The Dangers of NSAIDs

September 10, 2009 by Back & Neck Pain Resources
Filed under Pain Relief Treatments

When people feel some back pain, neck pain or other aches in their body one of their immediate response would be to ingest some pills. They would purchase some aspi Tablets rin or ibuprofen pills and take them so that they would be able to feel relief from the pain that they are feeling. This is a common reaction for people who are suffering from a variety of illnesses such as rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, and even headaches.

These kinds of medication are called NSAIDs or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. They help dull away pain by taking the “edge” off of the pain. They are commonly prescribed for people in pain simply because they do work.

However, one thing to note is that while they do help in removing the pain, they are not very helpful in treating the cause. This would lead to a cycle wherein you would simply pop in pills to be able to cope with the pain whenever it strikes.

The unfortunate thing is that there are plenty of dangers to falling into this vicious cycle of taking in non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. These complications range from the minor to those that are really harmful toy our overall health.

Here are some of the dangers that you may encounter once you become a frequent user of NSAIDs.

Adverse effects to your Kidneys and Liver: Always remember that taking any medicine would have an effect on your kidneys and liver. Even the seemingly “light” non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen or aspirin can already put a heavy strain on these parts of your body.

That is why taking them for an extended period of time may make your kidneys and liver weak that it would not be able to perform properly.

Adverse drug reactions of your Gastrointestinal tract: The active chemicals found in the NSAIDs can irritate your gastrointestinal tract if you keep on ingesting the said pills. This irritation can lead to increased gastric acid secretion, diminished bicarbonate secretion, diminished mucous secretion and diminished trophic effects on epithelial mucosa.

When these things happen, the common reaction of the body would be to exhibit these following symptoms:

Nausea or Vomiting

Dyspepsia

Gastric Ulcers that can lead to bleeding

Diarrhea

False sense of Security: Unfortunately, many people tend to only think about what is wrong with their bodies once they feel the pain. However, once they have taken the pills and have numbed it down, they would already consider themselves well enough or healthy enough.

The problem with this is that NSAIDs just provide the back pain relief but not necessarily treat them. You can even consider them as stop gap solutions or as first aid treatments. As such, relying on them may lead to a false sense of security that everything is right with the body, only to find out that there are complications later on.

As you can see from the aforementioned examples, the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs do work but they can give you plenty of side effects. They would only help you relieve pain but not treat the one that is causing it. As such, it may be a better idea to find a solution or a treatment to your pain, and just use these NSAIDs as a first aid treatment and not as the primary option.