1 in 5 Older Americans Take Medications That Could Cause Major Interactions
Many older Americans still face potentially dangerous drug interactions as prescription and supplement use rises.
A new study published in JAMA reveals that more than one in five older Americans are taking medications that could lead to serious drug interactions. Despite a slight decrease in such risks over recent years, the risk remains high among the elderly population, with over 22% of those aged 62 to 85 exposed to potentially major drug interactions in 2021-2023.
Researchers analyzed data from nearly 5,000 U.S. adults and found that polypharmacy, defined as taking five or more prescription medications simultaneously, increased from 31% to 35.7% between 2015-2016 and 2021-2023. Similarly, dietary supplement polypharmacy rose from 12.6% to 16.7%. The trend of older adults taking multiple prescription drugs and supplements simultaneously raises concerns about medication safety, side effects, and preventable hospitalizations.
Dr. Spencer Kroll, a physician with expertise in pharmacology, emphasized that while the number of people exposed to potentially serious drug-drug interactions has decreased, it still remains well over one-fifth of the elderly, posing a major public health challenge.
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