Is there a difference between taking medication before or after a meal? In order to make the drugs work better in the body and reduce the stimulation of the stomach and intestines, they should be taken before, during or after meals according to the nature and effects of the drugs. The drugs that should be arranged to be taken before meals generally have no major stimulation to the stomach, and the stomach is empty before meals, so that the drugs can be fully absorbed after taking them, which can keep the effective concentration of the drugs and bring them into effect quickly. For example, proton pump inhibitors and other digestive system drugs should be taken about 15 minutes before meals; drugs with obvious stimulation to the gastrointestinal tract are best taken after meals, such as most non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as aspirin, Protaxon, anti-inflammatory pain, etc.; if the drug does not have special instructions, it is generally arranged to take after meals. How do I understand taking medication 3 times a day? Most patients think that “3 times a day means taking the medication before or after meals every day”. This is actually wrong. Taking medication before or after three meals will result in higher blood concentration during the day, which may even cause drug toxicity; while at night, if you do not take medication overnight, the blood concentration will definitely drop, which will affect the treatment effect. The correct understanding of “3 times a day” should be to take the drug once every 8 hours, so that the blood concentration in the body can be kept relatively stable within 24 hours a day due to the same interval, which is not only less likely to cause adverse drug reactions, but also can achieve better therapeutic effects. Likewise, “2 times a day” refers to taking the drug every 12 hours, not once in the morning and once in the evening as most people understand. Because there is no uniform concept of when the morning is and when the evening is, there is a large time error. In addition, it is also important to master the correct method of taking medication, and the following method is the general method of taking medication. The correct way to take medication is: sit or stand when taking medication, do not lie on your back immediately after taking medication, stay for a moment, use the drug’s own gravity to make it pass through the esophagus quickly, so as not to stay in the esophagus, delaying the effect of drugs and damage the esophageal mucosa. You should drink more water when taking the drug, usually 200-300 ml of warm water, and it is best to move around for five or six minutes before lying down to sleep. If you feel that the medication is blocked in the esophagus when taking the medication and the situation is serious, you should seek medical attention immediately.