Some drugs, including common over-the-counter cold and cough medicines, can cause dependence and addiction, so people should follow the instructions on the label or consult a doctor before taking medication, a pharmacist said.
Some older people believe that taking Western medicine will become habitual and could even lead to kidney failure, but not all drugs cause dependence, addiction or kidney damage, Taipei City Hospital Linsen Chinese Medicine and Kunming Branch pharmacist Chen Kai-wei (陳凱威) said.
Correct use of medicine is important to avoid dependence and addiction, but it is often neglected, as many people mistakenly believe that taking a higher dosage speeds recovery, he said.
However, even the improper use of an over-the-counter cold medicine or cough syrup could lead to drug addiction, he added.
Codeine, an opioid used to relieve mild to moderate pain and reduce coughing, is found in some cold and cough medicines, and it reduces pain in a similar way to morphine, so people who increase the dosage on their own risk creating dependency or addiction to codeine, Chen said.
To relieve coughing and reduce sputum, some doctors prescribe “Brown Mixture Liquid” (甘草止咳藥水), which often contains expectorants and opium tincture, he said, adding that excessive consumption of opium tincture could lead to death, respiratory depression, drug addiction or constipation.
Reducing the dosage or completely stopping consumption of opioids could lead to withdrawal, with symptoms that include cravings, anxiety, restlessness, hot and cold flashes, sweating and disrupted sleep, Chen said.
People should always read the labels and package insert of over-the-counter medicine to make sure they understand the proper dosage and instructions, and consult a doctor or pharmacist if they have questions to avoid adverse reactions or addiction, he said.
Four factors led to the declaration of a typhoon day and the cancelation of classes yesterday, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said. Work and classes were canceled across Taiwan yesterday as Typhoon Krathon was forecast to make landfall in the southern part of the country. However, northern Taiwan had only heavy winds during the day and rain in the evening, leading some to criticize the cancelation. Speaking at a Taipei City Council meeting yesterday, Chiang said the decision was made due to the possibility of landslides and other problems in mountainous areas, the need to avoid a potentially dangerous commute for those
There are 77 incidents of Taiwanese travelers going missing in China between January last year and last month, the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) said. More than 40 remain unreachable, SEF Secretary-General Luo Wen-jia (羅文嘉) said on Friday. Most of the reachable people in the more than 30 other incidents were allegedly involved in fraud, while some had disappeared for personal reasons, Luo said. One of these people is Kuo Yu-hsuan (郭宇軒), a 22-year-old Taiwanese man from Kaohsiung who went missing while visiting China in August. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office last month said in a news statement that he was under investigation
PRO-CHINA SLOGANS: Two DPP members criticized police officers’ lack of action at the scene, saying that law enforcement authorities should investigate the incident Chinese tourists allegedly interrupted a protest in Taipei on Tuesday held by Hong Kongers, knocked down several flags and shouted: “Taiwan and Hong Kong belong to China.” Hong Kong democracy activists were holding a demonstration as Tuesday was China’s National Day. A video posted online by civic group Hong Kong Outlanders shows a couple, who are allegedly Chinese, during the demonstration. “Today is China’s National Day, and I won’t allow the displaying of these flags,” the male yells in the video before pushing some demonstrators and knocking down a few flagpoles. Radio Free Asia reported that some of the demonstrators
China is attempting to subsume Taiwanese culture under Chinese culture by promulgating legislation on preserving documents on ties between the Minnan region and Taiwan, a Taiwanese academic said yesterday. China on Tuesday enforced the Fujian Province Minnan and Taiwan Document Protection Act to counter Taiwanese cultural independence with historical evidence that would root out misleading claims, Chinese-language media outlet Straits Today reported yesterday. The act is “China’s first ad hoc local regulations in the cultural field that involve Taiwan and is a concrete step toward implementing the integrated development demonstration zone,” Fujian Provincial Archives deputy director Ma Jun-fan (馬俊凡) said. The documents
RSS