What is Medication Fog?
Your risk of illness or injury increases as you age. As you age, the number of medicines that you take increases.
Almost 40% of older adults are taking five or more prescription drugs. This is due to the increased risk of adverse drug reactions caused by interactions between medications.
Medication Fog
Medication fog can be an adverse drug reaction that occurs when you take multiple medications. The symptoms can be confused with dementia.
* Confusion
* Memory loss
* Poor concentration
* Disorientation
* Mood changes
* Drowsiness
* Hallucinations or paranoia
The symptoms can appear without warning, even if the medication has not changed. It is the person who has changed, and not the medication. The kidneys become less effective as they age and are subject to other factors. This can lead to an accumulation of medications that can cause symptoms similar to dementia.
These medications may cause brain fog.
* sleep aids
* Anti-anxiety medications
* antidepressants
* blood pressure meds
* painkillers
Other problems associated with multiple medication use
Polypharmacy (the taking of five or more medications at once) can increase the risk of hip fractures. The medications can cause falls, dizziness and impaired balance as well as weakness, exhaustion and decreased bone density.
This can lead to “ prescription cascades .” When a medication causes an adverse reaction, the physician may prescribe another medication to treat it, leading to an endless cycle of medications with more side effects.
It can be particularly problematic when the side effects of a drug are misdiagnosed as a different medical condition. If medication fog is mistakenly thought to be dementia, then the patient may be prescribed more medications to treat dementia. This could lead to a higher risk of drug-related adverse reactions, without any improvement in cognition and function.
How To Reduce The Risk Of Medication Fog
Many older adults cannot avoid drug interactions, side-effects, and other problems that come with taking multiple medications. There are ways to lower the risk.
* Maintain a list of all medications (both prescription and over-the counter), vitamins, and supplements you take.
* Please list any drug allergies or adverse reactions that you may have experienced.
* Note when you began, stopped or changed your dosage for each medication.
* Tell your doctors as much as you can about the medications you’ve taken and their effects.
Have a “medication review” every year (or more frequently) with your doctor to see if any medications can be stopped or replaced by safer alternatives.
* Be alert to possible side effects, no matter how minor they may seem.
If you have any problems that may be related to the medications you are taking, talk to your doctor right away.
