Tackling the Growing Problem of Overmedication

August 16, 2021

(Knowable Magazine) – Polypharmacy, often defined as the regular use of five or more drugs by one patient, is on the rise and is expected to grow as life expectancy increases and the global population ages. Elderly people not only take more drugs but also face a greater risk of severe side effects because their livers tend to be less efficient at metabolizing and clearing medications from the bloodstream. This risk is exacerbated by the fact that interactions between some drugs can be harmful and up to half of patients taking four or more drugs do not take them as prescribed, according to a 2020 analysis in the Annual Review of Pharmacology and Toxicology. (Read Full Article)