Are generic drugs as safe as brand-name medications?

Yes

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by Macie Smith

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My husband loathes generic medicines-he claims their quality is less. He gets annoyed when I tell him where the "Tylenol" is located but all he can find in our medicine cabinet is "Acetemetiphen Pain Reliever." Each time we go to the store to pick up cold medicine or a pain reliever, it is a constant battle between my husband and myself as to whether or not the generic version of a name brand is "just as good." I constantly advocate the generic version of a product, while my husband grabs the name brand. I assure him and know that quality and safety are equal between generic and name brand medications. Each time I pick up the two different boxes, pointing out that sometimes a generic product is as much as 50% off, and then flip the boxes over to the ingredient listing.

What do you find when you flip the product over to the ingredient listing? It looks like a food label and lists what active ingredients are in the product. I would encourage you to make it a habit of looking at the ingredient listing as you compare products. You will find that there are the exact same active ingredients in each medicine and that each medicine contains the same quantity of the active ingredient. In my many years of purchasing generic medicines, I have only found one instance where the active ingredients were not the same, so I purchased the name brand product.

You will also find while purchasing generic prescriptions, typically the name of the generic prescription is the active ingredient contained in the name brand prescription. Insurance companies often require that pharmacies fill a prescription with a generic if one is available or they will give a larger discount if you purchase a generic over name brand.

I present this evidence in order to show that if the active ingredient is the same these are the same medications. These ingredients have been clinically tested and then approved for use by the FDA. These ingredients have been proven safe. Generic and name brand medications are both safe for use. The only difference between the two products? The name of the product. You can either pay up to 50% more for a name or purchase the generic and save yourself some cash. Generic medications are as safe to use as name brands.

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