Nutritional Pharmacology Flashcards
What do nutritional therapists need to know about drugs?
- Side effects
- Food and supplements may interact
- Drugs can cause nutrient depletions
What is a medicine according to the MHRA?
A substance or combination of substances that have properties for treating or preventing disease in human beings.
Drugs - medify physiological functions by exerting a pharmacological, immunological or metabolic action.
What are the four supply routes for drugs?
- Prescription only (POM)
- Controlled - e.g. codeine / morphine
- Phamacy only (PO)
- General sales list (GSL)
What are the two types of OTC drugs?
2 Reasons why clients self medicate?
PO - pharmacy only
GSL - general sales list
- treat a minor ailment
- support a chronic illness not fully controlled
6 common types of OTC drugs and an example of each \
AP CLAD
Analgesics - codeine, paracetomol, asprin
PPI’s - omeprozole
Cough mixtures - diphenhydramine
Laxatives - senna, bisacodyl
Anti-histamines - chlorphenamine, cetrizine
Decongestants - pseudoephedrine
2 key elements of a drug and examples
- Active ingredient - deliver mode of action and often linked to side effects - ibuprofen
- inactive - alter physical properties - fillers, colouring, preservatives, lactose, gluten
- can trigger allergic reactions and food intolerances
2 terms used for naming a drug and exampls
Generic name of the active ingrdeint e.g. paracetomol
Brand name - e.g. panadol
Nutritional therapistcs should use the generic name.
What do these terms mean:
Drug class
Indication
Contraindication
Drug class - penicillian is an antibiotic
Indication - what the drug is intended for
Contraidication - when the drug must not be used
What is the difference between a drug and a nutrient?
Example
Drugs supress and manage symptoms
Nutrients encourage the body to resotre homeostasis and heal.
Willow bark / salix alba / salicin - gastric irritant in paracetomol
Willow bark doesn’t convert until it reaches the bloodstream and body tissues.
What does pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics mean?
Pharmacokinetics - movement of drugs within the body - 4 processes (ADME) - absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination.
Pharmacodynamics - how drugs interact with the body and exert their side effects.
Describe what is meant by ADME
Abosrbed - entering the body and absorption into the blood steam
Distuibution - in the bloodstream the drug is distributed to its target site.
Metabolised - Once the drug and receptor have interacted the drug returns to the blood stream to be taken the liver to be metabolised.
Excretion - once metabolised excretion is by urine or bile.
What is first pass hepatic metabolism?
Drugs are obsorbed in the GIT and taken by the portal vein to the liver to be metabolised.
This means that drugs may be less concentrated by the time they reasch systemic circulation.
This type of medicine should be administered by a different route e.g. nitro glycerine spray for angina.
What 2 main factors determine if a drug reaches its target site of action in the body?
- Bioavailability - proportion of the drug that reaches the blood stream for distribution.
- Route of administration - e.g. oral, sublingual, suppository, injections, creams, patches.
4 main routes of drug administration and examples
Oral - tablets, capsules, liquids - absorption via small intensine.
Sublingual / buccal - glyceryl trinitrate spray - bypasses liver
Topical - local effect - creams, patches, ear and eye drops
Systemic - inhalation
Parenteral - injections - intravenous, sub-cutaneous, intro-muscular
4 factors that impact drug absoprition
GIT motility - diarroea reduces absorption
Malabsorption - e.g. coeliac disease
Other substances - iron reduced with milk
Lipid soluble and small molicule easier to absorb
Acidic drugs absorb quicker in an acidic environment.
