If you were around in the 80s and 90s, then you surely remember the Just Say No campaign aimed to help young people avoid illicit drug use. Why? Obviously, because drugs can be very dangerous, even deadly. The ironic thing is that while the government, the media, and parents were telling youth to say no to drugs, the use of prescription drugs skyrocketed.
The primary tool in most medical doctors’ toolbox is prescription drugs. You tell the doctor what you are feeling, they give it a name, then they write a prescription. The use of legally prescribed drugs has become one of the leading causes of death and is responsible for catastrophic and ongoing side effects. And what is being done for the side effects? More prescription drugs.
These pills that get prescribed are not benign, inert substances. They are potent chemicals that alter pathways in the body, raise, lower, or change the chemicals responsible for bodily function, and always come with risk. In a lab, we can mix one compound with another compound and study the effect. And because we can know the exact amount of each compound, we get a reproducible, consistent result. The problem with medicine is that because each of us are so different (different genders, heights, body weight, genetics, etc.), every drug put into the body runs the risk of reacting in a way that is unknown. No drug has been studied on you, so it is impossible to tell you exactly how a drug will affect you, what it will help or hurt, or if it is even safe for you to take.
The average American takes many medications. One in four Americans takes three or more prescriptions, and 1 in 10 takes five or more. Yikes! More than 90% of Americans over 65 years old take at least one prescription, with 40% of them taking five or more. Twenty percent take a whopping 10 or more. And children are being prescribed more and more medication. So… as much as I would love to have Americans Just Say No to all these prescription drugs, I know that’s not happening. But can we make it safer?
I believe the person that you should be listening to the most when it comes to medications is the pharmacist. Medical doctors often lack the training on the specific chemistry of the drugs, don’t have the time to read the actual studies, and are heavily influenced by the pharmaceutical companies and the sales reps trained to sell them on their drugs. Mainstream media is so heavily influenced by the pharmaceutical companies that you definitely can’t trust them. The ads on television and in magazines are misleading, the benefits overstated, and the dangers are left out. And because Big Pharma spends so much on advertising (over $6 billion in 2025 alone), the news sources are unable to report any negative news about drugs or the drug companies. And there is A LOT of bad news to report!
Pharmacists are less influenced by the drug companies, have advanced training in chemistry and how these chemicals interact with the body, and can see if any of the medications you are taking are contraindicated. They know what drugs should not be taken together (which is important because each doctor prescribes medication unaware of what other doctors are prescribing you), they often can suggest alternatives that are more appropriate and safer, and they can give suggestions on ways to maximize the effectiveness and minimize the dangers of the medications they are providing. And my experience with pharmacists is that they tend to avoid medications themselves, as they know the risks and limitations of these drugs.
I do not take any medications, but if I did, I would make sure that I am discussing the pros and the cons with a pharmacist. I would also ask if there is anything I should be doing to minimize the side effects. And I would have them regularly review the medications to ensure that there are no dangerous interactions that they are aware of.
Goal number one is to avoid all prescription drugs. All drugs have side effects. No drug cures any condition (that’s why so many drugs have to be taken for life). Do your best to Just Say No. But if you absolutely have to take any medication, make sure a good pharmacist is part of your team, and utilize their expertise. The doctors are not the medication experts… the pharmacists are.
