Medication is a double-edged sword. For every life that has been saved by drugs, an equal amount has been taken. Although we commonly associate death with the use of illegal drugs, in reality, prescription drugs kill over 100,000 people each year. Drug misuse is a serious problem in the United States, and often taking two seemingly harmless medications can have serious, if not deadly, consequences.

Every medication, from over-the-counter cough medicine to prescription painkillers, come with instructions, including which types of medications the drug should not be taken in accordance with. Still, dangerous drug combinations continue to occur.

The consequences from medical cocktails can include everything from a bad stomachache to death, and according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention nearly 28 percent of adults aged 20 to 59 hold multiple drug prescriptions during a one-month time span, which means you might not even be aware of the potential harm you’re doing to your body. Click on the slideshow to view some of the most common and most dangerous medical combinations to help you avoid making an unfortunate mistake.

drug cocktail
Otherwise common medications can become deadly when taken simultaneously. Photo courtesy of Shutterstock