When you’re sick, you take medicine; when you have an earache, you take medicine; when you can’t sleep, you take medicine. In today’s world it seems that it is almost impossible to go without prescription medication. We take medicine for almost every problem we ever have, whether it be insomnia or nail fungus. Sadly, these doctor-recommended medications often have side effects that are unpleasant or dangerous; some side effects may even prove fatal.

According to the Journal of American Medical Association, reactions to both prescription and over-the-counter medicines are the fourth leading cause of death in the United States. The only killers that destroyed more lives were cancer, heart disease, and stroke.

What you heard is right: The medicine we take to cure us may actually be what is killing us.

Just looking at the side effects on a bottle of medicine is enough to keep us from wanting to put it into our body. Even if severe side effects are rare, who wants to put a substance into their body that may cause them serious problems or even kill them?

For instance, Mobic is a prescription drug which may cause stomach bleeding, chest pain, irregular breathing, numbness, and weakness. Despite all these serious side effects, Mobic is only an anti-inflammatory drug which may help those with arthritis. Likewise, cholesterol lowering statins may cause problems such muscle breakdown and acute renal failure along with other serious side effects.

The JAMA (Journal of American Medical Association) also cites that prescription drugs cause serious reactions and permanently disable over 2.2 million people every year. A 1998 study also revealed that over 106,000 deaths in United States hospitals were due to the effects of prescription drugs; all of these medications were administered correctly; they simply affected the patients in the wrong way and ultimately killed them.

Oddly enough, while medical experts will warn you about the dangers of holistic or natural medicines, a 2008 report from the U.S. National Poison Data System revealed that there were no deaths in connection to the use of dietary supplements such as herbs, vitamins, and minerals that year.

Although taking doctor prescribed medicine may be imminent at times, I plan to avoid both prescription and over-the-counter medicine as much as possible, instead opting to take more natural, lower-risk cures.