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62 - Wednesday, November 27, 1991 — North Shore News

‘Take precautions when using medication

TAKING MEDICATION is serious business. Cid you know that by combining certai:: medica- tions with others or by consuming certain types of foods, minerals or alcohol at the same time, you may be sabotaging the effectiveness of your treatment?

The interaction of some drugs with others, or «ith a specific food or minere}. can make you sicker than you were before. One drug can neutralize the effects of another or, just as seriously, magnify its cffects. Some com- binations can increase the risk of adverse effects.

@ One of the most common pain relieve:s, acetylsalicylic acid or ASA., is also used to prevent blood cists from forming and to aileviate arthritis. But it has a tendency to irritate the stomach,

“teacher leads annual

European tours

‘A FEW years ago, music teacher

Dianne Globe decided schools weren’t offering students what she considered quality educational travel packages at a_ reasonable price, so she decided to start organizing her own. .

“I was appalled at the lack of

. quality of the school trips,”” says

Globe, a music teacher of 14

"years.

For the last four years, a hand- ful of Lower Mainland schools have been faithfully following Glove to Europe. In 1989 she and French history professor Jack Pauwels of Guelph University or- ganized a major trip to France 10 study the French Revolution.

“What they are,” explained Globe, ‘‘is a holiday combined with formal! leerning. You learn just by being there.”

‘Their latest ‘trip was in the summer, with 21 people from the North Shore travelling with them to Europe to retrace Mozart’s steps, in honor of the child prodi- gy’s 200th birthday.

Globe and Pauwels offered par- ticipants a complete musical and historical perspective of the life and times of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

They led two separate groups aged 18-70 to Munich, Salzburg, Heidelberg, Vienna, Prague and Paris. ‘‘We took in 12 concerts, from opera to chamber music, and visited the Figaro House and Mozart Museum in Prague.’’

Globe was so overwhelmed by the turnout — 127 people, 75 from B.C. — that she’s already planning her next trip: Spain in 1992 and a tour of Eastern Block countries in 1993.

The tours are run by Ship’s School Educational Tours out of Brantford, Ontario. For more in- formation, phone 434-0857.

and by itself may even cause bleeding.

@ Milk impairs the absorption of tetracycline, a widely used an- tibiotic. It should not be consum- ed an hour before, or two hours after, taking the drug.

@ if you are taking digoxin, prescribed for certain heart condi- tions, don’t take an antacid for indigestion at the same time, for it may reduce digoxin’s effec- tiveness. And you must include fruits and vegetables in your diet to provide sufficient potassium needed for your body to cope with digoxin.

@ Patients being treated for high blood pressure with an an- tihypertensive drug should avoid nasal sprays or nose drops con- taining oxymetazoline, phenylephrine or pseudo-phedrine

HoHo

Physicians know that certain groups are always more ai risk when they take drugs. Those groups at special risk include in- fants and chilcren, women who are pregnant or breast-feeding, the elderly, and people with jong-term medical conditions, especially those who have impaired liver or kidney function.

Others who may need special attention include those already taking regular medication; they may risk complications if they add another drug.

Cephalexin, an antibiotic prescribed for a variety of mild to moderate infections such as bron- chitis or cysitis, may impair kidney function in patients over 60 years of age.

Glyburide, an oral antidiabetic drug, should not be taken during

It may cause abnor-

pregnancy. sugar in the

mally low blood newborn baby.

Nor should it be taken while breast-feeding, since the drug passes into the breast milk and by that means may lower blood sugar in the baby.

Newborn or premature infants, children with sleep apnea or those from families with a history of sudden infant death syndrome, should not be _ prescribed trimeprazine.

This antihistamine, used mainly to relieve itching from hives and other allergic skin conditions such as eczema, causes more marked drowsiness than many other an- tihistamines,

Methylprednisolone, as an ointment, relieves skin conditions such as dermatitis, eczema and

psoriasis; in lotion form, it con- trols acne.

One of the most powerful tools you can give your doctor or pharmacist to help maximize your health care is a complete list of any medications you take on a regular basis — both prescribed and over-the-counter. Better still, bring the containers with you, so that the doctor can verify the prescription.

To help you better understand the treatment your doctor prescribes, look for The Canadian Medical Association Guide to Prescription and Over-the-Counter Drugs, co-published by Reader's Digest and the Canadian Medical Association.

The book reinforces, clarifies and expands what the consumer’s doctor and pharmacist tell him.

lold

That Pose. ©

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