Alternative to NSAIDS for Pain
Why You May Want to Re-Think Your Pain Management Strategy
The jury is out on finding an immediate approach to “curing” the Coronavirus… and from what it sounds like, finding what’s the best treatment could take time and research. Both those are something you do not have if you or a loved one have the illness now. Although our current understanding is incomplete, we have been able to find a few trends with what we know so far.
COVID19 shares several symptoms with the seasonal flu such as a fever, cough, and signs of upper respiratory distress. Over-the-counter fever reducers and painkillers such as Ibuprofen and Tylenol (acetaminophen) are a commonly used home treatment for these symptoms. If you are feeling the effects of a flu and running a fever, it is common to want to take OTC’s for relief and maybe even believing that by suppressing the symptoms you are winning the fight; but current evidence is warning this could be detrimental and lead your body to be more susceptible to viral infections.
Just as with other types of illness, the body has natural processes to defend itself against microbes (bacteria, viruses, protozoa). One of which is the ability to produce a fever and in most circumstances is completely healthy and normal, although definitely uncomfortable. Failure to produce this fever due to the use of NSAIDS that suppress the fever response could be devastating for your outcome. In addition to this most recent challenge with NSAIDS, the harmful effects of this class of drugs is well documented, including death!
Let’s say you are infected with Coronavirus and have recently taken OTCs in the form of NSAIDS for other painful conditions like headaches, arthritis or back pain, this could delay your body’s immune response which allows the germ to gain an edge and worsens your outcome, even if you feel better initially due to lack of symptoms.
Our team at New Wave Chiropractic understands the severity of this crisis and the dilemmas we are all facing. Because of this challenge with the fever response and NSAIDS on top of the already well documented dangers of NSAID use, we now strongly encourage the use of alternative therapies like chiropractic, acupuncture, postural and movement correction, and diet to combat painful conditions. If you are experiencing pain and contemplating whether or not to use these types of medications, please consult with our office for alternatives. Chiropractic is an amazing resource in managing serious health concerns!
Thank you! We are thinking of you! Stay Safe!
New Wave Chiropractic Center
