Wednesday, February 20, 2019

Prescription drugs, USA

Prescriptions medications. In the USA there isn't a law that says manufacturers need to provide if something is GF or not. Most medication is created with corn starch as a filler, but some do use gluten.

I worked at a pharmacy in college. When people would ask about ingredients, we would hand them the package insert to read and/or call the company.

I get my prescriptions filled at a name brand chain store found in the USA. They won't do anything. I have to ask for the generic company and NDC number, lot number, and the company's phone number.

I miss Target pharmacy. The pharmacists there cared and were fascinated that such a website as below existed! They were happy to provide the information needed so I could call--I would rather call so I can ask the question needed and know what they are really saying (like Mucinex doesn't contain gluten ingredients, but they don't test if their ingredients have gluten in them. . . not that I can use it anyway since they use soy oil)

A pharmacist created this website and keeps it updated. Before having a prescription filled, you can search if it is on the list (brand name, generic, manufacturer



Link within the page for medication list: http://www.glutenfreedrugs.com/newlist.htm I am currently on one RX for one of my autoimmune diseases and that will soon change to two RXes for another issue, and I know the one is gluten free. The other I am currently searching on, which led me to create this post while I was thinking of it. The one time I was really worried about gluten in a drug was after my acral lentiginous melanoma toe surgery. I looked up the list, I called the pharmacy, I verified what generic companies they had on hand, it was gluten free. . . . and then I ended up being allergic to that antibiotic. Go figure.