It’s true, drugs can save lives, but they can also destroy lives, especially the ones that are taken without medical supervision or prescriptions. It’s the easiest thing in the world to do – pop a pill when you feel a headache coming on or turn to a cough solution when your nose starts running and your throat’s turning sore. These are seen as harmless actions, but when done in excess or abused at will, can turn dangerous.

We don’t view OTC drugs with the same disgust we reserve for drugs like cocaine, marijuana and other addictive and narcotic substances, probably because we’re not aware of the dangers that these “harmless” pills and solutions pose. Any drug is dangerous, when taken in excess or taken without your doctor being aware of it. Kids and adults alike have been known to use cough syrups like Benadryl to give them a high – cough solutions are made of alcohol, and when taken in excess, provide a high and become addictive. Parents must keep an eye on their kids’ use of drugs by checking their medicine cabinets, not keeping drugs within their reach, and checking on their purchases. An abuse of medicines could:

• Make you ill – your system rejects the poison and makes you throw up or run a temperature.
• Cause dizziness and hallucinations.
• Impair your motor skills and mental functioning.
• Cause unexpected drowsiness.
• Cause organ failure – the liver is responsible for flushing out toxins from your body, and when you abuse drugs and take them in excess, your liver and kidneys are overworked and likely to fail.
• In extreme cases, cause even brain damage and death.

OTC drugs are not as safe as you think they are; just because they’re available without a prescription, there’s no reason to assume that they’re harmless. Most people are unaware of the fact that over the counter drugs are watered down versions of their prescription counterparts, and when you ingest too many of these diluted tablets or solutions, it could be turn out to be dangerous.

Any drug is made up of chemicals after all, so exercise caution when you’re tempted to take those pain killers and decongestants. You certainly don’t want to poison your system with toxic substances that can even cause death.