The Forums › Forums › Medication › Concerta › Pharmacies keep trying to push me on to the Generic. › Re: Pharmacies keep trying to push me on to the Generic.
Generic “Concerta” is so completely NOT a substitute for real Concerta, that Health Canada is currently studying the matter in detail.
As Concerta’s patented delivery system is precisely what makes it Concerta, it is very likely that Health Canada will soon issue an official ruling that there is NO substitute for real Concerta.
Rick explains this in detail, here in Part 4 of his series on Generics: http://totallyadd.com/generics-part-4.
There is a serious problem with generic versions of drugs for treating mental conditions. The guidelines for generics allow a concentration of from 10% less to 10% more than the concentration in the branded version. That’s a range of 20%, and it’s a HUGE range, when you’re treating an organ as sensitive as the brain.
It’s also dangerous, particularly if your pharmacy suddenly switches from a generic brand that’s 10% less, to another that’s 10% more. That’s a huge increase in dosage, and you won’t even know it’s happened!
And if your pharmacy switches from a generic brand that’s 10% more to one that’s 10% less, you’ll wonder why your usual dose suddenly isn’t working. Pharmacies switch generic brands all the time, and they don’t have to inform patients that they’ve done it.
Another issue is that generics use different filler materials than branded versions do. Generic forms of Ritalin contain milk-based ingredients. Many patients have had bad reactions to generic Ritalin, but respond very well to real Ritalin.
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