By far the best method of preventing drug allergies is to take as few medications as you can and as infrequently as you can. This means not running to the medicine cabinet and popping a few antibiotic tablets that have been lying around from the last illness to treat some current problem without first consulting your doctor. Besides, taking antibiotics (which work only against bacteria anyway) in order to treat your virus cold or flu is a bad practice. All you really accomplish by this is increasing your chances of becoming unnecessarily sensitized to medications that you may really need someday for a serious illness. And while both erythromycin and tetracycline, two of the most frequently used broad-spectrum antibiotics, possess a low potential for provoking allergies, they should still not be used indiscriminately in order to reduce any risk of unnecessary sensitization.

Common sense likewise dictates that should you experience any symptoms, particularly breathing problems, hives, itching, or any other kinds of rashes after taking a certain drug, you should stop it at once and consult your doctor. Leave it to your physician to determine whether your problems are truly allergic in nature and whether an alternative therapy should be instituted.

Another good tip is to avoid medications that provide "shotgun" treatments for certain conditions. For example, many OTC cold preparations contain antiallergy, anticongestion, anticough, and antifever ingredients. If you have a fever and a hacking cough, you are better off taking a separate antipyretic (fever reducer) such as acetaminophen (such as Tylenol) and an anticough syrup containing dextromethorphan (such as Benylin DM) than a combination preparation that contains a host of additional ingredients for symptoms you don't have. By doing so you are better able to regulate the individual dosage of the drugs you need rather than taking the fixed amounts contained in the combination preparation (which may be either too much or too little for your specific needs).

Wearing a Medic Alert bracelet or necklace is another valuable preventive measure, especially for those who have experienced a life-threatening reaction to a common drug such as penicillin, sulfa, or aspirin. (The Medic Alert bracelet or necklace is also a good idea for insulin-dependent diabetics, severe asthmatics, and persons who have experienced life-threatening reactions to bee and wasp stings.) Looking very much like a dog tag, these necklaces and bracelets provide physicians and other emergency personnel with vital medical information in the event that you are unable to do so. (The address of Medic Alert, a nonprofit foundation, is PO. Box 1009, Turlock, California 95380.)