Pills can be difficult to identify without labels, which is why keeping medications in their original bottles helps preserve essential details. Unfortunately, this also increases the chance of misidentification; therefore it is advisable to regularly clean out pill drawers to minimize this risk.
To identify a pill, first note its shape, color and pattern. An online pill identifier can then help you enter this information to locate its appropriate medication.
Birth control
The pill prevents pregnancy by altering a woman’s body chemistry. It stops ovaries from releasing eggs, thickens cervical mucus to stop sperm from reaching an egg, and thins out uterine lining – among many other benefits. Some pills contain estrogen which may cause side effects like nausea or breast tenderness; thus decreasing risk for pregnancy altogether.
Women looking for relief without taking estrogen may benefit from taking low-dose progestin-only pills, commonly referred to as mini-pills. These work by preventing ovulation and thickening uterine lining more slowly compared to combination pills.
As the pill doesn’t provide complete protection from sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), condom use and oral or anal sex should always be practiced during sexual encounters and oral/anal sex sessions. Abstinence (no sexual contact) can also help avoid pregnancy and STDs; to determine which method will work for you best, consult with your healthcare provider about birth control options that best suit you; this decision depends on factors like health status, lifestyle choices and future family planning considerations.
Tablets
Tablets are solid pharmaceutical oral dosage forms (or oral solid dose, OSDs) containing medications intended for oral administration. Most tablets are intended for swallowing directly by mouth; however, other modes such as sublingually, buccally, rectal and intravaginal administration can also be used. Pill is the colloquial term for any solid pill; typically circular or disk shaped pills may also be coated with various substances to make swallowing easier or protect their contents against contamination.
Tablet formulations contain various excipients to provide volume needed for tabletting: diluents to dilute tablet volumes before tabletting; adhesives (binders or adhesives), binder (binder or adhesive), disintegrants, sweeteners, sweetener enhancers & pigments used as visual identification markers. When it comes to delayed release coating, additional excipients such as enteric coating and controlled release coating may be needed for desired effects; for these special purposes other excipients such as enteric and controlled release coating may also be needed – these special effects require further excipients than those listed here.
Imprint codes
The FDA requires most over-the-counter and prescription drug tablets to contain imprint codes consisting of both numbers and letters to help distinguish drugs that appear similar, which is essential in case of accidental poisoning or overdose. First-aiders and healthcare professionals can quickly provide antidotes or medical solutions through these codes.
An imprint code for a pill may include numbers, letters, marks or symbols that make counterfeiting legal medicines harder. Such codes make counterfeiting legal medications harder.
Color and shape can also help identify pills. If you find a pill you don’t recognize, there are many online tools and mobile apps available to identify its identity quickly and reliably – such as scanning its imprint code, color and shape and searching a database for known medications – saving both time and increasing treatment effectiveness.
