Land of the Overmedicated? ; Experts Fear Americans Take Too Many Drugs

Summary

---

Socrates once declared that medicine "acts as both remedy and poison" and that "this charm, this spellbinding virtue, this power of fascination, can be -- alternately or simultaneously -- beneficent or maleficent."

Modern America clearly appreciates the benefits. Today, a full 61 percent of adults use at least one drug to treat a chronic health problem, a nearly 15 percent rise since 2001. More than 1 in 4 seniors gulp down at least five medications daily.

See the full content of this document

Extract

---

Land of the Overmedicated? ; Experts Fear Americans Take Too Many Drugs

The trend has multiple causes: a spike in diabetes, heart disease and arthritis related to obesity; revised medical guidelines that treat high blood sugar, hypertension and high cholesterol sooner; and a multibillion-dollar push by pharmaceutical companies to speak directly to consumers about the payoff in trusting our hearts to Lipitor, say, or taking Boniva to help stop bone loss.

Therapeutic advances have, no question, proved lifesaving for many. ...

See the full content of this document

---