It is a short text, but very important: the few lines on the label of your medicine. Unfortunately, it is not always clear what is meant. We are looking for the most incomprehensible labels. They may also be (unintentionally) funny.
Have you ever been given a medicine that said…
- … ‘if necessary 1 tablet’ Why ‘if necessary’? You get the medicine because you need it, according to the doctor?
- …1-2x a day’. That looks like a mathematical formula! ‘1 minus 2 times a day’ – what would they mean?
- …’may reduce responsiveness’. What do they mean – don’t you respond to anything anymore? Or are you no longer allowed to drive?
- …’twirl before use’ on an eye drop bottle. What should you turn around – the head, the eyes or the bottle?
- …’granules’. What are those?
It is quite a challenge for pharmacists and assistants to provide clear explanations on such a small label. Not surprising that the text sometimes becomes incomprehensible. Researchers have written a guide for pharmacists to type clearer texts. This can be found here.
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So many pharmacists are doing their best to make labels more comprehensible. But strange texts keep popping up. Do you have an unclear, special or crazy label text? The editors are looking for these labels. Take a photo with your mobile and send it to health@plusmagazine.nl stating ‘label’. You can also overwrite the label text.
We collect the best ones for an article on plusonline and maybe also for Plus Magazine. Of course without names or other personal details. We are curious!
