universal rule for taking almost all medications: take the tablet with half a glass ordinary water room temperature. Then the medicine will quickly dissolve in the stomach without irritating it.

Take before meals.

Most medications are taken 30-40 minutes before meals, when they are best absorbed. Sometimes - 15 minutes before meals, not before.

Half an hour before meals should be taken antiulcer drugs- DE-NOL, GASTROPHARM. They should be washed down with water (not milk).

You should also take it half an hour before meals. antacids(ALMAGEL, PHOSPHALUGEL, etc.) and choleretic agents.

Take with meals.

During meals, the acidity of gastric juice is very high, and therefore significantly affects the stability of drugs and their absorption into the blood.

Should be taken with food gastric juice preparations or digestive enzymes, as they help the stomach digest food. These include FESTAL, ENZISTAL, PANZINORM, MEZIM FORTE.

Take after meals.

If the medicine is prescribed after meal, then to get the best therapeutic effect, wait at least two hours.

Immediately after eating, they take mainly medications that irritate the mucous membrane of the stomach and intestines. This recommendation applies to such groups of drugs as:

diuretics- DIACARB, HYPOTHIAZIDE, TRIAMPUR, FUROSEMIDE (only after meals)

painkillers(non-steroidal) anti-inflammatory drugs - BUTADIONE, ASPIRIN, ASPIRIN CARDIO, VOLTAREN, IBUPROFEN, ASKOFEN, CITRAMON (only after meals).

cardiac glycosides- Lily of the Valley tincture.

sulfonamides- PHTHALAZOL, BISEPTOL; It is recommended to take these medications with an alkaline drink, for example, mineral water.

agents that are components of bile- ALLOCHOL, CHOLENZIM, etc.; taking after meals is a prerequisite for these drugs to “work”.

Regardless of food.

Regardless of when you sit down at the table, take:
bronchodilators- BERODUAL, BRONCHOLITIN, VENTOLIN, SALBUTAMOL

Antihypertensive drugs can be taken during the day: before or after meals, morning and evening - ADELPHAN, BRYNERDINE, CLOPHELINE, RENITEK, PAPAZOL, RAUNATIN, RESERPINE, TRIRESIDE K, ENALAPRIL, ENAP N.

Take on an empty stomach.

Taking medication on an empty stomach is common in the morning 20-40 minutes before breakfast.

Medicines taken on an empty stomach are absorbed and absorbed much faster. Otherwise, the acidic gastric juice will have a destructive effect on them, and the medications will be of little use.

Take 2-3 times a day.

If the instructions indicate " three times a day", this does not mean breakfast - lunch - dinner. The medicine must be taken every eight hours so that its concentration is maintained evenly in the blood. It is better to take the medicine with plain boiled water. Tea and juices are not the best remedy.

If it is necessary to resort to cleansing the body (for example, in case of poisoning, alcohol intoxication), it is usually used sorbents: ACTIVATED CHARCOAL, POLYPHEPAN or ENTEROSGEL. They collect toxins “on themselves” and remove them through the intestines. They should be taken twice daily between meals. At the same time, you need to increase your fluid intake. It is good to add herbs that have a diuretic effect to your drink.

Day or night.

Drugs with a hypnotic effect should be taken 30 minutes before bedtime.

Laxatives- BISACODIL, SENAD, GLAXEN, REGULAX, GUTALAX, FORLAX - usually taken before bed or half an hour before breakfast.

Heart medications And asthma remedies accepted closer to midnight.

Remedies for ulcers taken early in the morning and late in the evening to prevent hunger pangs.

After inserting the suppositories, you need to lie down, so they are prescribed at night.

If there are no instructions in the instructions.

In the absence of any instructions in the package insert, the medicine should be taken 30 minutes before meals. This applies to the bulk of drugs.

If your appointment time is missed.

If you " we were late» for 1-2 hours, then the drug can be accepted, as usual. If the break is longer, you should skip the medication until the next one to avoid an overdose. After this, it is advisable to restore the medication dosage schedule.

You cannot take the drug in double dose just because you missed your appointment time - this may increase side effect medicines.

Hormonal And "heart" drugs, majority antibiotics should be taken strictly by the clock. The best thing is to draw up a reception diagram and hang it in a visible place (on the door, furniture, refrigerator, etc.).

In what order should I take the medications?

Many medications interact with each other, so try to accept medicines one by one.

Often incompatible there are antibiotics. They should not be unnecessarily combined with antipyretics, hypnotics, and antihistamines. And, of course, in no case with alcohol.

The gastric mucosa will be safer if you take into account the specifics of taking vitamins. Fat-soluble vitamins(A, D, E, K) are more useful after meals, and water-soluble(C and group B) - before meals or during meals. Complex multivitamin preparations It is better to drink immediately after eating.

Pharmacists advise.

When visiting a doctor, it is advisable for patients write down recommendations. This is important to ensure your own safety, because medications are a delicate thing. As for foods, almost all of them can change the effect of the drug. Some (for example, fatty and sweet foods) delay and increase the absorption time of the drug components into the blood, while others increase the effect of the drug significantly, causing an overdose.