A Pill Is More Than Just A Pill

Is a pill, just a pill? Most definitely not. In the second of a series of six articles, Organisation of Pharmaceutical Producers of India (OPPI) launches the Know Your Pill initiative, to educate patients on the untold story of the medicine and the intrinsic value of quality that make a pill much more than just a pill

Don’t we all remember the bitter taste that medicines left in our mouth? A paracetamol tablet to manage a fever or dull the pain of a sprained ankle, an antacid to take care of burns in the stomach or an antibiotic to treat an infection. These are all recollections that we own.

How many of us are aware of the complex journey of the tablet as we take it? Is there a curiosity in us as to how this medicine would behave in our metabolic systems after we take it? Will it be destroyed by the strong acidic juices of the stomach? Or will the liver enzymes digest them long before they can reach that painful knee?

There have been examples of people with a weak liver or kidney where an everyday vitamin or painkiller can be dangerous. Unsupervised consumption of painkillers has also led to chronic kidney/liver diseases in many instances.