HIDDEN DANGERS IN OVER THE COUNTER MEDICATIONS

It was a Monday morning. Just after 7 am me and my colleague were settling in for our day’s work.

 ‘Do you have any ibuprofen or acetaminophen?’ my friend asked me.

‘Why do you need it?’ I asked her. I could guess the reason but, I wanted her to confirm the reason for seeking pain medication.

‘I have severe stomach cramps,’ she confirmed. ‘I am afraid I won’t be able to stay at work but, I don’t think I can drive home either.’

‘I don’t use any pain medication,’ I informed her and I could see the dismay on her face. ‘But, I have the best remedy for cramps or any kind of pain.’ I took out a small bottle of cloves from my cabinet. ‘Trust me,’ I told her. ‘Take just 2 cloves and the pain will be gone in 5 mins.’

I could see that she didn’t believe me but, she was also in such a position that she was willing to try anything. She took 2 cloves from me and chewed on it.

I let her savour the cloves and returned to work. Hardly 2 minutes had gone by when she called me again. ‘It worked!’ she exclaimed. ‘The pain is gone!’

She returned to work and later told me that the pain never returned. ‘Usually, ‘ she said. ‘I have to pop a pill every 3 hours throughout the day. I can’t believe that the pain is completely gone!’

‘I am glad you feel better,’ I told her. ‘We never have any kind of pain medication at home. They cause so many side-effects that it is not worth it for common ailments. I suffer from severe summer allergies; my eyes itch and I sneeze like a thousand times a day. I found out that chewing on 2 cloves gives me instant relief. I no longer take any anti-histamines. Bear in mind though that if a person is suffering from shortness of breath or anaphylactic shock, they definitely need EpiPen or seek medical advice immediately. For normal seasonal allergies, cloves are the best.’

‘What made you look into these alternate remedies?’

‘Recently I saw on the news that pain medication like ibuprofen and acetaminophen (paracetamol) can cause adverse side-effects in some people like kidney and liver damage. Common anti-histamines are also linked to causing dementia. Please read this link https://goo.gl/xiMV1o

Antihistamines are a class of drug called anticholinergic medications. In a report published in JAMA Internal Medicine, researchers offer compelling evidence of a link between long-term use of anticholinergic medications  AND DEMENTIA.

“The ACT results add to mounting evidence that anticholinergics aren’t drugs to take long-term if you want to keep a clear head and keep your head clear into old age. The body’s production of acetylcholine diminishes with age, so blocking its effects can deliver a double whammy to older people. It’s not surprising that problems with short-term memory, reasoning, and confusion lead the list of side effects of anticholinergic drugs, which also include drowsiness, dry mouth, urine retention, and constipation.” (Ref:https://goo.gl/xiMV1o)

Please read the following information.

The statement that taking the recommended dose mentioned on the packaging should keep people safe from dangerous side effects is not true because, “Many drugs have a stronger effect on older people than younger people. With age, the kidneys and liver clear drugs more slowly, so drug levels in the blood remain higher for a longer time. People also gain fat and lose muscle mass with age, both of which change the way that drugs are distributed to and broken down in body tissues.” (Ref: https://goo.gl/xiMV1o)

ACETOAMINOPHEN (PARACETAMOL): "It is the most common cause of liver injury. Period. Full stop," said  Dr. Michael Rieder, a pediatric clinical pharmacologist at Western University in London, Ont. (Ref: https://goo.gl/uYu2dY). Again, the drug is not excreted from the body in the same manner for everyone and for some people the drug is excreted more slowly and can result in accumulation overtime which can lead to accidental overdose.

IBUPROFEN:   Ibuprofen belongs to a class of drugs called NSAID. NSAIDs may also Elevate blood pressure and cause heart failure.

“The warnings from the FDA point out:

• Heart attack and stroke risk increase even with short-term use, and the risk may begin within a few weeks of starting to take an NSAID.
• The risk increases with higher doses of NSAIDs taken for longer periods of time.
• The risk is greatest for people who already have heart disease, though even people without heart disease may be at risk.
• Previous studies have suggested that naproxen may be safer than other types of NSAIDs, but the more recent evidence reviewed by the expert panel isn’t solid enough to determine that for certain.”  (Ref: https://goo.gl/mEmBLn)

There are many alternative natural remedies available which provide better relief than the above medications. If interested, consult a good naturopath/homoeopathic practitioner to get specific medication for your symptoms. 

Further reading: Th https://goo.gl/Fmvw7c

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• Between 2000 and 2009, a Statistics Canada database recorded 253 accidental deaths where acetaminophen was a major or contributing cause of death.
• Between 2005 and September 2013, Health Canada’s adverse drug events database received 2,402 reports where acetaminophen was a “suspect product.” Of these, 287 were fatal." (Ref: https://goo.gl/Fmvw7c )

Most of the remedies for common ailments are available in our own kitchen pantry (cloves, cumin, ginger , black pepper and cayenne pepper) which definitely doesn’t cause side effects like dementia, stroke or liver damage.

Of course, if symptoms don’t improve within a couple of days, we should definitely seek medical help to rule out possibilities like bacterial meningitis especially when dealing with children and elderly but, for common cold, common allergies and things like stomach cramps and tension headaches, give natural home remedies a try.