New Prescription Allergy Medicine: Xyzal

As a health care professional and expert Internet user, I just want to issue a word of warning here in response to isuffernomore's numerous posts on this site over the past 24 hours.

This person is highly recommending an online pharmacy site. I've checked out the site and have a couple of concerns.

Apparently, you can buy any type of medicine, including controlled substances (pain meds) without a prescription. As someone who doesn't have health insurance, yes, I HAVE been tempted to buy from such sites in the past.

But here's the thing... you have to ask yourself, if a site is willing to sell possibly dangerous drugs over the Internet to people with no known medical knowledge without a doctor's prescription, then aren't their ethics a bit shaky?

Drugs can have dangerous side effects and aren't always right for every person. It really does take an expert pharmacist or health care professional to know if a drug could be dangerous for you. It's also illegal to sell prescription drugs without a prescription.

So, if a company is willing to flout the law and play loose with your health and safety in that regard, how do you know that what they're selling you is of good quality or even the drug they say it is? There are many such known scams on the Internet.

Now, I don't know anything really about this particular site and I'm not accusing anyone of anything. But you can't tell much about them from their site either. And on their order page, which is supposedly secure, I don't get the little lock in my task bar on the bottom that is supposed to indicate a secure site. So it made me wonder if it really WAS secure, despite their claims.

All I am encouraging you to do is to proceed with caution here. Maybe they're completely legitimate. And maybe they're not. You be the judge, but DO be careful with your health and your money.

While we appreciate your concern and warnings, please know that there are a lot of uninsured folks who can refer to the Physicians Drug Handbook just as effectively as the overpaid, bureaucratic physicians (possibly not unlike yourself....who would not benefit from consumers patronizing such websites) and prescribe that best medication for them.

While it's not very wise, it's simply a reality and a chance that many often have to take.  It might not be a very effective tool to provide such a warning when you clearly cannot be objective.  But, thanks anyway. 

Reese,

I'm not sure what you are attempting to intimate here. I have no vested interests in urging people to be careful about prescribing medicine for themselves, other than my concern as an ethical healthcare professional (I am a nurse and health educator) and as a fellow asthmatic and person with allergies. I do not receive any financial incentives for the health information I provide on this site, other than my salary as a writer, so I deeply resent your snide remarks.

While I agree that anyone can look up information about medications in books or on the Web, what you may lack that a doctor would have is the underlying foundation of medical knowledge. That could result in you making a decision that could be harmful. Medications can interact with each other in strange ways and can have unexpected side effects. Sure, this can still happen even if a doctor prescribes, but the doctor can use his/her knowledge and treatment experience to help prevent it.

There is also the risk of ordering online from an unreputable pharmacy (and remember I said I knew nothing about the one recommended in the original comment), which could result in you getting a drug that is not really equivalent to the legal version of the drug. It could be something else entirely, be of a different strength, or have additives that are harmful. There are documented cases of this happening, so I am not just fear mongering.

In the end, we each of us have to make our own decisions, and I can respect that. I only urge you to use caution. And I ask that you return your respect for me and refrain from making unfounded veiled accusations.

Thank you,

Kathi

As a health care professional and expert Internet user, I just want to issue a word of warning here in response to isuffernomore's numerous posts on this site over the past 24 hours.

This person is highly recommending an online pharmacy site. I've checked out the site and have a couple of concerns.

Apparently, you can buy any type of medicine, including controlled substances (pain meds) without a prescription. As someone who doesn't have health insurance, yes, I HAVE been tempted to buy from such sites in the past. 

But here's the thing... you have to ask yourself, if a site is willing to sell possibly dangerous drugs over the Internet to people with no known medical knowledge without a doctor's prescription, then aren't their ethics a bit shaky?

Drugs can have dangerous side effects and aren't always right for every person. It really does take an expert pharmacist or health care professional to know if a drug could be dangerous for you. It's also illegal to sell prescription drugs without a prescription.

So, if a company is willing to flout the law and play loose with your health and safety in that regard, how do you know that what they're selling you is of good quality or even the drug they say it is? There are many such known scams on the Internet.

Now, I don't know anything really about this particular site and I'm not accusing anyone of anything. But you can't tell much about them from their site either. And on their order page, which is supposedly secure, I don't get the little lock in my task bar on the bottom that is supposed to indicate a secure site. So it made me wonder if it really WAS secure, despite their claims.

All I am encouraging you to do is to proceed with caution here. Maybe they're completely legitimate. And maybe they're not. You be the judge, but DO be careful with your health and your money.

I full agree Kathleen and appreicate your concerns. But nothing on the site is a "Controlled Substance" I myself was in the medical field for years. As you know the purpose of a Online Pharmacy is to provide medications to people that are not able to afford them. Zyrtec for example is very cheap on this site infact 50$'s cheaper than most. As for secure it's very secure and has been a trusted -safe and secure site for many years. I order from this site and that is why I suggested it.

Have an excellent day.