Understanding Generic Medications: Benefits and Myths

11/12/2024

 

Myths about generic medications

Myth 1: Generic medications are of low quality.

Fact 1: Generic medications are as high-quality as brand-name medications in every aspect. The common belief that generic medications are of lower quantity is one of the biggest myths about generic medications. Generic medications have to go through the same trials and follow the exact same regulations and safety guidelines of the regulatory authorities. Before these generic medications reach the market, they go through rigorous trials. Generic manufacturers must showcase generic medications' safety, efficiency, and quality. In order to get approved by the regulatory authorities, generic medications must show results equivalent to the brand name medications.

Myth 2: Generic medications are not as effective as brand-name medications.

Fact 2: To get approval from regulatory authorities, generic medications should perform the same as brand-name medications. They must be the same in form, dose, strength, route of administration, and reaction in the body to pass the trials successfully. Exclusive effectiveness testing throughout the whole manufacturing process is carried out. These testing include testing raw materials, testing in-process medicines, and testing to establish the effectiveness of the medication. Quality control laboratories and agencies conduct their own testing with advanced equipment to verify the medications' quality, purity, and effectiveness before they are released to the market.

Myth 3: Generic medications cause more severe side effects.

Fact 3: Regulatory authorities monitor the safety and side effects of both generic and brand-name medications. Clinical trials are held to ensure that generic medicines have the same safety as brand-name medicines. Not only do authorities inspect the manufacturing facilities and perform tests on the generic medications before granting them approval, but they also keep track of the side effects of any medicine. If a medicine is reported to have caused severe side effects multiple times, appropriate actions are taken by these agencies to ensure people's safety. However, there might be some inactive ingredients (fillers, binders, colors, coatings, etc.) that you might be allergic to. If any of the ingredients present in a medicine cause side effects, talk to your doctor immediately. They will help you control the allergic reaction and may put you on different generic medications or ask you to stick with the brand-name medication.

Myth 4: Generic medications are weaker than brand name medications/Generic medications have less active ingredients.

Fact 4: Generic medications of a brand name medications have to be the same in dosage, strength, quality, safety, etc, to get approval from regulatory authorities. Generic medications have the same amount of active ingredients as brand-name medications; otherwise, they will not be approved to be sold in the market. Also, the inactive ingredients of the medicine do not have any effect on the absorption of the medicine.

Myth 5: I cannot take generic medications after taking brand-name medications.

Fact 5: As we have discussed above, the brand name and the generic medications are the same in every aspect, and the whole purpose of the generic medications is to provide a substitute for brand name medications at a pocket-friendly price. Switching from brand-name medications to generic medications is absolutely possible. People do this without any problem and continue to get the same results as before. However, consulting with your doctor before switching your medications is extremely important.

Benefits of Generic medications

• Generic medications are a lot cheaper than brand-name medications, so they can be life-saving for people with financial difficulties.

• Generic medications increase the accessibility of medications around the globe. They also provide a variety of options to choose from. The availability of several options can be beneficial for patients, especially for those who are not able to take a brand medication because of allergic reactions to one of its inactive ingredients.

• Generic medicines have the same amount of active ingredient, purity, strength, dosage form, and route of administration, so generic medications are therapeutically equivalent to brand-name medications.

• Generic medications are manufactured under the same guidelines and safety standards as the brand name medications. This makes it easier for people to get the same quality medications as the brand name medications but at a significantly lower price.

Where to buy generic medications?

Generic medications are available at every pharmacy. The prices might differ from place to place, which is why many people look for cheap online pharmacies in Canada. Their medications are of top quality and a lot cheaper. Most of these pharmacies are available online, and that is the main reason people buy their medications online.

Conclusion

When a pharmaceutical company launches a new medicine, it is a result of their hard work over the years. Sometimes, it takes decades to develop a medicine safely and launch it on the market. The developing company has spent millions of dollars on research before even successfully developing the medicine. This new medicine helps save lives around the globe. The company is rewarded for its efforts to make this world a better and healthier place in the form of a patent. This patent gives them some time to produce and sell the medication exclusively to cover their developmental costs. The medicine produced and sold by this company that patents the medicine is known as brand-name medicine.