The Dangers of Drugging the Elderly
According to a survey conducted for the National Council on Aging, 18% of Americans over age 60 (7.5 million people) take medication for chronic pain. Of those 7.5 million seniors, 26% (1.95 million) experience side effects, half of which are severe:
| Side Effects | Percent of Seniors Affected |
| Drowsiness | 20% |
| Dizziness | 18% |
| Gastrointestinal Disorders | 17% |
| Nausea/Vomiting/Diarrhea | 13% |
| Constipation | 12% |
| Hospitalization | 10% |
Forty-one percent of the seniors who suffer from these side effects (800,000) take another drug to "manage" the side effects. Of greater concern is that 58% of the seniors who take pain medication also take other drugs for other ailments. And yet 48% of the seniors say that their doctors don't tell them about the possible harmful interaction between pain drugs and other medications they take.
SOURCE: The Study of Pain and Older Americans. Louis Harris and Associates
survey, 1997.
