Yes, we know Advil can help give us pain relief from an intense exercise at the gym or ease the pain away of a headache from a long stressful day at the office. But do we ever think about the side effects that could come with the relief and comfort this magical pill give us? In 1969, Ibuprofen was first used to treat patient with rheumatoid arthritis. Today, Advil is used to reduce fever, headache, toothache, back pain, arthritis, and minor injury. It is not safe for a person to take Advil if they have a history of heart attack or stroke. Also, ask a doctor or pharmacist if Advil is safe for you to take. Advil side effects can cause dizziness, drowsiness, headache, stomach pain, gas, and heartburn. Drinking alcohol while taking Advil can cause stomach bleeding. USA Today publish an article in June of 2010, called the Danish study on healthy people using pain relievers are raising their risk of future heart related problems. The article provides studies done, that proved cardiovascular risk increased when healthy people used NSAIDs such as Advil. Individuals whose average age was 39, that used ibuprofen had a 29% chance of fatal and nonfatal stroke. In the article, Cardiologist Dr. Michael E. Farkouh explain that drugs that raise blood pressure such as Advil are associated with an artery-blocking effect that can be harmful in patients who are healthy. The study also indicated that healthy people are more likely to take NSAIDs for muscle and joint pain do to regularly excising. (http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2010-06-11-nsaids-heart_N.htm) Another article by the New York Times talks about a study done by physiologist David Neiman at the Human Performance Laboratory at the North Carolina Research Campus. David Neiman conducted a stress test on the runners that was racing in the Western States Endurance Run. Neiman saw in blood samples he took, that many of the runners were providing their own physiological stress in tablet form. The runners that took ibuprofen before and during the races showed more inflammation and high immune system than runners that did not take any form of ibuprofen or aspirin. The runners that used ibuprofen also showed signs of mild kidney impairment before and after the race. Neiman find out that 7 out 10 runners were using ibuprofen. Majority of athletes in a wide range of sports, take some form of painkillers religiously. Neiman research finds that many athletes took ibuprofen before a sporting event to prevent pain during or after the event. Furthermore, taking ibuprofen before participating in a sporting event can actually has an opposite of reducing pain effect for athletes. The soreness of the athletes that took ibuprofen was same as the non-ibuprofen taking athletes. Physiologist Stuart Warden found that NSAIDs actually slowed the healing of injured muscles, tendons, ligament, and bones. (http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/01/phys-ed-does-ibuprofen-help-or-hurt-during-exercise/) Neiman and Warden Research also confirm passage on page 61 in the textbook on how the technology we felt was created to help us, end up proving to harm us. MSNBC reported that Advil and other forms of ibuprofens can cause health risk for pregnant mothers. (http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/9811838/ns/today-today_health/) Advil design assumption is to expect their consumers to read the warning label on the packaging box, but the emotional attachment to Advil is that this technology as articulation gives relief, joy, and comfort that distract the buyers to recognize the warning. Over the years with Brett Favre and other athletes admitting to being addictive to painkillers, have lead to the term painkillers to be identified with athletes in physical sports.
This is very interesting because it is a daily struggle in our lives while trying to gauge how much and how often we take ibuprofen, and we do not even play professional sports. The question is very important: which is worse, the pain or the cure? Pain has been around as long as evolution has. As humans have progressed, we have worked to reduce, and ultimately eliminate pain altogether through the use of various chemicals who, when mixed together, makes us feel better.
ReplyDeleteAspirin, demurral, and percocets have all been created to give relief to various stages of pain and, as with all man made creations, what side effects, whether now or in the future, will these things pose to our fragile human bodies? In one sense, we are evolving to rid pain from our bodies, but on the other hand, we are devolving into a less resilient frame. Are we becoming weaker, where we will have to rely on these chemicals in the future?
Another point touched on in your post was the addiction and dependencies of these chemicals. The more these pain killers help us, the more we need them, especially if you constantly pound your body as athletes do. The natural healing process is not given enough time to work itself out, so we need to quicken the process. It seems as though time is not on our side and we fight to make things faster. Now we need to heal faster, which makes our life better. Taking aspirin makes life better for most, but we need to think about what that temporary relief will do down the road. If you knew what would happen, would you take that pill now?
I had to make sure I commented on this blog because of the way I feel about medications. I do not take them, only in extreme cases for example when I was a about twelve, I have appendicitus, my appendix ruptured. Also when it's really cold outside or if I get really cold, my joints ache. It's not arthritis but it is hereditary because my mom and brother are the same way. And I only take it then when I have enough inflammation to affect my day to day routine (not that often). I have been telling people for years that medications are a conspiracy. They only ease the pain enough for you to go back to the store and by more later! And on top of that, a lot of the things we take meds for, we don't need to! Every headache I've ever had, menstrual cramp, stomach ache, etc etc ALWAYS just goes away. Then, your body gets dependent on drugs and it's natural ability to heal kind of goes away. My point, lay off the drugs, you don't need them as much as you think. Nice blog
ReplyDeleteThis is so interesting to me. First of all I seriously will never take ibuprofen again. Secondly, we are always finding the balance with all things. In economics its called opportunity cost. What am I willing to give up in order to gain its alternative. I am not willing to give up long term health for short term comfort. Technology is so funny this way. We create things for momentary needs are wants but do not always come to realize the long term implications until later. I had a professor when I took psychology who said the difference between intelligent and unintelligent beings is that intelligent beings give up momentary pleasures for long term gains. With all the other alternatives on the market one must have a real attachment to this drug. I would like to A and B these drugs to see which ones have the most obvious long term affects.
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