How Well Do You KNOW Your Medications?

Once upon a time I decided to see how bad pharmaceutical medications actually are for you. At the time I was taking 27 pills per day. Five of those were to help deal with the side effects of the other 22. I understood the purpose of the medications and even the functioning of the active ingredients in most cases but was more concerned with long term effects.

I have a number of books on medications, and one common factor with most medications is the claim of “It is unknown how this drug actually works”. This makes sense as no one knows how the human body works. But that wasn't my real concern. I was curious about the supposed “inert” ingredients.

Curious people will get a new prescription and read the product sheet. They may even look it up online to get an idea of how safe it is or isn't. But how many would actually Google every one of the active as well as inactive ingredients?

Me.

Except, I started with one of the most common over the counter medications used world wide. Literally 100's of millions of people world wide use this medication everyday and there is a 99% chance that you have used it as well. The question now might be how much have you used, how much will you use, and what is it doing to you as you read this?

This is what I found..... 

Ibuprofen - is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) originally marketed as Brufen, and since then under various other trademarks , most notably Nurofen, Advil, and Motrin. It is used for relief of symptoms of arthritis, primary dysmenorrhea, fever, and as an analgesic, especially where there is an inflammatory component. Ibuprofen is known to have an anti-platelet effect, though it is relatively mild and short-lived when compared with that of aspirin or other better-known anti-platelet drugs. Ibuprofen also generally acts as a vasodilator, having been shown to dilate coronary arteries and some other blood vessels. Ibuprofen is a coremedicine in the World Health Organization's "Essential Drugs List", which is a list of minimum medical needs for a basic health care system.

Active Ingredient:

(±) - 2 - (p - isobutylphenyl) Propionic Acid - Propionic acid is an organic acid that acts as a fungicide, inhibiting the growth of aerobic micro-organisms that can cause heating and moulding. Other organic acids, such as acetic and citric acids are sometimes also included, but propionic acid is the most effective as a mould inhibitor. 

Inactive Ingredients:

Carnauba Wax - has a much harder melting point than other waxes, and is also extremely hard. This makes it ideal for creating extremely strong coatings for floors, automobiles, and other things which see hard wear. In addition, carnauba wax appears in candies, polishes, varnishes, cosmetic products, and in many other places. 

Colloidal Silicon Dioxide - is used as a wine and juice fining agent when in liquid form. Many other uses include, a moisture absorbent, an abrasive, and as a concrete polisher.

Croscarmellose Sodium - is an internally cross-linked sodium carboxymethylcellulose for use as a disintegrant in pharmaceutical formulations. Linked to migraine headaches.

Hypromellose – short for hydroxypropyl methylcellulose is a semi synthetic, inert, viscoelastic polymer. As a food additive, hypromellose is an emulsifier, thickening and suspending agent, and an alternative to animal gelatin. Although non-toxic, it is combustible and can react vigorously with oxidizing agents.

Lactose - a sugar that is found most notably in milk and is formed from galactose and glucose. Lactose intolerance is the inability to metabolize lactose, because of a lack of the required enzyme lactase in the digestive system. It is estimated that 75% of adults worldwide show some decrease in lactase activity during adulthood. 

Magnesium Stearate - also called octadecanoic acid, magnesium salt, is a white substance which is solid at room temperature. Magnesium stearate is often used as a diluent in the manufacture of medical tablets, capsules and powders. Magnesium stearate is a major component of "bathtub rings". When produced by soap and hard water, magnesium stearate and calcium stearate both form a white solid insoluble in water, and are collectively known as "soap scum". 

Microcrystalline Cellulose - is basically cellulose and is derived from high quality wood pulp. Microcrystalline Cellulose revolutionised tableting because of its unique compressibility and carrying capacity. It exhibits excellent properties as an excipient for solid dosage forms. It compacts well under minimum compression pressures, has high binding capability, and creates tablets that are extremely hard, stable, yet disintegrate rapidly. 

Propylene Glycol - A colourless, volatile, flammable liquid produced by fermentation of yeast and carbohydrates. Alcohol is frequently used as a solvent. As an ingredient in ingestible products, alcohol may cause body tissues to be more vulnerable to carcinogens. Propylene glycol is commonly used in acrylic paints, brake fluid, antifreeze, tile grout, primer, sealant paste, floor polish, tire sealant and shoe polish. Known health effects: throat irritation, headache, backache, kidney problems, oedema (swelling), necrosis (cell death). If swallowed, can cause drowsiness, and slurred speech, possibly stupor, vomiting, respiratory failure, coma, convulsions, and death.

Titanium Dioxide - is the naturally occurring oxide of titanium.  It has a wide range of applications, from paint to sunscreen to food colouring. Titanium dioxide dust, when inhaled, has recently been classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as an IARC Group 2B carcinogen possibly carcinogenic to humans. 

Is it just me or does anyone else see something wrong here? The medication that is being sold to you has known carcinogens and literally eats the stomach lining. Long term use has proven organ toxicity and damage to fine mucous membranes. For people with diabetes, hypertension, or kidney disease, ibuprofen may increase the risk of kidney damage.

And your Doctor will be the first one to tell you to take it.

This obviously proves the adage that the cure is much worse than the disease. I even bet the adage came from the pharmaceutical industry themselves as they obviously know their own list of ingredients.

I never bothered to look up any of the other drugs. I didn't have the stomach for what I might find. Instead, I weened myself off all of them. I honestly believe that was a major factor in me being able to live as long as I have now. That and natural medicines have hopefully bought me the time to get a simple procedure done that may completely stop my progression. 

But regardless, I can assure you that I won't be popping cancer causing pills anytime soon.

I suggest you look you the drugs that you put into you then you can be afraid... very afraid.