Over the counter medication
Replies: 11 - Last Post: Feb 28, 2013 6:53 AM Last Post By: SoloHobo
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Over the counter medication
Hi everyone,I will be travelling in China during March and April and will need to buy some medication - are drugs like Lipitor available over the counter and without a prescription as they are in Thailand?
Thanks for any help.
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No, you will need a prescription from a DR/Clinic, keep in mind where you buy these is also important, I suggest a Hospital Pharmacy, though there is no guarantee these are legit or been imported and stored correctly. I highly suggest you bring what you need to China, the drug business in China is not to be trusted IMO, like the food chain, is a minefield of issues.7
I highly suggest that you take from home enough medication that you will need during your trip. Your doctor can prescribe enough to cover you for "travel" reasons. People at Pharmacies seldom speak any English even in the larger cities sometimes. I have travelled China for the past 25 years and over 50 trips and I always be sure I have enough of the meds I take put in my carry on luggage in original containers. There are some excellent over the counter medications available for common ailments like constipation etc. Look for a label that shoes an Aloe Vera plant. It is natural and works great. They use a lot of MSG in their sauces that cause it. I usually stay away from eating too many things with sauces and have no problems. Drink bottled water only even though the hotels might tell you it is safe out of the tap.....don't do it....not even brushing your teeth. Take care8
Agree with the above that it is best to take all the meds you need for your trip, if at all possible. However that is not always possible and having lived in China for extended periods I have had to buy the Chinese equivalents for the three meds I take: Simvastatin, Metformin, and Lisinopril. These were available where I lived (Nanning, Guangxi) without a prescription. The blood tests I take a couple times a year for my type 2 diabetes, when I'm back in the US have shown no ill effects and the meds have done what they are intended to do.The trick to finding the meds you need is to know the Chinese name. I usually use Google Translator to get the Chinese and then do a Google search on the Chinese to confirm. For Lipitor it is: 立普妥 If find you are in a situation where you do need to purchase, if you take this written out into a pharmacy they will likely be able to help. You may also need to know the dosage level in milligrams if applicable to your prescription. For example 10 milligrams would be 10毫克
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You have to be out of your mind to trust anything you buy at a Chinese drugstore (or grocery store, but that's another matter). This is the land of knock offs. There is a reason any Chinese family who can affords it buys their infant formula overseas. For the sake of your health DO NOT assume any medications you are getting in China are legitimate. More than likely they are not11
I needed a Prescription for Crestor, at the Hospital Pharmacy in Shanghai, at least the Haushan Hospital, which has a foreigners clinic as well...where I had my bloodwork done...
