(CBS) Miami's medical examiner released startling details this week about the 11 prescription drugs found in Anna Nicole Smith's hotel room after she died from an overdose. There were hundreds of pills — muscle relaxants, sleeping pills and other potent drugs — all authorized by Smith's Beverly Hills psychiatrist.

Smith's death illustrates how dangerous prescription drugs can be if not used carefully, especially for the 32 million Americans who take three or more medications daily.

The Saturday Early Show's Dr. Mallika Marshall has answers to questions about the most common mistakes Americans make with prescription and non-prescription drugs, and how to avoid them.

Q: Do prescription drugs really hurt all that many people?

Yes. A recent report said at least one-and-a-half million Americans are harmed each year by mistakes involving medications. So it doesn't just happen to the rich and famous. It could easily happen to you or me or a loved one.

So what are the main things to watch out for?

Problems can arise from mixing multiple drugs together; mixing drugs and alcohol; not asking for enough information from your doctor about a medication; getting the wrong prescription from the pharmacy; using more than one pharmacy; and failing to take medications as directed.

Okay, let's go through them: First, drug interactions.

This is the most common danger, and it includes over-the-counter as well as prescription drugs. People taking medication for high blood pressure should be careful of decongestants: they can raise blood pressure. Many antibiotics reduce the effectiveness of oral contraceptives so you may wish to use back-up birth control. If you take a blood thinner like Coumadin, don't take aspirin — it can cause internal bleeding. There are many other examples, so ask your doctor or pharmacist about the risks of drug combinations.

What about drug interactions with alcohol?

Alcohol can interfere with a number of medications. First of all, anti-anxiety drugs like Valium and Xanax, narcotic painkillers such as Percocet, Vicodin and Codeine, and antihistamines in common cold and allergy preparations can all be very sedating. Add alcohol — which is also a sedative on top of them — and you have a real recipe for disaster. Alcohol can also interfere with certain antibiotics, so ask your doctor or your pharmacist if it's safe to drink with certain medications; even if it's just a glass of wine, make sure it's OK.

Okay, what about getting enough information from your doctor?

Studies show that most people remember only about a third of what their doctors tell them. So be sure you know the name of the medication prescribed, what it's for, how often you should take it, and how you might react. And don't hesitate to write it all down.

Next is getting the wrong prescription from the pharmacy.

Pharmacies can make mistakes. So when you pick up your prescriptions, make sure you know the names (including the generic names) of the medications you take, and check the prescription bottles to make sure they match. Also, check the pills — if they look different than the ones you're used to taking, go back to the pharmacy and ask why. The pills may be just from a different supplier, but they could be wrong, too.

What about not using more than one pharmacy?

If you use multiple pharmacies, they can't screen for drug interactions because they may not know all the drugs you're taking. If you MUST use more than one, show the pharmacists a list of whatever you're taking.

Finally, what about failing to take medications as directed?

It's a bigger problem than most people realize. In fact, studies show that up to one-third of older people don't follow instructions about taking prescription drugs. Sometimes they cut back to save money, sometimes they forget, and some folks just don't like schedules. It can go the other way, too: taking more of a drug than prescribed is at least as dangerous as not taking enough. So follow doctor's orders and help the older people in your life do the same.

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