Wow, that is a big variety of stuff that may be going in to our bodies. It is also pretty unlikely that any of your doctors are aware of all of the medications or supplements that you are using, and even if they are, it is very difficult for them to keep up with all of the potential interactions that may occur.
Do Some Research
For many reasons, I urge all of you to gather all your medications, prescription and nonprescription, and do a little research on some websites that have complete information about these drugs and possible interactions. Take a look at what they have to say about each medication by clicking on the link. Learn as much as you can about any medications that you are taking. Some other resources to help you find out more about your meds (or any that you may be considering) include:- PDR: Another good place to find out information about a particular medication is at the PDR Health website, the consumer site maintained by the publishers of Physician’s Desk Reference, which may be the most up-to-date. This site also has nice detailed information about how the drug should be taken (with food, what to do if you forget a dose, etc.).
- Medline Plus: I actually like MedlinePlus, which is a service provided by the U.S. government (the National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health). This site tends to include much more detailed information than I have seen anywhere else.
- Manufacturer’s Site: I also like going to the manufacturer’s website for the prescribing information available to physicians. Usually typing the drug name into your search engine, such asGoogle or Yahoo, will get you to the site right away — most brand-name medications even have their very own site. This is where you are most likely to see any serious warnings first. By looking at the “Full Prescribing Information,” you are seeing everything the drug company wants the doctor to know while avoiding language and images designed to convince you that you need this drug.
- And If You Are REALLY Interested: Go to PubMed and type in your drug’s name into the search bar. Be prepared to see a large number of pretty obscure studies and scary case reports about the medication. If you type in “multiple sclerosis” and the medication name, however, you may come up with some pretty interesting abstracts.
Be Especially Aware of the Effects of Drugs on Contraceptives
This research is especially important if you are using hormonally based contraception. While your first thoughts may be about the birth control pill, this also includes patches, rings, implants, injections and intrauterine devices (IUDs). As it turns out, many drugs make these contraception methods less effective, which could lead to unwanted pregnancies. For instance, antibiotics also reduce the effectiveness of contraceptives. This warning is extended to many herbs, as mentioned in my article entitled "St. John's Wort Warning for People with MS."It is very important to be aware of these interactions and the effects on contraception for many reasons. One of the most important reasons, though, is that most MS drugs are potentially harmful to fetuses. Therefore, an unplanned pregnancy for someone with MS who is on a disease-modifying therapy (or some of the other drugs to treat symptoms) could come with a great deal of worry and stress beyond a typical pregnancy.
Please do the research and save yourself some unnecessary anxiety. You should also discuss this with your doctor, especially if you find any information that causes you to be concerned about a particular medication.
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