Beware of OTC meds: what I learned
 

Passing this on because it's fairly shocking: when a medication moves to OTC (over the counter) they don't list possible side effects any more. Granted, there are warnings on the box, and those were serious enough that I checked online.

I'm throwing the Flonase away.



All I have is a stuffy nose! And the generic sudafed behind the counter at my pharmacy is fine, and I don't even use that any more.

I went to the doctor because a dry hacking cough was keeping me from sleeping, and I was so exhausted I was getting my autoimmune symptoms back. :help: I got a miniscule amount of what I know works from the year I had FOUR sinus infections in a row, and this Flonase.

I was already alerted because it was a steroid medication. I learned I was risking a LOT more than a stuffy nose, like:



Would you risk permanent damage to the senses for a stuffy nose?

Now my wariness has increased, and it was already at a paranoid level.

The only OTC that I use is an antihistamine during the spring/summer for pollen allergies. I've not been able to find any reported major problems caused by them.

Neti pot with saline/baking soda water is an ancient remedy. Xylitol added works well too.

There is a nasal spray, xlear, that is nothing but saline water, xylitol and grapefruit seed extract (for a preservative). You can get this at many drug stores.

For me the added xylitol makes a big difference.

Bob

Thanks all. I'm okay. Have decongestant and got some cough syrup which I've taken before without incident. But this stuff sits in the grocery store and you KNOW no one is reading the box!

In response to this thread about side effects of taking OTC meds, I just HAD to post a link to this YouTube video.... Progenitorivox - The Drugs I need.


The song is by a country/bluegrass/folk band called the Austin Lounge Lizards that I've been listening to since the mid 80s. Enjoy... and share it with friends who might need to hear the message. :)

Thanks for posting. Thought flonase was non-steroidal. Despirte conversations with doctor, sheesh

Last year I had congestion so I went to the store and roamed up and down the isle. What I found out after buying Robitussin DM which use to work and I would cough it up was that it didn't work anymore.

Apparently they removed whatever ingredient in it that use to work because drug attics are getting high off of it. So then I tried other products and they were ALL timed release. Again, it's so druggies can't get high from it because it's timed released it' no use to them. The Walgreens brand "Mucus Releaf which is Guaifensin/expectorant was the worst. Well, on the third day it wasn't working at all. Then my lungs started feeling like they were hurting and burning from these meds, like they were on fire....So I stopped taking it.

About that time I started taking the Iodine. I was happily in shock that the iodine was helping me cough up all of the flem. It worked like magic!!
So I began reading my iodine book and apparently in France they have used Iodine for centuries to clear up lungs, even curing phenomena.
The first thing that starts happening is that it thins the mucus and you begin sneezing it out. Then you start coughing it up.

It was like Magic, I kid you not!!

I'm lucky. Since I went Keto I don't get sick.

I do irrigate with xlear, as it keeps my nasal passages clear (I broke my nose as a kid) and if you believe the blurb on it, the xylitol keep the cold germs from attaching to your mucus membranes.

I rarely need any OTC med at all. A small bottle of ibuprofen will last me years.

Like any medicine, I would suspect the smallest dose necessary of any OTC med would be the dose to shoot for.

Bob

I've got extra challenges. Worn out before I figured out how to help myself, baffling trek to uncover my rare genetic condition, husband with his own chronic condition so I have all the errands and a full time job plus keeping our small business afloat.

Wearbear, I'm sorry you're going through this.
Take care of yourself first than the rest will be taken care of in due time.

Thanks. I've taken a couple of days off to rest. And I've been taking iodine!

For me, it's got so many benefits. My body temp went back up closer to normal, I could feel the difference in energy when I got lax in taking it for a couple of weeks. But the biggest thing I see is clearing out my lungs. It's immediate for me as soon as it absorbs, I guess. I always take it with Selenium which is said to make the Iodine work better so even though I probably get enough I still take it then.

What type of iodine are you taking and how much at a time?

Wearbear. This is the most stressful time of year and here is a little releif. Works everytime.Breath in thru nose, and say "I am...." then exhale thru mouth and say ,"peace....."

I use this ALOT.

I take 2-Iodoral 12.5mg with Selenium 20mcg in the am and again in the pm.

But I did it gradually starting with one in the am with a selenium for a couple of weeks then added 1 in pm. Then a couple of weeks later I went to 2 in the am and 1 in the pm and finally 2 at am and 2 at pm.

It's also vital to prevent all types of cancer like thyroid, prostate, ovarian and breast. The selenium also helps prevent colon cancer.

You can read about it on-line and/or buy the book "The Iodine Crisis"

:lol: I can imagine! I do something similar on my way to work. I use OOOOMMMM which also improves my singing voice by exercising the diaphragm muscle. :lol:

The thing that freaked me out so much, and led to me sharing here, is that the more I research, the more frightening this latest generation of prescription drugs becomes.

The side effects can be permanent. And doctors never discuss them! I find that shocking.

There is a great divide in medical care right now. Acute and trauma? Never been better. Chronic illness they don't understand? Possibly never been worse. Because their treatments are themselves dangerous.

Since my issue is autoimmune, I've researched the usual treatments and even endured a few of them, like increasing levels of steroids. Between my retired GP who had a healthy wariness of steroids and online exploration, it was the steroids in the Flonase that made me wary, though I'd turned down so many options by that time I figured "nose spray, that should be okay." Finding out what I was risking shut that optimism down.

Dr. Jack Kruse's concept of Cortisol Resistance was like a spotlight in a dark room. It explained everything. By forcing cortisol in the cells with steroids, it worked; but with the same dangers as injecting more insulin to overcome insulin resistance. In both cases, it was overproduction of the hormone which is causing the problem. People have to lower that hormone production.

With cortisol, it's about lowering stress. I had to change my living situation, my job duties, and even my leisure activities. (Kept the husband :lol: ) I'm back on daily progesterone. It's all working, though it's still a slog.

When the steroids stop working, now we're at the immune suppression tactic. It's all wrong. The immune system isn't the problem! Stress overproduces cortisol, which shuts down digestion, increases blood clotting, rebalances all the hormones for running from the tiger. This is usually a short term problem, either way :lol: But it also shuts down the immune system, because you don't need it if it's a tiger threat.

My stress never slackened until I discovered what was causing it. I needed to stop doing stressful duties as a living, and fortunately I moved through three different job titles until my present one is about as good as I can do with this company. I dipped into my "retirement" to expand my living space, and my cat business is doing better all the time. That's going to be my real retirement if all goes well.

I did all this, instead of the drugs, because while they seem like miracles, they have a very very dark side. They act like the immune system is the problem, when it's really that the immune system is already struggling to function. By shutting it down, they leave a person vulnerable to suddenly dying a bizarre and horrible death, similar to the victims in the early years of the AIDS crisis.

Why they don't make this connection I don't know. They are so focused on the wrong theory and expensive drugs which act on their theory that they just shrug their shoulders at "side effects."

Even ones that kill.

My two cents. I have chronic stuffy and/or drippy sinuses. Last time I looked for help on this (before an airplane trip) my doc prescribed an OTC nasal spray by the ingredient, not the brand. NOT Flonase, she said. The pharmacist guided me to cheapest and most effective alternative in line with my doc's advice.

Yes, when it took a prescription to get fluci-blah -blah, we never got Flonase, but a knockoff. Still the same chemical. The good and the bad.

Ha, I just threw away multiple boxes of free meds to knock out my immune system from 2 years ago. I looked it up, can't remember the name, thought I should save a box for reference but what for, it's garbage. God only knows what I would have caught as far as viruses or infections because of lowered immune system. All for a gut problem which came from stress and too much fiber NOT an over reactive immune system.
But that pharmaceutical salesman drops by with cases of this crap for the doctor to give out. They bring big catered lunches to the offices to bribe the doctors too!
This doctor I looked up and he is receiving $80,000 from 3-4 drug companies....Yes!

That's what we get for stubbornly continuing with this for-profit medical system in the USA. It's also the reason why all the industrialized countries are paying less than half what we pay for health and live longer, healthier lives.

I like the xlear because of the ingredients, xylitol, purified water, salt, and grapefruit seed extract. Xlear contains no Phenylcarbinol or Benzalkonium or Chloride or Oxymetazoline or Pseudoephedrine, which I have no idea what they will do to you if taken continuously.

I had a friend who was addicted to Afrin (oxymetazoline hydrochloride) and couldn't breath through his nose without it. It took over 6 months to break the addiction and be able to breathe through his nose again.

I used to use a neti pot mixing my own salt, baking soda, and xylitol but the formula requires distilled water, and I had to distill it myself. The distilled water you buy in the plastic jugs at the store has micro-plastics dissolved in it.

The xlear works almost as well and I don't need my distiller anymore.

Bob

I don't normally have any sinus issues. I just had to get on top of this bug after a HELLISH year where DH nearly died. We finally have a good medical situation going after our beloved GP retired, so he's back on track again.

I've settled into a less-stress situation moving forward, I just am so run down from months of effort. This morning I finally feel more energy, and I have only one more week of work until holiday break.

Just got to make it through the end of the year... and we have a friend's house party to look forward to early in the next one. That works better for both DH and myself: more relaxed, less noise, and less exposure to out of town germs!

Wow WereBear, I didn't know your DH was that sick. Sorry to hear that, and glad he is back on track now, for you and for him!

WB, stick to your guns.....you actually know FAR more than the MDs.

Ads on TV are mostly autoimmune drugs. WHY would I want to decrease my body's ability to protect itself? Fixing the underlying cause is how holistic healers approach chronic disease.

Which means we are on our own with the assistance of Dr Google.

Fortunately Dr Google is always on call!

Yes and I am so sick of these ads, one after another. DH and I laugh about them how ridiculous they are.

Prednisone is handed out like candy just for a head cold or anything else, these days.

I haven't watched TV since the late 1980s, but I can imagine. I see the ads in magazines and hear them on the radio.

The thing to remember, is they aren't trying to heal you, they are trying to sell you something to boost this quarters profits and keep the stockholders happy.

Ms A is right, fix the problem, not the symptoms.

Hang in the WB and take care of your DH.

Bob

How much iodine did you take, and how often? I've had post-nasal drip most of my life that has me constantly coughing and clearing my throat. Recently I got the bad cold that was going around. It's now gone, but the phlegm is now worse than ever. If I can clear this up with iodine, I'd be thrilled!

EDITED TO ADD: Never mind! When I saw your post I immediately responded with the quote. Then I read further in the thread and found my answer. Thanks!

Sorry, me again. I do have one more question. Is there a reason you started with just one Iodoral and then increased from there? Are there side effects if you take too much too soon?

Also, the standard dose for selenium seems to be 200 mcg, not 20 mcg. Is that what you meant?

Finally, I see how you ramped up the iodine, but the selenium stayed at one capsule morning and night, never going up to two capsules at once. Correct?

Do you think liquid iodine drops are as effective as the Iodoral tablets? I have a hard time swallowing tablets that large.

I recently heard about a case that has increased my caution.

A friend of a friend has macular degeneration, which is considered autoimmune. I know they inject immune-suppressing drugs, including steroids, to combat the inflammation. But in this case, the man woke up legally blind. And it's not getting better.

If his body was fighting off some kind of infection or other attack, the immune-suppressing drug stopped that. If they recognized this, they could test, or give antibiotics in case, like in surgery: something! Instead, I'm sure they never told this man about this possibility.

This side effect is considered "rare" and they dismiss it!

That's the thing about prednisone and other much stronger drugs they're using now. They want to mask the root cause just to sell some drugs that probably shouldn't be used on anyone except transplant patients.