Advantages and disadvantages

Do the advantages outweigh the disadvantages for you?

Always ask yourself whether the possible advantages of a treatment outweigh the disadvantages of the treatment.

When you are deciding whether to use a treatment, you should think about whether it is more helpful than harmful, not just whether it is helpful. This depends on the size of the good and bad effects.

The size of the effects may depend on how sick you are or how likely you are to get sick (your baseline risk). For example, an antibiotic for a bad earache caused by an infection may be more helpful than for a milder earache.

It also depends on how important the outcomes are to you. For example, taking a medicine may reduce earache (a good effect), but may also have bad effects, like diarrhoea. Some people might think that an earache is a more important problem for them than diarrhoea and therefore may be more likely to decide to use the medicine. Others may think that diarrhoea is a more important problem for them, so they may be more likely to decide not to use the medicine.

REMEMBER: Ask yourself if the advantages outweigh the dis advantages.