A study has found that a third of older people are at an increased risk of dying because they do not fully understand the instructions on medicine labels.

Researchers at University College London asked almost 8,000 adults over 52 to take part in a test of how well they could read and understand a basic medicines label, for a mocked-up aspirin product.
It comprised of asking four simple comprehension-style questions, such as
- What is the maximum number of days you may take this medicine?
- List three situations for which you should consult a doctor.

The answers were on the bottle's label.
A third failed to answer all four questions correctly, and one in eight got two or more answers wrong.

The researchers then followed the health of the volunteers for five years,   They found those with poorer literacy - ie who got more answers wrong - were more likely to have died over that period.

Source: British Medical Journal