Today

The use of drugs is becoming increasingly common to try and cure medical illnesses, but more practical solutions are often overlooked, with potentially threatening consequences.

The rise of the internet has led to a trend in drugs being ordered online, which consumers may see as a quick fix to their medical problems.

But the British Medical Association recently gave a warning to patients about the dangers of buying prescription drugs via the internet, which has become increasingly common, particularly amongst men who are still wary of going to see their doctor.

Dr Hamish Meldrum, Chairman of BMA Council, said: "There are two problems (with buying via the internet): you may not be getting the named drug, you may be getting an inactive substance or at worst a dangerous substance. A proper consultation with a doctor is needed."

Problems with obesity have led to a dramatic rise in patients taking anti-obesity drugs, but a study published in the British Medical Journal suggests that patients will only see "modest" weight loss and many will remain significantly obese or overweight.

The study, which looked at the long-term effectiveness of anti-obesity medications, found that three drugs recommended for long-term use - orlistat, sibutramine and rimonabant, reduced weight by less than 5kg (11 pounds). This equated to a loss of less than 5% of total body weight.

Guidelines from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence recommend stopping the use of anti-obesity drugs if 5% of total body weight is not lost after three months.

While making changes to lifestyle and diet are recommended as the initial treatment for obesity, the use of anti-obesity drugs is common. It’s estimated that in 2005 global sales of anti-obesity drugs reached $1.2billion. Current UK guidelines recommend using drug therapy in addition to making lifestyle changes if a patient has a body mass index of greater than 30.

The health benefits associated with taking the drugs varied. For example, orlistat reduced the incidence of diabetes in one trial and all three drugs lowered patients’ levels of certain types of cholesterol.

Adverse effects were recorded with all three drugs, in particular, rimonabant increased the risk of mood disorders such as depression or anxiety. The authors noted that no trials examined rates of death and disease as a result of taking anti-obesity pills. They recommend that trials looking at this should be carried out in the future.

Professor Gareth Williams of the University of Bristol warns of the potential damage to society if anti-obesity drugs are licensed to be sold without prescription:

"Selling anti-obesity drugs over the counter will perpetuate the myth that obesity can be fixed simply by popping a pill and could further undermine the efforts to promote healthy living, which is the only long term escape from obesity."

Further studies by the British Medical Journal showed that physical barriers, such as regular handwashing and wearing masks, gloves and gowns, may be more effective than drugs to prevent the spread of respiratory viruses like influenza and SARS.

The findings come as the UK government announced it is doubling its stockpile of antiviral medicines in preparation for any future flu pandemic. But the researchers believe that these simple, low cost physical measures should be given higher priority in national pandemic preparation.

There has also been recent controversy over the use of drugs to modify the behaviour of children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

Natural healthcare practitioner Mark Mathews, a distinguished osteopath who founded the Reve Pavilion Natural Health Clinic almost 20 years ago, has a special interest in emotional and behavioural problems in children.

He says: "ADHD is just a label given to a varied set of symptoms and different children have it for different reasons. Using drugs to suppress the symptoms, using special teaching methods or counselling on their own will not always make a great difference and they are expensive, long term and time consuming for the children and their families."

Mark has spent many years developing a unique method of treating children with ADHD and similar problems. The Sunflower Therapy calls on a variety of treatments which try to shift the focus away from drugs, which may include osteopathy, homoeopathy, and nutritional therapy.

It seems that while drugs are often a necessary solution to a variety of medical problems, they should not be seen as the only solution. Due care should be taken by consumers and doctors to select what is the best type of remedy for each individual, which may include physical treatments rather than drugs.