Generic Prescriptions Versus Name Brand Prescriptions

I have had both good and bad experiences with generic medicines. However, I still believe that generic prescriptions can be trusted if you do your own research before switching from the name brand to generic medicine. You must also always check with your doctor before changing.

Before changing to a generic brand, go online and do a search for the generic name of the medicine you are getting a prescription for as well as the name brand. Compare the side effects and ingredients in both. Make sure that there are not more side effects for the generic medicine. Also, make sure that the ingredients match up exactly. Even a small percentage difference in the amount of an ingredient used or one ingredient difference can cause the generic medicine to affect you differently than the name brand.

A good example of an ingredient variation causing a different affect than the name brand is when I changed to the generic brand of my birth control. I did not research the ingredients assuming that the generic was similar, but soon realized they were very different. I noticed this, because my face began to break out severely once using the generic. Once I switched back to the name brand, the rash disappeared.

Make sure you always know what your doctor has prescribed, because in the above instance the pharmacy automatically switched my prescription to generic. If I had not known exactly what my doctor prescribed, I would not have ever known my prescription was generic. This was done, because the doctor had allowed the use of a generic if available. If the pharmacy automatically switches you to generic, you want to make sure you investigate the side effects and ingredients of the generic before accepting the prescription.

Generics do work; you just need to be smart about using them. The best recommendation that I can give you is to research the generic before switching. Try the generic if ingredients are the same and there are no other side effects. If you notice anything out of the ordinary while using the generic, check with your doctor and perhaps even go ahead and switch back to the name brand.