Fed: Prescription drug dangers for drivers and divers

AAP General News (Australia)
12-14-2000
Fed: Prescription drug dangers for drivers and divers

Pharmacists warn that prescription drugs present a danger to drivers and divers in
the holiday season.

The Christmas holidays are the peak period for road fatalities and hospitalisations
due to the interaction between alcohol and prescription medication.

Pharmacy Guild Queensland president KOS SCLAVOS also warns that sedatives and antihistamines
should not be taken prior to scuba diving.

He says prescription drugs mixed with alcohol affect reaction times, increase fatigue,
decrease the attention span and impair perception.

Mr SCLAVOS says many people wrongly believed that only powerful drugs such as tranquilisers
and antidepressants are dangerous when combined with alcohol.

However, the side-effects of over-the-counter drugs such as aspirin - including intestinal
bleeding - could be made worse when liquor is consumed.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics says 69 per cent of the public are regular users
of some form of medication.

Mr SCLAVOS says sleeping tablets are also a major problem for people who didn't realise
they exaggerated the effect of alcohol.

Motion sickness tablets are also antihistamine based and should be treated with caution
by people setting off for a long-distance drive holiday.

AAP RTV rr/sc/alt/jn

KEYWORD: DRIVING (BRISBANE)

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