Taking a wrong dose of medication can affect the health of your loved one. You wouldn’t believe it, but the number of seniors who skip their medicines on purpose is exceptionally high. According to various studies, 50 percent of drugs for chronic diseases aren’t taken as they were instructed to be.
The misuse of prescriptions can have an immense effect on the health of seniors – for the worse. Top medical journals state that skipping pills causes over 125,000 deaths a year and are also responsible for 10 percent of all hospitalizations. That is why we have compiled this list.
Top Reasons Why Seniors Don’t Take Medications as Prescribed
Seniors Don’t Believe in Taking Medications
It is unbelievable that there are senior adults who are not willing to take pills even if their life is in danger. Some elderly don’t believe that medicines are going to help them, even if they are suffering from vascular diseases or have had a heart attack or kidney failure. Other groups of seniors don’t take drugs because they are a reminder of their sickness. Also, there are a specific group of old people who prefer natural medicines instead of pills, even if sometimes they don’t have an effect on them.
Source: joburgwest.getitonline.co.za
They Believe They Can Stop Taking Medicines When They Feel Well
Sometimes older adults stop taking their prescribed drugs after a while, just to check out whether they have been affected. If they feel fine after not taking their pills, they assume that they are healthy and that they no longer need them. But this method is not right; with heart diseases or high blood pressure, you will only discover if you needed the medicine after you have suffered a heart attack or stroke. At that moment, it will be too late for going back.
Some Seniors Believe That Medicines Are Not Worth the Cost
This is quite a common mistake: when elderly believe that, regardless of the medicine’s price, they are just not worth the cost. What they fail to see is: if they opt not to buy the required medicines, their health will suffer. And as you know, health doesn’t have a price.
Featured Image Source: independence4seniors.com
