Branded Name Medicines

Brand (trade) name. Many medicines also have one or more brand names. This is chosen by the company that makes it. Several companies may make the same generic medicine, each with their own brand name. The name is often chosen to be memorable for advertising, or to be easier to say or spell than the generic name. For example, paracetamol is a generic name.There are several companies that make this with brand names such as Crocin®, Calpol®, etc.

The brand name is usually written most clearly on any packaging. However, you will always see the generic name written somewhere on the packet (often in small print). Some medicines only have the generic name on the packet.

The colour, size, shape, etc, of brands of the same medicine may vary depending on which company makes it. Do not be alarmed if your regular medicine seems to have changed colour or shape. It may be that the pharmacist is getting it from a different company, or the doctor has written the prescription in a generic way rather than using a brand name. However, the medicine will be the same if the generic name is the same as before.

Generic Medicine

Generic name. Each medicine has an approved name called the Generic name. A group of medicines that have similar actions often have similar-sounding Generic names. For example, phenoxymethylpenicillin, ampicillin, amoxicillin and flucloxacillin are in one group of antibiotics.

Prescription medicines

All high-street pharmacists are obliged by law to dispense whatever the doctor has written on the prescription. If your doctor has prescribed a medicine by its brand name, your pharmacist must dispense that brand. However, if a medicine has been prescribed by its Generic name, your pharmacist can dispense whatever Generic version of the medicine they have available, because each version will have the same therapeutic effect, regardless of whether one manufacturer makes the tablets a different shape or colour. As a result your regular medicines may vary in appearance each time you renew your prescription. Generic prescribing like this is one of the ways in which the NHS can save money that can be better spent elsewhere.

Combination of Medicine

Some tablets or pills contain a combination of medicines. Combination products are often marketed and sold with a brand (trade) name. However, the individual ingredients (the individual medicines that are combined into the one tablet or pill) will all be listed in small print on the packet. For example, a popular painkiller has a brand name of Acetonac®. This contains two Generic medicines - diclofenac sodium and paracetamol.

Supplements

Supplements are not intended to replace the nutrients found in food. They are intended to provide nutrients that may otherwise not be consumed in sufficient quantities. Despite some of the conflicting evidence supporting the benefits of supplements, there are cases where a multivitamin/mineral supplement is a good nutrition insurance policy to ensure adequate daily intake for basic nutritional needs. It is reasonable that some days our intake may fall short. For example, if you’re adhering to a low fat, vegan diet, your vitamin B12 may be absent, and other vitamins and minerals such as vitamin D, calcium, iron and zinc can be low depending on your food choices. Nutrient absorption can also be impaired as we age and because of interactions with certain medications such as prolonged use of Metformin for diabetes. In these cases of deficiency or poor absorption, a basic multivitamin/mineral supplement may help fill in the nutritional gaps.

Sexual Health

World Health Organization(2002): Sexual health is a state of physical, emotional, mental and social well-being related to sexuality; it is not merely the absence of disease, dysfunction or infirmity. Sexual health requires a positive and respectful approach to sexuality and sexual relationships, as well as the possibility of having pleasurable and safe sexual experiences, free of coercion, discrimination and violence. For sexual health to be attained and maintained, the sexual rights of all persons must be respected, protected and fulfilled.