By Phillip Carmichael
Online purchase of medication is fast becoming a popular trend. Web-based pharmacies offer shoppers convenience and easy access even to prescription drugs. However, there is a caveat to this seemingly flawless practice. The clutter of pharmacies on the Internet makes it difficult to tell which ones provide quality medication. So the question arises: How can you tell if the online pharmacy is reliable?
Despite the warnings and the apparent dangers online drug purchase poses, it does not mean that you should avoid buying your medication online at all costs. Exercising proper caution should save you the trouble of dealing with scams, bad merchants and worse, unsafe drugs.
There are still a lot of legitimate pharmacies on the web, it's just a matter of knowing what to look for. Here are a couple of quick tips to make your online shopping safer:
1.It's a prescription for a reason. Unlike over-the-counter varieties, prescription medication have to be limited by the proper authorities (read: doctors, pharmacists and other health professionals). An online drugstore that respects this aspect of the medical world also deserves your respect. If the medication you need requires a prescription, make sure you get it from a place that also requires you to provide them with one.
2.Their professional opinion counts. When you have questions or concerns regarding the drugs being sold or the counter-indications that you have to know, you really should leave the answers to the pros. It is therefore essential that the online drug store offer the expert opinion of pharmacists.
3.Licensed pharmacies are the best way to go. Truth be told, not all online merchants of medication are US licensed. In fact, some aren't even pharmacies at all. Make sure you look for this particular bit of information when considering a website.
4.Your security should be their concern. When you've determined that the online pharmacy is worthy of your patronage, make sure that any personal and financial information you send over is well-protected. SSL encryption on the payment page is one of the things you can look for. This feature scrambles the information that goes over the Internet so that only the intended recipient possesses the key to unscramble it. SSL encryption is especially useful for websites that conduct e-commerce.
5.Reach out and talk to someone. Whether you are doing business with an online pharmacy or any other e-merchant, good customer service and constant communication are two things that you must always look for. Look for a way to talk to an actual person even before you make a purchase. This will come in handy when you do find yourself having problems with the product or the service in the future.
Buying medication online is easy and convenient, just make sure you take the necessary precautions. Look at the sites careful and use good old common sense in assessing the legitimacy of your online pharmacy. These simple steps can serve as guidance to help you avoid potential health risks that may be caused by purchasing fake or unsafe drugs online.
Phillip Carmichael is the Senior Copywriter and Associate Creative Director for
Sly Ideas Advertising Inc., a small scale advertising/PR firm based in Visalia, California. Carmichael is also a frequent contributor at various online literary and marketing resource sites and has written numerous articles on a wide array of topics. Popularly known for very helpful how-to articles, Carmichael's work has been widely published both in print and online in various popular magazines and websites.
He works with authority sites like Euromedonline (http://www.euromedonline.com)
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