Questions tagged [medications]

Use this tag for medical drugs, medications, pharmaceuticals etc. For other questions about drugs, use [recreational-drugs].

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Does acetaminophen use during pregnancy lead to children developing autism?

There are apparently a bunch of law groups recruiting for potential class action lawsuits happening right now targeting medicines that contain acetaminophen, most notable Tylenol. The lawsuits allege ...
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5 votes
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Did the drugs against COVID-19 whose EUA was revoked lead to a huge decline in hospitalization rates in Florida?

The FDA recently revoked the emergency use authorization for Regeneron and Eli Lilly. In this article, Ron Desantis claims that these medications led to “a huge decline” in hospitalization rates in ...
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Has LSD 'been widely used in hospitals for the treatment of mental disorders'?

Operation Moneybags is a video purporting to be a documentary covering medical experiments on British troops, The film has an opening card (27 seconds in) stating: This film was made during the ...
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Multiwave Locked System (MLS) laser therapy - is it any better than just infrared light?

Multiwave Locked System (MLS) laser therapy is marketed [1] as a healing and pain-relieving treatment based on simultaneous application of 808nm continuous light, and 905nm pulsed light from laser ...
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Do African countries using Ivermectin have a better Covid-19 situation?

In the great Ivermectin debate, one frequently mentioned argument on the pro-side is a comparison among African countries. They argue that a set of countries in Africa having significantly lower cases ...
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Are 99% of US beef cattle given steroids to promote faster growth?

Top google result The Meat You Eat: Steroid Use in Livestock claims Each year, U.S. farmers raise some 36 million beef cattle. 99% of all beef cattle entering feedlots in the United States are given ...
66 votes
2 answers
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Do the majority of doctors in the USA support hydroxychloroquine use for covid-19?

The Claim Scott Adams recently made the claim that the majority of doctors in the USA support the use of hydroxychloroquine. Normally a cartoonist's podcast would not be a notable source for a claim, ...
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Is hydroxychloroquine + zinc + antibiotics an effective treatment for COVID-19?

It's often claimed, for example, in this Spectrum News report that a drug combination of hydroxychloroquine and zinc and antibiotics is an effective early treatment for COVID-19. Researchers at NYU's ...
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9 votes
1 answer
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Does the US no longer make antibiotics?

On June 25th, 2020 Tucker Carlson claimed during his show: The most powerful nation on earth no longer makes antibiotics. He's obviously referring to the USA. Is the USA no longer manufacturing ...
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Have COVID-19 vaccination trials started in Seattle?

I am reading conflicting information on this. In a supposed Associated Press Exclusive, a report went out March 16th saying: U.S. researchers gave the first shots in a first test of an ...
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Do ibuprofen or paracetamol cause hearing loss?

This 2016 Express article gives a rather disturbing warning that two common pain killers might cause the risk of hearing loss. PARACETAMOL or ibuprofen could cause long-term deafness, experts have ...
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Does storing medicine at recommended temperatures prolong its life?

Many medical drugs contain directions to store them in certain temperature ranges - typically at room temperatures. For Example: Storage: Store at 20° to 25° C (68° to 77° F) ...
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Do statins contribute to dementia?

A documentary, Cholesterol, the Great Bluff (2016) - IMDb (depending upon location, available in Cholesterol: The Great Bluff), contains many examples of why statins are not only useless, but are ...
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1 answer
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Has shea butter been clinically proven to help?

Shea butter has been claimed to help with dozens of skin issues. These benefits include, but are not limited to: anti-aging properties mitigating acne healing wounds/scars/strech marks healing skin ...
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Do coca leaves help relieve symptoms of altitude sickness?

Coca leaves are widely used to relieve symptoms of altitude sickness in some South American countries, either chewed or brewed into a tea. Wikipedia says that no study has studied their effectiveness ...
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Is fever (temperature) below 106° F harmful?

Parents and pediatricians rush to treat low grade fever with acetaminophen and other powerful pain killers. Medical researchers refer to the over zealous treatment of non hazardous fever as fever ...
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Do the recent changes in US drug policy correlate with an increase in people moving from prescribed opioids to heroin?

I was reading about the price of heroin on The Recovery Village and they say: Heroin pricing varies a lot depending on the region where it’s sold, and as drug cartels have seen people become addicted ...
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In the past did Martin Shkreli offer free medication for those who could not afford it?

Martin Shkreli was a businessman in the pharmaceutical industry who became famous several years ago when his company increased some drug prices by a huge factor. I recently watched this video of him ...
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Does abuse of 'study drugs' increase school performance or learning?

Study drugs, such as Adderall, are regularly abused in colleges due to the belief that they help with studying and/or learning. However this article suggests that the affect is primarily a placebo ...
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Is the overprescribing of pharmaceuticals now one of the leading causes of death?

In an article in iNews some British experts have called, among other things, for an enquiry into the overuse of prescription drugs: Leading British health experts are calling for a Chilcot-style ...
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1 answer
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How are vaccines tested for very young children or infants? [closed]

I've heard people claim that vaccines aren't tested before being given to infants. I looked into it and found lots of references to extensive human trials, but the best reference I've found about ...
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Do SSRIs cause mass shootings/violence? [duplicate]

I'm am frequently seeing claims that anti-depressants are causing mass shootings. Here's one example from 1 Apr 2013: Ammoland Manasquan, NJ –-(Ammoland.com)- Nearly every mass shooting incident ...
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Was very little or no new medication developed in the USSR?

Prof. Robert (Haim) Belmaker, head of the Israeli Psychiatric Association, spoke today (2018-01-05) on the סדר יום / Daily Agenda radio program (Note this is a program in Hebrew). At some point in the ...
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Does inserting soap into the rectum relieve constipation?

There is an old wive's tale (mostly among parents with constipated babies) that you can temporarily relieve constipation by inserting a small piece of soap into the sufferer's rectum to prompt a bowel ...
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Can honey help heal wounds?

Many sources claim that honey help healing wounds. Consider for example DermNet New Zealand consultant360 webmd TF1 telejournal (in french) From DermNet New Zealand, it seems that honey is most ...
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Does drinking distilled kerosene cure cancer?

Recently one of my close relatives were diagnosed with terminal stomach cancer. An alternative medicine specialist recommended drinking distilled kerosene. This appears to be a common therapy: ...
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Are EpiPens still effective past expiration date?

Heard a bunch of people claiming that there was a study that EpiPens were found to be medically effective well past their expiration date. Is the claim true, and if so how sound is the study?
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Are Doctors in the USA forbidden from recommending natural health therapies?

A page on the Institute for Vibrant Living website states the following: Doctors are generally aware of what complementary medicine has to offer; in fact, they are better educated than most ...
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Do Testofen supplements "increase drive, improve performance, and enhance muscle mass"?

This is a paid ad for a testosterone booster, which seems to be pretty widely displayed The ad makes the following claim: Studies from India and Queensland, Australia have shown strong and even ...
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1 vote
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Effectiveness of Cold-EEZE, zinc gluconate glycine lozenges [duplicate]

What is the truth behind the effectiveness of Cold-EEZE (http://www.coldeeze.com/)? The product claims to be homephathic (which is a pseudo-science) but there seems to be actual, evidence-based ...
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Does taking paracetamol when pregnant cause autism?

A 2016 scientific report suggests that taking the painkiller paracetamol (also called acetaminophen in some countries) may cause autism or hyperactivity in children if taken while pregnant. This ...
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2 votes
1 answer
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Do hockey players sniff smelling salts?

This City News Toronto segment claims that many ice hockey players have been sniffing smelling salts (based on ammonia carbonate) for a supposed performance boost. (They go on to quote an expert ...
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2 answers
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Does aluminium hydroxide provoke allergies?

A German documentary released on the German channel Arte a few years ago makes the claim that aluminium hydroxide, when ingested alongside some foods, can induce allergies to those specific foods, ...
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Are the top selling prescription drugs only effective for one in five patients? [closed]

A 2016 editorial in the BMJ makes the following claim: The top 10 prescription drugs in sales have a cumulative clinical response rate of less than 20%. The claim is not the central theme of the ...
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4 votes
1 answer
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Is the same hep C medicine available for 900$ in India and 84000$ in the United States?

This is the pill that cures Hepatitis C India: $900 America: $84,000 This is what happens when big pharma has bought all your politicians Are these numbers accurate?
14 votes
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Do antibiotics weaken your immune system?

Recently, my friend told me that antibiotics will weaken your immune system. Their reasoning is that: Antibiotics remove the harmful bacteria from you, but they also remove the natural disease ...
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2 answers
431 views

Do antidepressants cause brain damage?

A friend two years ago read an online article that claims antidepressants cause brain damage. I don't know which one, but I imagine it was something like this. Do antidepressants cause brain damage?
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Is Ativan addictive?

My primary care doctor prescribed Ativan (a brand name for lorazepam) for me a few months ago to help with episodes of extreme anxiety. He warned that because of its potentially addictive and harmful ...
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0 answers
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Is the use of antibiotics justified for respiratory viral infections? [closed]

It is a widespread belief that antibiotics should not be used for treating viral infections, as they are effective against bacteria, not viruses (see e.g. http://www.cdc.gov/features/getsmart/). ...
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Does Paracetamol reduce fever?

My wife who is in hospital was given Paracetamol when the nurse noticed her temperature was above normal. Medical professionals have often recommended to my family members that Paracetamol be taken to ...
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1 vote
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Does Brain Toniq soft drink improve cognition?

Brain Toniq is a non-caffeinated soft drink that contains: Rhodiola root, Choline, DMAE, and organic wild-harvested Blue Green Algae extract While their web-site and their Facebook page make no ...
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Does sweating help to cure the flu

Many people advise you to put some warm clothes on, get under the blankets and sweat a lot to help cure flu/fever. On one hand there is a lot of opinion on the Internet saying that it does not work, ...
6 votes
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Do beard growth oils increase beard growth speed?

There are several topical oils that promise to speed up the growth of beards. Here's an example of the type of product I'm talking about: Beard Growther on Amazon About the Product Grow Your Beard ...
14 votes
1 answer
933 views

Is there a correlation between mass-murder and use of psychoactive prescription drugs such as SSRIs?

It seems to be a commonly-held belief that there is a strong correlation between the use of prescription drugs such as SSRIs and mass-shooters. For instance, this claim: Every mass shooting over last ...
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Is nitrous oxide not used during labor in US hospitals because it is cheaper?

In much (most?) of the world, women are able to use laughing gas (nitrous oxide) to relieve pain during childbirth, but this is almost never available to women in the United States. Several websites (...
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Would Mefloquine be approved under today's regulations?

The anti-malarial drug Mefloquine (aka Lariam, Mephaquin or Mefliam) is known to frequently induce strong neurologic side effects. I have heard a number of times that this drug would fail to get ...
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Can SSRI make things worse in the long term or cause delayed depression?

I found these two articles that mention that taking SSRI for depression can actually make the depression worse. Is it true? Can Tardive Dysphoria (delayed depression) be caused by SSRI? http://www....
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Has olanzapine (Zyprexa) caused 200,000 deaths?

In an editorial titled "Should journals stop publishing research funded by the drug industry? " in the British Medical Journal the authors make the following claim: Another dire example is ...
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Can this drug make "zombies" out of people in the sense they will do whatever they are told? [duplicate]

From here the drug referred to as Devil's breath "renders a person incapable of exercising free will". In the video at 3:27 one person claims people under the influence are completely susceptible to ...
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Have statins been responsible for a major reduction in cardiovascular disease?

Statins are a range of pharmaceuticals that inhibit the body's ability to produce "bad" cholesterol thereby reducing the amount in the blood. Lower LDL levels in the blood are known to be associated ...
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