According to the Indianapolis Business Journal, Americans spent more last year on drugs than any of the previous four years.

According to the article,

Spending on pharmaceuticals in the United States rose more in 2009 than in the previous three years, driven by a 9.2-percent increase in branded-drug prices and a jump in children treated for chronic conditions.

The amount paid for drugs increased 3.7 percent, compared with 3.3 percent in 2008, according to a report Wednesday from Medco Health Solutions Inc., the largest pharmacy benefits manager by revenue. Branded-drug prices increased each year since 2005, when they rose 6.3 percent, Medco said.

Spending for treatments used by children up to age 19 grew four times faster than the overall population, Medco said. One in four insured children with chronic conditions, led by diabetes and attention deficit disorder, is taking drugs, such as Eli Lilly and Co.’s schizophrenia drug Zyprexa, once prescribed only for adults.

It is amazing to me that even though we are in a recession, drug prices are still rising and people are still forced to pay the inflated price. If you need to refill your prescription of Abilify or Zyrtec, do it here and save your hard earned money.

When diet, exercise, and a healthy lifestyle are just not enough to bring your cholesterol down to a healthy level, cholesterol-lowering medications may be the next reasonable step.

If cholesterol lowering medication is the path your doctor recommends you take, he will more than likely recommend on of these different types of cholesterol-lowering medications:

* Statins
* Niacin
* Bile-acid resins
* Fibric acid derivatives

Statins

Statins work by blocking the production of cholesterol from the liver itself. They lower LDL which is the bad cholesterol, and triglycerides, and minimally raise HDL, the good cholesterol. This is the most common type of medication your doctor will prescribe to treat your high cholesterol. Some of the side effects to look out for are intestinal problems, liver damage, and rarely, muscle tenderness. Some of the more popular statins are: Crestor, Lipitor, Lescol, Mevacor, Pravachol, and Zocor.

Niacin

Niacin is a B complex vitamin that is found in food, but is found in high dose concentrate via prescription. It lowers LDL cholesterol, and raises HDL cholesterol a little more than statins. The side effects are itching, tingling, flushing, and headaches. Some of the more popular brands of Niacin include Nicolar and Niaspan.

Bile-Acid Resins

Bile-acid resins work in the intestines by binding to bile that resides in the liver and prevent it from being reintroduced into the circulatory system. Since bile is made largely of cholesterol, it reduces the total amount of cholesterol in the body. The side effects are to look out for are constipation, gas and upset stomach. Some of the more popular brands of bile-acid resins are: Questran, Questran Light, Colestid, and WelChol.

Fibric Acid Derivatives

Fibric acid derivatives are a little less effective in lowering LDL, but do improve overall cholesterol health by raising HDL levels and decreasing triglyceride levels. Some side effects are mild stomach ache, muscle pain, and an increased risk for gallstones. Some of the popular brands of fibrates are: Atromid, Tricor, and Lopid.

Make sure if you begin taking cholesterol medications to avoid taking any anticoagulants. Also, avoid eating or drinking grapefruit.

I hope this will help shed some light on cholesterol lowering medication for those of you that are currently or about to start taking them.

Remember if you don’t have insurance and have to pay for your medications out of pocket, there is no reason to pay the inflated prices at your corner pharmacy. Order from a safe, verified, Canadian online pharmacy and save.

Good news for the older folks out there that are currently taking blood pressure medication. A new study revealed that blood pressure drugs that block the protein angiotensin, appear to reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.

The study involved some 819,000 veterans, almost all men, and found that those taking blood pressure medications had a much lower risk of dementia. According to an article from Health Day News

Angiotensin causes blood vessels to constrict, raising blood pressure. It is produced when enzymes act to convert a precursor molecule, angiotensinogen. Lisinopril is a member of a drug family called ACE (angiotensin-converting enzyme) inhibitors. Other examples of ACE inhibitors are benazepril (Lotensin), enalapril (Vasotec) and ramipril (Altace).

Reducing angiotensin production by giving ACE inhibitors can lower blood pressure. The same effect can be achieved with drugs that block the cell receptors through which angiotensin acts. Called angiotensin receptor blockers, these drugs have a greater protective effect against dementia than ACE inhibitors, the study found. Such drugs include candesartan (Atacand), irbesartan (Avapro), losartan (Cozaar) and valsartan (Diovan).

This was also found to be true for the drug lisinopril (Prinivil, Zestril). Lisinopril blocks the production of the active form of angiotensin.

The study showed that use of an angiotensin receptor blocker reduced admission to nursing homes by half. Combine angiotensin medication and therapy the number of those admitted to a nursing home dropped by two-thirds.

More

Yesterday a report was released that found combining the heartburn medication Prilosec with the blood thinner Plavix can decrease the effectiveness of the blood thinner by 50 percent, putting the user at greater risk for strokes and heart attacks.

“These recommendations are based upon recently submitted studies by the manufacturer of clopidogrel [Sanofi-Aventis and Bristol-Myers Squibb],” Mary Ross Southworth, deputy director for safety with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Division of Cardiovascular and Renal Products, said during a morning press conference.

“The results of those studies are to avoid the combination of those two medications,” she added. Even if the two drugs are taken separately hours apart the negative effects can still be experienced.

The worst part about it is that this is a very common combination because Plavix has been known to cause upset stomach. The good news is that some alternatives to Prilosec are safe, such as Mylanta, Maalox, and Zantac.

According to US and World News Report, proton-pump inhibitors similar to Prilosec — such as Aciphex, Nexium, Prevacid and Protonix — should also be avoided when taking Plavix.

Watch out for these other drugs that may also react with Plavix, making it less effective: cimetidine (Tagamet), fluconazole (Diflucan), ketoconazole (Nizoral), voriconazole (Vfend), etravirine, felbamate (Felbatol), fluoxetine (Prozac), fluvoxamine (Luvox), and ticlopidine (), according to the FDA.

If there is one online truth you can take to the bank, its that spammers will find a way to manipulate any and all possible outlets to reach consumers. We have all received the spam emails from rogue pharmacies, touting cheap drugs without a prescription. Not even Google and MSN can stop them from exploiting there advertising systems, and now they have moved on to YouTube.

YouTube has recently received a flood of new videos publicizing online pharmacy web sites that allow customers to purchase drugs online without a prescription. The videos are cheaply made and get straight to the point. According to the Huffington Post, in one video

a camera slowly pans around a sealed bottle of the stimulant Adderall before zeroing in on a cascade of pills poured on top of a laptop computer. “Buy Adderall online now from our new online store: click the link in the top right hand corner to buy now,” says a pop-up box at the screen’s base. At one point last month the clip had pulled in nearly 5,000 viewings.

A new study done over the past 4 months by the students at Columbia University’s Stabile Center for Investigative found around 170 videos advertising no prescription sell of controlled substances which had received 65,000 hits. They even went to one of the sites advertised and bought generic Prozac without a prescription.

These types of rogue pharmacies are looking to take advantage of consumers, and you need to look out for yourself. Never purchase drugs online from an un-reputable, unreliable, or unknown source, especially if they don’t require an original doctors prescription. Save money safely by ordering from verified online Canadian pharmacies. Join Canadian Online Pharmacies today.