16. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:11 pm PDT

You've missed an essential difference between brand name and generic drugs. The FDA rules for dosage "tolerance" are different. As I recall, a generic drug can be /- 40% the amount it says on the label, while the tolerance for brand names are much tighter. So, if you are taking a drug that is generally loosely in excess, such as a beta blocker, for example, that range of doses is probably OK. Personally, I found generics of coumadin, which has a very tight dose/response, to be impossible to work with because each bottle was different. Better to pay the extra money for the brand name. Saved lots of visits to the clinic.

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17. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:11 pm PDT

I've been taking the generic equivalent of Wellbutrin for a few months, and it seems to be causing sleep problems that the brand name did not. I have several friends who report the same thing. Anyone else?

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18. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:11 pm PDT

So where is the end of the article? Did it get cut off when you ripped it out of the typewriter? Where are the independant study results? Is that the scientific conclusion- "There was this 1 pill that I kinda cut 60/40 one time?" Unimpressive conclusion

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19. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:11 pm PDT

I think generic brands can be just as good. I found some pretty good tips for shopping on oktipus.com . Go dig through their archives

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20. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:11 pm PDT

So where is the end of the article? Did it get cut off when you ripped it out of the typewriter? Where are the independant study results? Is that the scientific conclusion- "There was this 1 pill that I kinda cut 60/40 one time?" Unimpressive conclusion

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21. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:11 pm PDT

So what is the answer? Are generics as good as name brand drugs?

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22. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:12 pm PDT

Differences in inactive ingredients or manufacturing process can also be create problems. One example: comparing two types of synthetic thryoid hormone, the generic tablet blows up like a marshmallow the instant it gets wet, making it hard to swallow. The "brand-name" pill doesn't expand in the same way.

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23. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:12 pm PDT

Pill splitting should be avoided in any case! It's not a good way to deliver medication.

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24. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:12 pm PDT

i work for a generic co. and i know that we use only top notch products. and the co. i work for is over 100 years old

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25. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:12 pm PDT

Recently my drug provider substituted the generic "zolpidem" for my regular "ambien"....I can tell you it DOES NOT cut the mustard. I've been pulling my hair out trying to get the regular "brand" name drug back again!! I think that the drug companies and the pharmacy providers need to take the patient's reaction to light more than trying to just cut costs or make a bigger profit in the generic market.

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26. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:12 pm PDT

In Brazil generics are crap. People are helpless because the laws here are only for the powerful. Thanks Lao

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27. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:13 pm PDT

THIS ARTICLE IS PRETTY UNINFORMATIVE. YOU GAVE US INFO WE ALREADY KNOW AND YOU DIDN'T EVEN ANSWER THE MAIN QUESTION. ARE GENERIC DRUGS LESS-EFFECTIVE? YES YOU SAID THE ACTIVE INGREDIENTS ARE THE SAME BUT WHEN MIXED WITH DIFFERENT INACTIVE INGREDIENTS DOES IT CHANGE THE CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF THE DRUG AND DOES IT CHANGE ITS' EFFECTIVENESS.

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28. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:13 pm PDT

I would get generics. They are usually virtually the same. Often the differences are very minor, such as having different food dyes or just being a slightly different size.

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29. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:13 pm PDT

THIS ARTICLE IS PRETTY UNINFORMATIVE. YOU GAVE US INFO WE ALREADY KNOW AND YOU DIDN'T EVEN ANSWER THE MAIN QUESTION. ARE GENERIC DRUGS LESS-EFFECTIVE? YES YOU SAID THE ACTIVE INGREDIENTS ARE THE SAME BUT WHEN MIXED WITH DIFFERENT INACTIVE INGREDIENTS DOES IT CHANGE THE CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF THE DRUG AND DOES IT CHANGE ITS' EFFECTIVENESS.

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30. Posted by A Yahoo! Health User on Tue, Sep 04, 2007, 5:13 pm PDT

After taking a course in pharmacology, my opinion and from what I gather from all the facts stated with regards to both brand name and generic drugs, brand name is better. If you can afford it, buy brand name.

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