Dr. Mike Roizen here with a tip about prescription drugs that will help you stay younger. Generic drugs cost a fraction of the named brand versions and they're very much like the real ones. Here's what you should know about them, they're strictly regulated by the FDA the active drug involves the brand-name version and the generic version must be the same. 

How the generic medication is absorbed and how soon it's delivered to where it's needed in your body must be bio equivalent to the brand name drug. They are usually a third of the brand price that's because the manufacturers of generic drugs don't have to earn back the expense of research and development. 

When possible choose a generic drug that's made by the same company that makes or made the brand-name drug. However if you're taking a drug that requires very precise dose control, a generic medication's equivalent status may not do the trick for you, this problem is common with thyroid medications. 

Bottom line pay attention to how you feel if you don't think the medication is doing what it's supposed to, call your doc for more ways to that being a smart patient can help you stay younger, watch all of our health tips right here. 
   

Are generic drugs as good as brand-name medications?

Over-testing can add costs and could reduce your quality of care.

7 Health Tests You May Not Need

Explaining disparities in the healthcare system

5 medical appointments you shouldn't put off anymore

5 Tips for Getting the Most of Your Telehealth Appointments

How Do I Get the Most Out of a Telehealth Appointment?

The Small Business Impact on Private Practices

Why I Care: Dr. Darria Long Gillespie

I think it's more central now than it will be in a few years. Within the last couple of years partly through efforts of my office, office for the National Coordinator, there has been a big uptake in adoption of electronic medical records. And that has terrific benefits to improve the quality of care, as doctors share information with each other. 

So for now, I think it's really important and one of the things we're working on, is making sure that patients and consumers can get access to their own health information online, and that's something that we call blue button. Just getting your information electronically. And right now that's valuable because you don't know it's in our records. 

You haven't seen it. In a few years, I think it will be less critical actually to see what your doctor has stored about you. Because in a world of calliffer reading, sensors and other ways of diagonsing you, and self diagnosis and all kinds of other things, that what is now in many cases of piece of paper will be less essential than some of the other sources of data about you, But for now, I think it's really important to get access to your record, electronically if posible. 

 

How Important Is Access to Personal Health Records for Empowering Patients?

You may prefer to accomplish your New Year&#39;s resolutions one by one. But here&#39;s an approach that might work better: Tackle them all at once.

That&#39;s right. When people in a study used this approach to achieve their health goals, it almost doubled the likelihood they&#39;d check at least one of the goals off their need-to-do list.

Boost Your Success 
Want to lose weight? Cut back on ice cream? Walk more? Cook healthier meals? We all know that making resolutions to change for the better is one thing, but keeping those resolutions is quite another. Here are a few more ways to help tip the scales in your favor:

3 Make-It-Happen Tools

<ul>
	<li>Get a diet/exercise buddy to help keep you on task.</li>
	<li>Spend more time in the sack. <a href="https://www.sharecare.com/health/sleep-disorders/article/good-nights-sleep-heart-healthy-living">Find out why your heart will thank you</a>.</li>
	<li>Work on relaxing more. <a href="https://www.sharecare.com/health/stress-reduction/how-stress-affect-my-memory" target="_blank">Learn how cutting stress can improve your memory!</a></li>
</ul>

New Year's Resolutions? Use a Full-Court Press

Worried about money? It can take a serious toll on your wellbeing. Here&#39;s what to do.

4 Ways Money Anxiety Hurts You—and 4 Ways to Fix It

Take the case of insurance and the insurance company would learn that you have a pre disposition to a certain genetic condition. Well the law should prohibit that insurance company from using such information in adjusting rates, and we already do have for examples requirements against use of pre existing conditions as an exclusion. 

So we can protect ourselves against the misuse of that information even if it is discovered by an insurer or others who are inappropriate users of that information. 
  

How Can We Protect Our Medical Privacy?

There's no question that patients as individuals have a huge role in their own care and in their own health. A patient after all, has to be a partner with the caregiver in making decisions about their health care and most importantly in making the daily life choices that can either promote or hinder good health. 

So everyone of us in a sense has a prime responsibility for our own health. The health care system in a way is just an adjunct, an addition, a supporter, a resource that we can use as individuals to reinforce what we already have done for ourselves and our families by making good lifestyle choices, by eating healthful diets, by avoiding tobacco, by using alcohol responsibly, not drinking and driving and not drinking to excess, by getting enough exercise every day, if we do these simple things to take care of ourselves, we can do a long way toward making health and healthcare more effective, more affordable and less necessary. 

  

Is the Patient Responsible for the Outcome of Their Own Healthcare?

Life insurance is an important way to provide protection for your family. However, it&#39;s often misunderstood, and misconceptions are plentiful&mdash;including that it&#39;s expensive and difficult to purchase. But once you have a basic understanding of what life insurance is, how it works and the two main types of life insurance, you&rsquo;ll be on your way to providing protection and financial security for your family.

What is life insurance? 
<a href="https://www.sharecare.com/video/health-topics-a-z/financial-health/how-do-i-know-which-type-of-life-insurance-is-right-for-me">Life insurance</a> is a contract between you and an insurance company where you make a monthly or annual payment&mdash;the premium&mdash;and the insurance company pays a specified amount of money&mdash;the death benefit&mdash;to your beneficiaries when you pass away.

If you have people who depend on your income, like underage children, a spouse or elderly parents, then life insurance is imperative. You should also consider life insurance if someone would incur additional costs if you pass away (like childcare for example). The money obtained from a policy can help your family pay their regular monthly bills, your children&rsquo;s future college tuition or for your funeral expenses and outstanding medical bills. In some cases, people decide to purchase a policy when a major life event takes place&mdash;like getting married, buying a home, starting a business or having a baby&mdash;but life insurance can be purchased at any time.

In fact, the sooner you buy life insurance, the lower your monthly or annual payments will likely be. Other factors that determine the cost of life insurance are your health status, medical history and driving record. Smoking status is also a large determinant of your payments, with non-smokers generally receiving significantly better rates.

While historically, purchasing life insurance required medical exams and blood testing, this is often no longer the case. In fact, for relatively healthy individuals, many insurance companies offer a benefit of up to $1 million without a medical exam or blood test. For larger policies or for people with extensive medical histories, a medical exam can still be required.

Two basic types of life insurance 
The <a href="https://www.sharecare.com/health/financial-planning-health-care/what-different-types-life-insurance">two main types of policies</a> are term life insurance and permanent life insurance.

Term life insurance offers a cash payout if you pass away during a specific period of time (for example, 10, 20 or 30 years); you pay via a fixed monthly or annual premium during the term of the policy. Term insurance is a viable option for covering specific costs such as a mortgage or college education. Often times, insurance companies will allow you to convert your term policy into a permanent policy for a specified period of time after purchase.

Permanent life insurance offers lifetime protection with a cash payout at the time of death, regardless of when that is. It often includes a cash account value that you may be able to access while you are alive, which has the ability to grow, similar to money in other investments (mutual funds, or bonds). Your monthly payments may be fixed or they may be flexible depending on the type of policy you choose. Permanent life insurance is a viable option for people looking to pass money on to their family after they pass away, or for people concerned about paying for funeral costs or medical bills at the time of their passing.

Some employers offer life insurance as a benefit to their employees. While this is generally temporary&mdash;good only while you are employed with the company&mdash;it may be wise to take advantage of this benefit, as the monthly payments may be offset by your employer. But if you have family who is dependent upon your income, additional insurance, outside of work is generally required. Life insurance can be purchased online, over the phone or from a licensed financial professional.

Health care