A recent study based on data reported to the American Association of Poison Control Centers between 2001 and 2008 supplied some interesting news. The study stated that accidental medication poisonings increased 22% among children 5 and under. This is definitely not good news, but it is also in no way shocking to me.
Personally, I feel that America is over medicated. It seems that everything mandates a medication or vaccine these days. I have lived a relatively low-medication lifestyle. I only have taken one medication regularly in my life, an allergy medication. And that is because I cannot read when my allergies flare up due to extremely watery eyes. The only other times I take medications are when it is prescribed by a doctor, or I am having a particularly nasty headache. On the other hand, many people take medication willy-nilly. To me, it almost seems to have struck the sugar pill point. We take medication to make us think we are better, even if it has done nothing. The placebo effect exists in everything, though, and medication is no exception.
America may be over medicated for illness and pain, but there is another aspect which I find far more stupid: vitamin supplements. I may be a complete oddball with this statement, but I have never taken a dietary supplement. In fact, I think they are unnecessary unless the recipient of them has an actual medical condition. You do not need a pill to get the necessary amounts of vitamins and minerals, rather you need the appropriate diet. This is my opinion on supplements like Pediasure, too. In fact, the ads for that beverage simply annoy me. “My child is picky…so instead of improving her diet, I’m just going to supplement it.” You know what? That teaches the kid nothing about eating healthy. Rather, it teaches them they can just cheat their way out of eating well by supplementing. Supplements are a waste unless you truly have a medical reason to take them.
The children of America are overmedicated. Maybe I’m an odd duck, but I feel medication is pretty much unnecessary unless you need it to carry out an everyday action or are prescribed it. But that’s just me.