Be Careful About Cold Medicine Interactions with Prescriptions

It’s summertime. We should be thinking about picnics and beaches and sleeping in the sun. The thermometer in my truck stoically decreed it was still 93 F even at 6:30 pm tonight - definitely steamy summer weather.

So it seems rather discordant for so many people to be getting sick with colds and flu - illnesses traditionally considered the harbingers of winter. But earlier today your throat started getting sore, your voice roughing up a bit. By noon you were sneezing and you killed more than half your box of tissues. When you go home from work exhausted and achy you discovered you’re running a fever.

You aren’t alone. The World Health Organization gathered for an emergency meeting today and decided to declare the H1N1 swine flu officially at the Phase 6 pandemic stage. So is it time to panic? Kristina Duda, R.N., About.com Guide to Cold / Flu, says “Absolutely not.”

You should also stop and give some thought to how you are best going to relieve your aches and pains. Before taking any over-the-counter cold or flu remedy, you need to be aware of the possible cold medicine interactions with your prescriptions. Pretty much every class of drug used to treat psychiatric conditions has the potential to interact poorly or even dangerously with the common active ingredients in OTC medications.

Oh and if you do manage to snag some fun in the sun, don’t forget that many medications prescribed for bipolar disorder can make a person more susceptible to heatstroke and sunburn. Review Summertime and Our Meds for some safety tips.