Experienced female pharmacist checking the indications and contraindications of a new medicine next to a young male customer in a modern pharmacy

How Medications Can Deplete Nutrients

Did you know that if you are taking drugs, you might be depriving your body of essential nutrients to remain healthy?

Even stated that while many medications have shown they can save lives, they equally eliminate nutrients from the body that the medications often need to continue to keep you healthy.

So if you have to take medication on the regular, what are you supposed to do?

Medications are designed to help us, to cure us, to make us feel less sick. So why would they take away an essential ingredient to our health?

Many patients who take medication do not realize that this effect can take place and that by combining a prescribed medication with other drugs, herbs, or supplements, they are, in fact, causing their body to become less healthy.

You do not want your body to be deprived of nutrients because this will mean that you are at risk of experiencing a whole range of nasty side effects that can make you feel worse. This ranges from feeling really tired and weak to even developing severe headaches and blood clots.

This is why it is so important to realize when your medication is not doing the job, it should be doing and take extra steps to ensure that you are taking the right steps to ensure your health remains intact.

To do so, it is important to understand how medications actually deplete nutrients before you can understand your options on how to counter it.

Here is a quick look at common medications and the nutrients they deplete from your body.

·   Birth Control Pills: Birth control pills often gets rid of Vitamin B, C, and magnesium from the body, which is why many females who go on these pills feel weak, tired, and even sick at times. Many people who take this medication also feel depressed and find they get sick easier. Luckily, there are many types of birth control pills, so if you are getting too depleted of nutrients, talk to your doctor about your options.

·   Hormone Therapy Pills  If you take hormone therapy pills, you are at risk of the medication taking away lots of the Vitamin Bs, along with magnesium as well. This is actually why people who, for example, go through transgender surgery and take hormone therapy pills, feel depressed and sad. Plus, many people who take these pills can suffer from heightened heartbeats because of the lack of magnesium, which could even lead to heart attacks.

·   Diabetes Medication: A lot of people suffer from diabetes, and a lot of people are taking medication to try to alleviate the symptoms. But when you take this medication, it can cause your body to become depleted of folate and Vitamin B12. When your body does not have these nutrients, you are prone to things like anemia, birth defects, and even memory loss.

·   Antibiotics: The chances are that if you get sick from a virus, your doctor will give you antibiotics to help you recover. But what this could also do is deplete literally all the Vitamin Bs, which is especially dangerous if you are trying to recover from an illness as your body won’t have any energy left. It also puts your bones at risk as they will become more brittle, and many people on this medication find themselves sleep deprived.  

So what is one supposed to do if you have to take medication but do not want to be at risk of enduring these side effects? Here are the tips for what you could look at doing to avoid being depleted of the nutrients your body needs.

1. Chat to your doctor. Go through all the risks of the medications, talk about the other medications you are taking and get advice on any changes in the diet you should make to ensure the medicine can work properly in your system.

2. Know what other medications you actually take. Too many people forget to disclose this important information because they either think it is either irrelevant or they just don’t remember. If you keep a list of all the medications and their names on your phone, your doctor will be better equipped with the information they need to prescribe the right medication and go through possible side effects with you.

3. Be aware of any changes your body goes through when you begin taking medication. Look at keeping a journal of anything you notice that feels abnormal so you can  go through the details with your doctor.

4. Look at adding a supplementary formula to coincide with your medication. There are some great products that are designed to fuel your body with the nutrients that medicine takes away from you, ensuring that you are at low risk of enduring any side effects.

While medications always have risks to them, there are several steps you can take to ensure that the side effects don’t cripple you and deplete you of the nutrients you need!