Ten Essential OTC Medications to Stockpile

Originally posted by riiver
reply to post by bozzchem

 

A broad-spectrum antibiotic would be #1 on my list of meds to have on hand if TSHTF. Analgesics etc would be nice, but you can DIE from a minor cut if it gets infected badly enough. Or from an abcessed tooth, etc. You can get antibiotics from any vet supply place and even from your local feed store if you live in a rural area. You can even buy them online from practically any pet supply place that sells meds. And the Cephalexin or Amoxocillin you get from a pet supply place for your dog is no different than the stuff you get for yourself when your Dr. writes you a scrip---ask a vet.

I can tell you the dog anti biotics work just as well as the human
my mother was a vet
But they have bad side effects on good fauna.
(like any human dose)
But for the cut and the abcesses, Yarrow any day
for exactly the reasons you mentioned

A bread poltice has topical anti biotics
They don't like to admit it but that is what sparked the search in the first place
Doctors don't like to admit to old wives tales being on top of things way before they ever where

This is one topic that I think gets overlooked too much. I know personally I don't know enough about it and would like to ask a couple questions.
I was in the local feed and farm supply last week and noticed they had some anitbiotics for livestock on hand. I'd heard before that they where the same as the ones prescribed to humans but realized I had no idea how much one would take,or how often. They don't come with handy little labels on the bottles telling us how muc hto take and when. Also,some of then where in liquid form. I despise needles above all else, but in a real emergency I suppose I could do it. Can anyone tell me how one would go about getting the proper doses? I've had toothaches/infections before that where unbelievably painful and in a real SHTF situation I don't know what I would do without anitbiotics. Also, what is the shelf life of things like amoxycillen and penecillin? Do they become dangerous after a time,or just less effective?

Originally posted by Danbones
reply to post by bozzchem

 

A bread poltice has topical anti biotics
They don't like to admit it but that is what sparked the search in the first place
Doctors don't like to admit to old wives tales being on top of things way before they ever where

Betcha that particular old wives tale came from someone having penicillin growing on their bread purely by chance. Interesting thought. If everything REALLY collapsed, and we were forced to live like folks did 200 years ago, do you suppose you could grow your own penicillin?

Originally posted by xxclaro
This is one topic that I think gets overlooked too much. I know personally I don't know enough about it and would like to ask a couple questions.
I was in the local feed and farm supply last week and noticed they had some anitbiotics for livestock on hand. I'd heard before that they where the same as the ones prescribed to humans but realized I had no idea how much one would take,or how often. They don't come with handy little labels on the bottles telling us how muc hto take and when. Also,some of then where in liquid form. I despise needles above all else, but in a real emergency I suppose I could do it. Can anyone tell me how one would go about getting the proper doses? I've had toothaches/infections before that where unbelievably painful and in a real SHTF situation I don't know what I would do without anitbiotics. Also, what is the shelf life of things like amoxycillen and penecillin? Do they become dangerous after a time,or just less effective?

Somewhere I have a copy of one of the many drug books intended for nurses, I'll see if I can find some info on dosages and shelf life.

Shelf life depends on the particular drug and also what form it's in---liquid penicillin loses its potency after a day or so if it isn't refrigerated, while pills last ages, etc. Dosage for most drugs is calulated by bodyweight---X mg or mcg of drug per X pounds of bodyweight. So you'd have to know how much to dose per pound, and divide the dose (if you were using a large-animal dose) accordingly. I would---will, in fact, since I am planning on investing in some of this stuff myself in the near future---buy antibiotics that are intended for pets rather than livestock. First, because you can find tablet and capsule form much more easily, and second because a 50# dog is going to have a dose much closer to what a human needs than a 500# cow.

reply to post by riiver


mold makes the stuff
I'm trying to wrap my head around as much of this as I can and collect the knowledge...
just in case

Molds grow in every color imaginable. Look for Rhizopus stolinifera (black bread mold) on old bread. Look for Penicillium camenbertii on blue cheese--it is what makes blue cheese blue. The green fuzz on oranges that have been around too long is also a Penicillium, from the same genera of organisms that gave us penicillin, that critical antibiotic. Fungi are a great boon to humankind. Without yeast, there would be no bread or beer. Fungi are used to make antibiotics

www.abigailsbakery.com...

R. stolonifer is a threadlike mold and a heterotrophic species; it is dependant on sugar or starch for its source of carbon substances for food. It uses food matter, generally breads or soft fruits, like grapes or strawberries, as a food source for growth, nutrition and reproduction. R. stolonifer is a mass of mycelium, the vegetative filaments of the fungus, and a fruiting structure. Most of the mycelium is composed of multinucleate, rapidly growing hyphae. When the mold’s spores are released they produce more mycelium through germination. As the mold matures it begins to turn black.

tolweb.org...

How to Make Penicillin and Other Home Experiments
hubpages.com...

Make friends with a Dr who knows youre not a pill junkie. Im an EX aka retired RN.. one of my best friends from back n the day is my physician.. and she knows Im a paranoid tinfoil hat wearing nutter. Im stocked.. from cipro to vicodin. I have a daughter with a liver transplant as well... so I get fresh supply of her anti rejection meds extra every year plus her steroids. Im personally very paranoid about any disruption in her getting her meds for any reason from natural disasters to other more nefarious things.

I'm not advocating or spamming, but i know that most of us aren't going to go pay a Dr for scripts, for things they're not going to give us for emergency back ups, SO, a friend of mine sent me this link that will get you most of what you might need in the event of emergencies that you can get online.

like:
Cipro
Tramadol
Zithromax
Ketoconazole
Keflex
Elimite
and an entire list of things you might consider you might need if you chose to further investigate:
here:therxchange.ru...

personally i only have short lists of emergency survival meds i would need
Cipro
Ketoconazole
Tylenol
tums
immodium ad
clear eyes
tetrasil
st37
dmso
silvadene
but everyone should buy a bottle of SilSpa "Disinfectant" and keep it on hand. you might need to pour it on a wounds that antibiotics can't treat, or inject into your bloodstream to clarify your blood in the event of a bio attack...its true name is TetraSilver Tetroxide/ag404/silver-2-O,
this is the only place you can get the real stuff without a lab license
www.genesisspasandpoolsupply.com...

reply to post by aliengenes


ANd when you get what you need print out the info abotu the meds and dosages.

FYI.. be careful with some of the antibiotics. Youll get stomach/intestinal issues that Immodium wont handle adequately

Aliengenes.. we used "inhouse pharmacy" for a while for certain things.. google it. Great prices on some of the meds you mentioned. They are reliable and Im vouching for them as we were loyal customers.

Oh and I meant to mention.. the husband carries plain old lysterine in his tacklebox when he goes fishing. Its a great disinfectant. It was used in the 1800s as a surgical antiseptic... he figures it is good enough for a hook through the hand. WHen I was looking things up on it... its also a great antifungal.

reply to post by Advantage


I'm hypersensitive to all drugs anyway, so I'm super careful about anything i take, and have been subscribed these in the past so i know the dosages.. but thanx for your input and concerns and for the info

Originally posted by aliengenes
reply to post by Advantage

 

I'm hypersensitive to all drugs anyway, so I'm super careful about anything i take, and have been subscribed these in the past so i know the dosages.. but thanx for your input and concerns and for the info

No problem. Info you already know might inform someone else reading the thread too I know I had NO idea I was allergic to septra DS until I was rushing to the hospital after my first dose of it. The stupid antibiotic used for a sinus infection almost killed me

I'd say the best thing no matter what you chose
is knowing and being ahead of the game
having a plan


If you go over the best rifle for killing everything that moves when the SHTF thread,
you'll probably want to look into needles and sutures too. Maybe some sterile gauze,
Forceps ( there are few handy types), scalpels maybe,
I like elastoplast rolls
crazy glue

Basic dental tools,
also learning how to find, and unlock nerves along the spine is a good idea.
chiropractors might be rare.
some good medical books too

condoms
or hot water and clean towels
take your pick

reply to post by Advantage


when Drs try to give me stuff i don't know anything about i refuse it and tell them to give what i know i can take..I'm allergic to penicillin so i have to be real careful, si know what you're talking about

Originally posted by Danbones
I'd say the best thing no matter what you chose
is knowing and being ahead of the game
having a plan


If you go over the best rifle for killing everything that moves when the SHTF thread,
you'll probably want to look into needles and sutures too. Maybe some sterile gauze,
Forceps ( there are few handy types), scalpels maybe,
I like elastoplast rolls
crazy glue

Basic dental tools,
also learning how to find, and unlock nerves along the spine is a good idea.
chiropractors might be rare.
some good medical books too

condoms
or hot water and clean towels
take your pick

edit on 15-12-2010 by Danbones because: (no reason given)

edit on 15-12-2010 by Danbones because: (no reason given)

SUPEGLUE! You just named one of the most important emergency items.
Yep.. we used a type of it in the ER and they also used it on my daughter after her transplant. There are several types.. but they are all basically superglue. When we'd use drain tubes or similar things we'd use the glue too. The tube is stitched but the glue was a seal and made it more safe for the patient to move around. You can also use superglue to make a temp filling or build up a broken tooth. I wish I could remember the name of the one they used on my daughter as it was the least annoying to the skin. Ive seen the super glue used to treat nicked blood vessels and have read of it used in open heart surgeries. Amazing stuff!

You cant usually get the good stuff at a regular pharmacy, but you can go to a surgical supply and get that plus a ton of other VERY useful things.

You can also use regular short and wide staples in a staple gun for larger wounds. Ive seen the stapler in the surgical wing and it looks just like a staple gun... Just dont use the long staples

1. Ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil)
2Acetaminophen (Tylenol)= replace with Aspirin except for those that are allergic to aspirin its a real good blood thinner along with a pain reliever. plus it can in a emergency be taken with 800 mg Ibuprofen.
3. Diphenhydramine (Benadryl)= good sleeping med
4. Loperamide (Imodium)
5. Pseudoephedrine (Sudafed)= benadryl is just as good so remove from list
6. Meclizine (Bonine, Dramamine) planing on going long boat trip are we. not needed just eat some sardines and cracker
7. Ranitidine (Zantac)
8. Hydrocortisone cream
9. Bacitracin ointment =replace with neosporin
10. Clotrimazole (Gyne-Lotrimin)

Add 425+mg Cranberry capsules good for kidney or bladder infections.

Just some other useful info:

We were discussing gram possitive and gram negative bacteria earlier. As a general rule, gram possitive bacteria is a bacteria that is mostly present on the outer surface of the body, gram negative on the inside of the body (think e-coli). Different meds are designed in different ways to attack the a bacteria whether its gram possitive or gram negative, so while penicillin will work on gram possitive by breaking down the peptoglycan cell wall of the bacteria, gram negative has a different cell wall structure so pennicillin doesn't work on them. For gram negative, cloramphenicol is broad spectum, meaning it will work on gram negative, gram possitive and parasites, it's inexpensive but to be used only as a last resort, since it can produce aplastic anemia (destroys bone marrow) with extended use. Hope this helps.

Also, a half and half solution of vinegar and alcohol is also another effective solution for swimmer's ear. I use this solution to clean up after my pets and their "spills". It kills the bacteria and disinfects (kills the bacteria by dropping the pH of the bacteria, killing them).

Also, two drops of chlorine bleach in 1 liter of water, wait 30 minutes, and you have drinkable water.

I"ll try to see what else I can find that would be helpful. I can't remember what to do with mold.

Thank you all for this information and the links provided. This is something that I have been thinking about lately for self, family and friends if bad times hit. I have also been thinking about what would be good to have on hand for barter or trade. Cash may be good at first but if things got real bad actual goods like antiboitics and pain killers would be best.

Opium poppies are pretty and legal to grow in our area as ornamentals (not refined into other substances). From what I have read the poppies themselves are not addictive (refined products are) and are good pain supressors. It might be good to try growing some to have on hand in case of emergencies.

I had forgotten about the benefits of Yarrow and will have to try that as well.

There doesn't seem to be any general consensus about the shelf life of amoxicillin (or penicillin either). I have read ranges from 3 to 10 yrs; I personally would err on the side of caution. Penicillin is harmless if out of date, according to what I've read, while amoxicillin may break down into something nastier.

I found a site with info---both for the layperson and in-depth stuff---here: drugs.com

reply to post by riiver


WOW!!
Great site, Thank you!

I just found another good drug site that gives you more useful info than the one I previously posted, such as dosage, what to do in case of overdose, etc. Find it here.