Many medications, both prescription and over-the-counter, can deplete our bodies of vitamins and nutrients. The term “drug muggers” coined by author and pharmacist Suzy Cohen embodies this premise. While we take medications prescribed by our physicians to make us feel better, sometimes these same medications are steadily “robbing” our bodies. As a result, we are losing essential building blocks to help us build energy, fight off infections and keep us healthy.
So how can you educate yourself and find a source to help protect you from these nutritional shoplifters? Your investigative expert can be found as close as your neighborhood pharmacy. Pharmacists have the most extensive medication education of all healthcare providers. With medications becoming increasingly more bioengineered and complex, your pharmacist can help intervene in a nutraceutical manner when necessary. They can explain the link between your heart medication and CoQ10; probiotics needed when taking antibiotics; how your stomach medication may be reducing your magnesium, Vitamin B12 and calcium…and the list goes on.
So next time you have your prescription filled, take advantage of your pharmacist’s expertise. They can perform a medication analysis that not only monitors drug interactions and their side effects, but also sends those pesky vitamin thieves packing.
Kelly Authier, RPh
Williamsburg Drug Company