Dangers of Painkillers

 
In India you don’t need a prescription to buy painkillers and they can be bought over the counter. Painkillers are great, especially when you take them to get relief from an acute pain anywhere in your body. They may appear as a miracle drug at that time but frequent consumption will leave you with a heavy price to pay.

Women pop in painkillers more often, in order to get relief from menstrual cramps, migraines, stomach pains, joint pains and labor pains. But if you are better informed about the dangers of using painkillers indiscriminately, you may think twice before taking them in future.

Paracetamol (Crocin & Saridon) are effective painkillers but overusing them weakens the liver. A British Medical Journal cites evidences of liver dysfunction after 7 to 8 paracetamol in many people.

Aspirin (advil), Naproxen (aleve) and ibuprofen (motrin) are called NDAID (Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) and frequent use can damage your gut, leading to internal bleeding. People with ulcers or any other digestive issues should steer clear of these drugs, as it can be fatal. They are also reported to cause liver, cardiac and renal failure.

Some painkillers are addictive, especially codeine-based painkillers like Nurofen Plus and Solpadeine. Prolonged frequent use will result in undesirable side effects like rebound headaches, irritability and restlessness.

Oxycodone is a powerful narcotic painkiller found in Percodan. Percocet and Oxycontin and are used to get relief from very severe pain. Misuse of this drug can cause grave damage to your nervous system.

Duoflam, Combiflam & Ibugesi are other strong painkillers that can cause liver and kidney problems if it is chronically used for long periods of time. Many times, there have been reports of deaths from overdose of painkillers. Addiction to painkillers may result in having to increase their dosage to get the desired results.

The percentage of young people using addictive painkillers to get high is increasing every year, as they believe it is safer than illegally sold street drugs. Unfortunately, they fail to see that long-term misuse of these strong painkillers can cause untold damage to their body with no hope for recovery. In 2007, it was discovered that misuse of painkiller Fentanyl proved fatal to over 1,000 people, as it was found to be more lethal than heroin.

A friend of mine suffered from renal failure on account of dehydration coupled with over dosage of Ibuprofen, which resulted due to negligence in consulting with the doctor before using them. She was used to popping in the pills without medical advice, on frequent occasions and had to suffer the consequences of her actions.

Use a hot water bottle for relief from stomach pain or drink a concoction of carom seeds boiled in water. Alternatively, you could use pain balm or muscle relaxant creams for muscular pain, headaches etc. Whatever happens, use painkillers only as a last resort. I would like to caution you to consult with your doctor before using painkillers and prevent any risk to your health.