Why Are Side Effects Important?

 

Side effects matter because they may cause you direct physical harm. Although usually rare, some side effects require immediate treatment to prevent lasting harmful effects. Side effects may also make you physically uncomfortable and make it harder for you to maintain your overall health and functioning. They may cause emotional stress.

Finally, another reason why side effects are important is because their risk can be blown out of proportion, causing patients to stop taking their prescriptions. This can be very harmful even if no side effect ever appears because it means the patient is not benefiting from medication that the physician believes is necessary for treating disease.

 

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