Cancer Support India

Reduce Your Anxiety with This Easy Technique

Anxiety can be experienced in many different situations, but for those who suffer from extreme anxiety, having a panic attack can be a very terrifying ordeal. In fact, nowadays, many people who suffer from anxiety have turned to drugs in order to try and keep some degree of control over their lives.

However, a dependency on drugs to beat your anxiety can lead to more problems, as you'll constantly be worrying whether you have your medication on your person, just in case you should feel a panic attack setting in.

There are ways to fight anxiety without the use of drugs, and one technique that can help you no matter where you find yourself is a breathing technique called "Alternate Nostril Breathing". This technique, developed by Kundalini yoga practitioners, is completely natural and may just give you the freedom from anxiety that you have been looking for.

According to the article "Panic Attacks and Suffocation Alarm Systems", published by the Colombia University Medical Center (CUMC), "panic attacks result not from fear and anxiety, but from breathing abnormalities". Research psychiatrist at CUMC, Dr. Donald Klein, proposed a model that said that people who experience panic attacks often have "hypersensitive suffocation alarm systems" that trigger breathing difficulties and the subsequent anxiety attacks.

Therefore, what we can draw from this is that breathing and anxiety attacks are linked, both scientifically, as significant research suggests, and anecdotally, as a popular means of controlling them.

Should you suddenly feel a panic attack approaching, no matter where you find yourself, simply excuse yourself, and find a quiet place where you can focus on your breathing.

This technique is as easy as it sounds...

Step 1. Block your right nostril, and breathe in deeply and slowly through your left nostril.

Step 2. Block the nostril you just breathed in with (left), and exhale out your right nostril.

Step 3. From here you continue to block your left nostril and breathe in deeply and slowly through your right nostril.

Step 4. Alternate this breathing process and focus on the air going in and out, and before you know it, you might have intercepted the panic attack before it goes any further.

We are beginning to learn more and more about panic attacks, and having a technique that you are able to draw on in a tricky situation is something that you can always carry with you. That is, instead of something physical, such as drugs, which you can lose.

So give Alternate Nostril Breathing a go, and hopefully, it will help prevent severe anxiety attacks.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.

https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement

Labels: alternate nostril breathing, anxiety, breathing techniques, dependency, drugs, more problems, ordeal, panic attack, terrifying

Immunotherapy drugs when combined prevent melanoma progression

In a new trial, researchers have discovered that a combination of 2 immunotherapy drugs-ipilimumab and nivolumab- is capable of reversing or preventing the progression of advanced melanoma for 5 years or more in every 2 patients.

Just 10 years ago, only 1 in 20 patients with advanced melanoma would survive for 5 years- with many living for just 6-9 months.

The results of the trial, represent the longest phase 3 trial follow-up for checkpoint inhibitor combination therapy.

In the past, metastatic melanoma was regarded as untreatable. Oncologists considered melanoma different to other cancers-- it couldn't be treated once it had spread. This is the first time we can say that the chances of being a long-term survivor of advanced melanoma are now over 50%, said one of the researcher.

Researchers incorporated 945 patients with advanced melanoma randomised into 3 groups- 314 patients received the ' double-hit' of nivolumab + ipilimumab; 316 patients received nivolumab + a placebo; and 315 patients received ipilimumab + placebo.

Each nivolumab arm was compared to ipilimumab by itself, and was administered until the disease progressed or until any side-effects became unacceptable.

The 5 year overall survival rate for the combination of nivolumab + ipilimumab was 52 %, with 74 % of those patients treatment-free after 5 years. The overall survival for nivolumab was 44 % and 26% for ipilimumab.

The Prof. explained, by giving these drugs together you're effectively taking 2 brakes off the immune system rather than one so that the immune system is able to recognise tumours it wasn't previously recognising and react to that and destroy them.

Importantly, for those patients who stopped treatment because of side-effects such as fatigue, skin rashes and diarrhea, the outcome was just as good as it was for those who were on the combination for longer.

One of the key points about immunotherapies is that the immune system can be re-educated even with a short duration of treatment. This is in contrast to other treatments like chemotherapy which can require a full course to be as effective.

this is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.
https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement

Labels: combined, drugs, immune system, Immunotherapy, Ipilimumab, Melanoma, metastatic, Nivolumab, prevents, progression-free survival

Drug to replace chemotherapy may reshape cancer care

A class of drugs is emerging that can attack cancer cells in the body without damaging surrounding healthy ones. They have the potential to replace chemotherapy and its disruptive side effects, reshaping the future of cancer care.

The complex biological medicines, called antibody drug conjugates (ADCs), have been in development for decades, and are now generating renewed excitement because of the success of one ADC in late-stage testing, a breast cancer treatment called DS-8201.

The fervor over ADCs is such that AstraZeneca Plc in March agreed to pay as much as $6.9 billion to jointly develop DS-8201 with Japan’s Daiichi Sankyo Co., the British drugmaker’s biggest deal in more than a decade. The investment was widely seen to be a validation of DS-8201’s potential — and the ADC class of drugs as a whole — as an alternative for chemotherapy, the most widely used treatment, for some types of cancer.

DS-8201, which will be filed for U.S. approval by the end of September, is so well-regarded that some analysts already predict it will surpass the $7 billion in annual sales for Roche Holding AG’s breast cancer drug Herceptin, which it aims to replace.

“DS-8201 may become one of the largest cancer biologic drugs,’’ said Caroline Stewart, an analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence who estimates sales of the drug to eventually approach $12 billion globally. That’s a level that has been attained by only a handful of biologic drugs, which are produced from extracts of other living organisms.

Analysts say DS-8201 could triple the number of patients who get powerful targeted treatment for breast cancer, the most common tumor in women that kills more than half a million annually. As importantly, its ability to target cancer cells without affecting normal cells is a key advantage over the take-no-prisoners approach of chemotherapy.

Daiichi’s treatment has been seen to double survival time for advanced breast cancer patients to 20 months from 10, former UBS Securities Japan Co. analyst Atsushi Seki said in March. In trials, patients using DS-8201 experienced less nausea and hair loss compared with chemotherapy.

Magic bullet

DS-8201’s full potential is still years away, as it will take time for data to validate the drug’s efficacy in a wide range of patients. Still, the potential of ADCs is already jolting Big Pharma. Roche, whose Herceptin loses patent exclusivity in the U.S. this year, has added ADCs to its portfolio with its Kadcyla breast cancer treatment. Pfizer Inc. has Mylotarg, an ADC that treats myeloid leukemia.

About 56 pharmaceutical companies are developing ADC candidates, including ImmunoGen Inc. and Seattle Genetics Inc., and they could be targets for acquisitions or licensing deals from global pharmaceuticals anxious for a piece of the ADC pie, according to Cowen Inc.

“ADCs are being positioned as a chemo replacement,’’ Cowen analysts including Boris Peaker wrote in an April note. “There is significant potential for partnership activity.’’

The global ADC market was valued at $1.57 billion in 2017 and is projected to grow 26% every year through 2025 to almost $10 billion, according to a report by Grand View Research.

The concept behind ADCs was envisioned in 1900 by German Nobel laureate Paul Ehrlich, who formed the idea of a “magic bullet” in which a single toxic molecule would be delivered to attack a diseased cell without damaging surrounding healthy cells.

The actual use of ADCs began in 2000, but the interest in the sector cooled down as many failed to live up to expectations. The therapies belong to a broader category of cancer immunotherapies that include Merck & Co.’s Keytruda and Novartis AG’s CAR T-cell therapy Kymriah that harness the immune system to kill tumors.

Another level

Daiichi Sankyo’s drug takes ADCs to another level. Its advantage is that it carries eight payloads stably to cancer cells, double the number of the industry standard, said Toshinori Agatsuma, head of oncology research at Daiichi Sankyo who led a team that discovered the therapy.

“Currently available ADCs are far from being perfect technically because the payload linked to antibodies aren’t properly delivered to cancer cells,’’ said Agatsuma. “We wanted to challenge and improve that. We were a latecomer in biotech, but I knew it was an area where we could catch up, compete and win.’’

About 2.1 million women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year, according to the World Health Organization. Some 18% of cases are driven by a protein called HER2, and their first treatment is chemotherapy alongside Roche’s Herceptin and Perjeta, a related drug. While DS-8201 is currently in testing for later-stage cancer, the plan is to go up against the first-line treatment in the next two years.

“It would be transformative” if the drug were to become the sole first-line treatment, said David Fredrickson, president of AstraZeneca’s oncology business. “If we can eliminate the side effects associated with chemotherapy, that would be a tremendous benefit for women.”

Drugs like Herceptin only target high levels of HER2, and women with lower levels must rely on hormone therapy or chemotherapy. That’s where DS-8201 has the potential to serve far more patients, treating those with both higher and lower levels of HER2.

It’s different’

“We need more evidence, but my gut feeling is that DS-8201 is the most effective among existing medicines targeting HER2 positive patients, including Herceptin and chemotherapy,’’ said Shunji Takahashi, deputy director at the Cancer Institute Hospital of the Japanese Foundation for Cancer Research, who took a part in an early-stage DS-8201 trial. He noted that interstitial pneumonia is a concern as a side effect, and needs to be monitored.

For Daiichi Sankyo, the development of DS-8201 has helped resurrect the Japanese company after it struggled for years to set a path for growth, weighed down by a failed acquisition of India’s Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd. and a shortage of blockbuster products.

“A single drug has a potential to transform Daiichi Sankyo and I didn’t expect it a year ago,’’ SMBC Nikko Securities Inc. analyst Yasuhiro Nakazawa said. “Daiichi Sankyo had a track record of betraying market expectations with previous drug developments. But with this one, I can really feel that it’s different this time.’’

this is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.
https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement

Labels: antibody drug conjugates (ADCs), biological, cancer care, Cancer Cells, chemotherapy, complex, doesn't affect, drugs, key advantage, less nausea n hair loss, meds- DS-8201, normal cells, replace, reshapes, target

Commonly prescribed medications could almost double dementia risk

Researchersrecently conduced a study to explore the link between a certain class of drugs and the memory loss condition.

To do so, they used QResearch, a large database of anonymized health records, to examine nearly 285,000 adults in the U.K., aged 55 and older, between 2004 and 2016.

The team then reviewed each subject's prescription records to determine their exposure to anticholinergics, which can include antidepressants, bladder antimuscarinics, antipsychotics and antiepileptic drugs.

After analyzing the results, they found those on anticholinergic medications had almost a 50% increased chance of developing dementia, compared to those who didn’t have prescriptions for anticholinergic drugs. The risk was only associated with 1,095 daily doses within a 10-year period, which is equivalent to an older adult taking a strong anticholinergic medication daily for at least three years.

“The study is important because it strengthens a growing body of evidence showing that strong anticholinergic drugs have long term associations with dementia risk,” coauthor said. “It also highlights which types of anticholinergic drugs have the strongest associations. This is important information for physicians to know when considering whether to prescribe these drugs.”

Although the authors said “no firm conclusions can be drawn about whether these anticholinergic drugs cause dementia,” they hope their findings can help professionals better understand the disease. They also advised patients to not stop taking their medications until consulting with their doctor.

As for antihistamines, skeletal muscle relaxants, gastrointestinal antispasmodics, anti-arrhythmics, or antimuscarinic bronchodilators, the scientists noted there were no significant dementia risks associated with them.

THIS IS ONLY FOR INFORMATION, ALWAYS CONSULT YOU PHYSICIAN BEFORE HAVING ANY PARTICULAR FOOD/ MEDICATION/EXERCISE/OTHER REMEDIES. PS- THOSE INTERESTED IN RECIPES ARE FREE TO VIEW MY BLOG- https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/ FOR INFO ABOUT KNEE REPLACEMENT, YOU CAN VIEW MY BLOG- https:// kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com/ FOR CROCHET DESIGNS https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com

Labels: anticholinergic, antidepressant, antiepileptic, antipsychotic, bladder antimuscarinics, dementia, drugs, exposure, higher risk, memory loss

Daily habits that tell how good or bad your future will be

Daily habits reveal about our personality

Not many would realise it, but we are a product of what we repeatedly do. Our behavioural pattern by frequent repetition over the time gets etched on our brain that later turn into automatic actions. And, that’s what is called, a habit.

What does habit signify?

These habits are a mirror to our personality, which also sometimes serves as a non-verbal form of communication. For example, having tea every morning with breakfast or picking your nose (no matter how good or disgusting it sounds) these tiny behavioural patterns become our habit.

Habits and future predictions

Back in ancient times, people used this information of one’s habit to understand each other. But, did you know that these habits also tell us about how our future will be?

Keep reading...

Our habits- good or bad, actually reveals a lot about us, like thoughts, basic nature, etc. The following slides would explain how simple daily habits have a huge impact on our future and decide how good or bad our future would be

1. Leaving an uncleaned bathroom

People who do not bother to clean the bathroom after using it, or dump dirty clothes around the bathroom floor is linked with weakening the position of Moon in birth chart, and has a negative effect career wise.

2. Dragging feet while walking

This is considered a bad habit by many scriptures too. It is said dragging your feet indicates bringing along the dirt en-route your destiny. This habit signifies a negative impact of Rahu in life.

3. Leaving dirty utensils on the table
Often people have the habit of leaving their used utensils after the meals. They wait for someone else to pick it up and clean. This habit signifies that the person has the least regard for efforts and struggle to find stable success. Cleaning the area after you finish the meal, including putting away the dirty utensils discards Shani and Chandra dosh.

4. Never washing hands and face

After spending the entire day outside, when you get back home, the first thing should be washing your hands, feet, and face. Not only it’s hygienic, but washing your face, hands and feet also washes away the negativity you might have brought back home. And, it ends up bringing relief to your stressed and chaotic mind.

5. Cleaning the puja room daily

Your puja room or the corner where you worship in your home must be always clean as this is the place from where the positive energies flow in. Leaving the idols or the area dirty would initiate the imbalance in the planets of your birth chart, leading to unfortunate results in academics, finance, and family life.

6. Being awake until late

The ancient culture suggests that it’s wise to sleep in night, when the Moon is strong and bright. The moonlight soothes our mind and body, and allows it to heal while our senses are calmed down during sleep. Whereas, being awake would mean making our senses forcibly work and avoiding the Moon to work in its natural way. Doing so, leads to growing stress and health problems; sometimes long term damage to health.

7. Offering cold water to guests

When someone enters your home, they bring along their energies which interferes with your own energy field. Ancient sages suggest that offering cold water to your guests calms down their inner body heat. This habit also discards off Rahu dosh and kaalsarp dosha in your birth chart.

8. Scattering footwear

If anyone has the habit of leaving their footwear scattered around the house, then it signifies an increase in the number of enemies for them. Shastras explain that disrespecting your footwear affects your social status.

9. Dishevelled kitchen

If someone keeps their kitchen unclean and in disheveled condition then it leads to the negative planetary motion of Mars in your horoscope. People, who have a Mangal dosh in their birth chart, are advised to especially keep the area dedicated to Goddess Annapurna clean.

10. Watering plants daily

People who regularly and religiously water plants never have problems in their love and family life. Also, according to shastras, this habit throw-outs any kinds of doshas from life because of imbalance in Sun, Moon, Venus, and Mercury.

11. Making your bed
People, who rarely change their bed sheets and almost never make their bed after waking up, often face issues related to focus. They have lousy lifestyle and despite best of efforts never get what they desire. Changing this habit would definitely turnaround the time.

12. Talking loudly

People speaking on a pitch higher than their usual tone are often faced with problems related to Shani. All your life, you will struggle to keep relationships in good shape and maintain sanity in family life.

13. Dirty feet

Some people have least regard of personal hygiene, especially their feet. Your feet take the load of your entire body and not take care of its hygiene would be jeopardising the pillar of your health. This habit signifies that the person never bothers to strengthen or maintain their family values, which doesn’t ensure a peaceful future.

14. Disrespecting elders

If someone has the habit of neglecting the elders of the family, disrespecting their existence or turning deaf to their needs, then their home never fully prospers. It leads to jeopardising career, social position and family life in the long run.

15. Spitting
People who scatter their spit around their living habitat, workplace or in nature, actually throw away their success, social respect, and wealth. This habit leads to the wrath of Goddess Laxmi.

16. Addiction to drugs and liquor

Making a habit or getting addicting to such things attracts the negative effect of Rahu, which leads to stress, and migraine. These people may work hard, but seldom get the chance to enjoy the fruits of their effort.

THIS IS ONLY FOR INFORMATION, ALWAYS CONSULT YOU PHYSICIAN BEFORE HAVING ANY PARTICULAR FOOD/ MEDICATION/EXERCISE/OTHER REMEDIES. PS- THOSE INTERESTED IN RECIPES ARE FREE TO VIEW MY BLOG- https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/

FOR INFO ABOUT KNEE REPLACEMENT, YOU CAN VIEW MY BLOG- https:// kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com/

FOR CROCHET DESIGNS https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com

Labels: affects, alcohol, dirty feet, dishevelled kitchen, disrespecting elders, drugs, future, HABITS, making bed, scattering footwear, spitting, talk loudly, uncleaned bathroom, water to guests, watering plants

12 Things You Should Never Lie To Your Doctor About

When it comes to a meeting with a doctor, a few white lies may actually snowball into a real tragedy. And while you may not see any harm in concealing a bad habit, forgetting to mention a multivitamin you take, misrepresenting the amount of exercise you do, or simply not showing up at the doctor’s office for a while, all of these things may really harm your health and pose a serious health risk. Learn which 12 common lies you should never say to your doctor by reading through the list below.

1. Make sure to state all the medications and supplements you’re taking, even over-the-counter drugs and nutritional supplements

Anything that you ingest or inject into your body may interfere with its functioning or another medication you are prescribed, so not mentioning them to your health provider puts you at risk of side effects and drug interferences, which can potentially endanger your physical and mental health.

These medications include:

Prescription medications (e.g. blood-thinners, antidepressants, antibiotics, and heart medications).
Over-the-counter medications (such as aspirin).
Herbal remedies (botanical remedies and herbal supplements).
Vitamins and supplements (complex vitamins, amino acids, minerals, protein supplements, weight loss supplements).

The symptoms of a problematic drug interaction vary and can potentially be life-threatening: extreme drops in blood pressure, an irregular or fast heart beat, liver and kidney damage, nausea, upset stomach, and headache. The list of drugs and symptoms goes on, and only a licensed professional can confirm whether the combination of drugs you’re taking is safe.

2. Mention all past surgeries and medical procedures, even minor ones, including pregnancies and labor

Being honest with your doctor about every minor surgery or cosmetic procedure that happened years ago might not seem important to you, but this information may be a crucial clue to your doctor that can help diagnose and treat your condition. Be explicit about any surgeries and medical procedures you’ve been through, including:

Cosmetic and plastic surgery.
Labor complications or abortions.
The removal or skin bumps or lumps.
Trauma, etc.

This is important because some surgeries increase your likelihood of developing certain diseases and symptoms, e.g. a removed gallbladder may make you experience bloating and abdominal pain after eating fatty or spicy foods.

In addition, your previous surgeries may give your doctor some additional insight to what’s going on or point to a bigger issue, like a cosmetic filler may get inflamed or cause severe and even chronic allergic reactions, which may not be diagnosed unless you disclose that you had this procedure.

Finally, anesthesia-related issues, such as the possibility of complications, are always a consideration before an upcoming surgery, and a history of previous surgeries may help your doctor better gauge the dose and kind of anesthetic to be used.

3. Don’t lie about your age and your parents’ medical history

Disclosing the patient’s age accurately is extremely important, as many crucial preventative medical procedures are age-dependent. This may help you prevent serious diseases, such as cancer, for one. Another preventative measure that you might be missing out on are immunizations, the majority of which are age-dependent, especially for kids.

Speaking of children, it is of utmost importance to be accurate about the age of small kids, as the medications they can take safely and effectively lean on the age of the child. It is also important for everyone to notify their doctor about any conditions that run in their family, such as cancer, diabetes, genetic conditions, etc., as your doctor will assign additional tests and screenings for you to prevent or manage the condition you are likely to have inherited from your family.

4. Never misrepresent how much you exercise, as well as the quality of your diet

It is understandable that we want to look good in our doctor’s eyes and often state that our activity levels are higher than they actually are, but a lack of exercise, as well as an unhealthy diet, can set you at risk of diabetes and heart disease, and your doctor has to know how much you actually exercise to be able to access your long-term health.

For one, they can actually help you choose the diet and exercise regime that is best-suited for your lifestyle. But a lack of exercise isn’t the only danger, as your doctor may direct you to abstain from exercise or certain foods for different reasons, and if they don’t know that you work out and eat too much or too little of something, you’re setting yourself to more complications.

5. Always state the truth about how much time you spend outdoors, especially without sun protection during the day

Unprotected sun exposure increases your likelihood of developing skin cancer, even during short trips from the car to the shopping mall, to work, or home. Even if you don’t get sunburned regularly, but don’t wear and reapply sunscreen, or used to tan without sunscreen on in the past, you’re at a higher risk of this condition, as are the people who visit tanning beds.

If any of the above-mentioned conditions apply to you, share this information with your doctor, as you will require more thorough and regular skin examinations.

6. Don’t lie about your oral health

We all know how we’re supposed to brush and floss twice a day, and we’re often very eager to share that knowledge with the dentist, even when we don’t really follow this recommendation ourselves.

But the truth of the matter is that your oral health is inevitably connected to your overall health, and poor oral hygiene has been linked to a variety of health issues: frequent coughs, cardiac disease, problems conceiving (in women), and several others. Be explicit about your oral hygiene habits and improve them if your doctor claims it may be causing your health issue.

7. Honestly state your own medical history, including the last time you’ve seen a doctor

Let’s face it, for most of us, going to the doctor is a dreaded chore, especially if you know that you have a particularly uncomfortable procedure to go through, and a few months delay can swiftly snowball into years for some people. Whatever is the case for you, be straightforward with your healthcare provider about the last time you paid them a visit, as during this time, you might have missed a few preventative procedures, immunizations, and routine checks.

In simple words, your doctor will make a more thorough examination when they know that you haven’t been to a doctor for a while. The same rule works for your health history: e.g. a previous history of many allergies, for example, increases your likelihood of having asthma, so it warrants a more in-depth investigation of the lungs.

On top of that, your medical history may influence the kind of medical treatment you can or cannot receive for a non-related condition, so always make sure to notify the doctor of any other conditions you have or used to suffer from, including allergies and chronic illnesses.

8. Be honest about uncomfortable matters, such as bowel movements, menstrual cycle, mental health, etc.

While it may be a very uncomfortable topic of discussion to you personally, things like bowel movements, reproductive and mental health are what most doctors deal with on an everyday basis. Furthermore, factors like erectile dysfunction or anxiety may be an important diagnostic criterion of seemingly-unrelated conditions, and letting your doctor know about these symptoms will help you feel better in the long run.

Apart from that, symptoms like constipation or diarrhea may be pointing to problems with your medication. Finally, some medications may be dangerous for you, e.g. certain heart medications may worsen one’s depression symptoms, so it is key to tell your doctor about your condition for them to choose a different medication for you.

9. Tell your doctor if you haven’t followed the directions before a medical procedure

Telling an anesthesiologist that you have fasted before a surgery when you didn’t can cause severe complications, as during sedation, the contents of the stomach may spill over into the respiratory tract, making you choke on your food or develop pneumonia.

It is important to reschedule your surgery, in that case, as going under the knife will endanger you. But a fast not kept before surgery isn’t the only issue, as not following the doctor’s directions may also mess with your blood test or imaging results, so it’s best to be explicit if you haven’t really followed the instructions as you were supposed to.

10. If you haven’t understood something your doctor told you, ask a follow-up question

It is natural to ask follow-up questions, but many patients are too modest and don’t want to impose their concerns to their doctors.

In reality, however, it is crucial that you understand exactly what to do after leaving the doctor’s office, be it making appointments to other specialists, how often to take the newly-prescribed medication or how to prepare for an upcoming screening or procedure. Don’t be afraid to raise any questions and concerns, even if it takes some extra time at the doctor’s office.

11. Let your doctor know if you forgot to take the prescribed medication

It is crucial for your doctor to know if you made any alterations to your medication schedule, as taking too much or too little of the medication, or skipping as little as a day can really affect your health. And it doesn’t matter if you stopped your antibiotics a few days early, skipped contraception or forgot to take your heart medication, you should always keep your doctor informed about this.

The same goes for misrepresenting the amount of painkiller you take daily, even if it’s an over-the-counter one. If you have to take more of the medication your doctor prescribed or supplement it with an over-the-counter one, it can damage your liver and build up the number of toxins in your body, but it isn’t all.

If you’re taking a prescription painkiller, it is crucial to stick to the doses you were prescribed, as several painkillers (e.g. Percocet, Vicodin, Norco, Ultracet) are combination pills and they include strong opioid medications in addition to acetaminophen, which are addictive and damaging to your health.

12. Be explicit If you smoke, drink alcohol or take any recreational drugs

This last point is actually a crucial one, as it can be life-threatening. Alcohol consumption and drug use can mess with the rest of your medications, making them less effective or causing side effects. Marijuana use, for example, can render some antidepressants, heart medications and blood thinners ineffective.

A severe alcohol habit is no less harmful, however, as alcohol withdrawal symptoms can kill an in-patient, especially if the patient didn’t disclose their habit and the doctors don’t suspect they’re supposed to treat withdrawal symptoms and not something unknown.

Smoking tobacco, on the other hand, increases one’s likelihood of developing a variety of lung diseases, erectile dysfunction, heart disease, and stroke. Finally, all of these habits may interfere with your vital signs and health tests, which will prevent you from getting the treatments and health screenings that you really need.