Multiple prescription medicines are best avoided

Problems can arise when you are taking multiple drugs (Photo: iStock)

Some people are unlucky with the amount of prescription meds that they need to take daily. It isn't unusual to find some folk taking close to ten or more drugs regularly. Such situations are more common with the elderly who tend to have multiple medical conditions. The same goes for people with co-existing chronic conditions which require longterm control.

When patients need to take more than five prescription meds regularly, this is medically described as polypharmacy. Sometimes the situation is unavoidable. But more often than not, polypharmacy is inappropriate and predisposes patients to multiple risks.