Just because a painkiller is available over the counter (otc) it doesn't mean it's harmless, especially if it's paracetamol/acetaminophen/Calpol/Tylenol/

Just because a painkiller is available aver the counter (otc) it doesn't mean it's harmless, especially if it's paracetamol/acetaminophen/Calpol/Tylenol/Panadol. See this abcnews article. And see this Google search page.This drug is particularly dangerous to children. See Philly.com Report. For children especially it can cause asthma, liver damage and even sudden death. - That's apart from starting them on the path of painkiller dependence and painkiller addiction.

It is better to deal with the cause of the pain, rather than trying to eliminate the symptom. Pain is not caused by paracetamol deficiency.

What's the best way to prevent asthma, and by extension, prevent deaths from asthma?

Well it was reported in the Telegraph this week that doctors, by way of Dr Dinesh Saralaya, who runs a specialist clinic in Bradford, are saying that 1,000 Asthma deaths a year could be prevented if patients, even those with only mild asthma, would regularly use "their ‘preventer’ inhaler - which contains a low-dose steroid" rather than relying "solely on the ‘reliever’ inhaler when undergoing an attack. " The evidence for this claim appears to be "a poll of 333 people with severe asthma, conducted by Ipsos MORI and funded by drugs firm Novartis". Personally, I would never give much credence to research funded by companies with a financial interest in the results, and in particular to research funded by drug companies hoping to increase the sales and use of their drugs and consequently their company profits. - Would you?

But I have even stronger reasons to regard this report with scepticism. The newspaper report is illustrated with a photo of a child using an inhaler, so I'll consider in particular child sufferers from asthma. - Now I am not a doctor and I have no medical qualifications whatsoever, so if you are wanting a medical opinion you would be better looking elsewhere than on my blog. But like you I do have a brain and I can read. My personal opinion is that the best way to prevent asthma, and to prevent deaths from asthma, is to protect children from a high intake of salt/sodium. My opinion is based on the following research evidence:

In this Telegraph article http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2137775/Too-much-television-is-an-asthma-risk.html, about research in Rome, Italy, led by Dr Giuseppe Corbo, despite its misleading title, the crucial finding is, "The study of 20,000 six and seven-year-olds, published in the medical journal Epidemiology, confirmed a strong link with asthma and obesity, but found that salt was the biggest risk. Those with the highest intake of salt were two and a half times more likely to develop asthma." (My emphasis.) I'll bet your brain comes to the same conclusion as mine does, doesn't it? - Protecting children from a high salt diet is the simplest, safest and most effective way to reduce their risk of developing asthma and also from any necessity to take steroid meds as treatment for asthma. (I'm not a big fan of steroid meds, especially if they can be avoided.)

This article, too, supports the wisdom of a low salt intake for children. "According to a new study published by the American Dietetic Association, high-salt foods and snacks are linked to lung changes that trigger asthma symptoms.," and that researchers in Greece found, using questionnaires, "Kids who ate high-salt foods more than three times a week saw their risk of asthma symptoms go up almost five times."

Another drug-free and very important measure to protect children from developing asthma is to avoid dosing children with paracetamol/acetaminophen (aka Tylenol and Calpol). A wealth of statistical data on this webpage http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/20/health/evidence-mounts-linking-acetaminophen-and-asthma.html?_r=1 suggests a link between acetaminophen and childhood asthma. Also have a read of this article from the Telegraph http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/3233550/Delaying-baby-vaccine-could-cut-asthma.html for another simple measure that "could halve the likelihood of a child developing asthma by the age of seven."

As well as reducing the suffering of many thousands, even of millions, of people, these simple measures could also save about £1 billion a year - nearly one per cent of the NHS entire NHS budget - that is spent on asthma. - What it would not do, of course, is boost the profits of the drug company, Novartis...

Two simple suggestions that could help to stem the worldwide increase in childhood asthma

A crucial dietary measure that would reduce the incidence and severity of childhood asthma is to avoid feeding children salty meals and snacks. - See this article, where you will read, "According to a new study published in the American Dietetic Association, high-salt foods and snacks are linked to lung changes that trigger asthma symptoms.," and that researchers in Greece found, using questionnaires, "Kids who ate high-salt foods more than three times a week saw their risk of asthma symptoms go up almost five times." 

 

We read in this Telegraph report of research in Rome, Italy, led by Dr Giuseppe Corbo. "The study of 20,000 six and seven-year-olds, published in the medical journal Epidemiology, confirmed a strong link with asthma and obesity, but found that salt was the biggest risk. Those with the highest intake were two and a half times more likely to develop asthma." (my emphasis) See also Salt/Sodium in Foods.

 

Another important precaution is to avoid dosing children with paracetamol/acetaminophen (aka Tylenol and Calpol). There is a wealth of statistical data on that webpage which suggests a link between acetaminophen and childhood asthma.

 

Since AsthmaUK suggested this week that a third of people with asthma are at a high risk of having a potentially fatal asthma attack (see this BBC report), I reckon AsthmaUK ought to do the decent thing and bring these simple precautionary measures to the attention of asthma sufferers and their relatives and carers. Surely it is a moral imperative.

Thinking about the painkiller acetaminophen/Tylenol/paracetamol/Calpol)

We tend to think of the painkiller acetaminophen, aka Tylenol or paracetamol or Calpol (sickly pink liquid containing paracetamol plus sweeteners, flavourings, preservatives and colourants, formulated to appeal to toddlers) as fairly safe, don't we? But I'm beginning to realise that's probably wrong. Even if you've never taken more than the recommended dose or taken too frequently, and never actually noticed any ill-effects from it, it's nonetheless an unnatural substance for the body to metabolise and so there there is the risk of cumulative liver damage. It has also been found to have a link with the risk of childhood asthma.

I've written previously about the dangers of giving paracetamol/Calpol to toddlers (serious liver damage).Parents will find this article particularly arresting. Sometimes Tylenol can even cause death. Since these products can be bought OTC - over the counter - as well as obtained on prescription, and since, increasingly, painkiller addiction is becoming an illness in its own right (see here and here and here) I suggest that such painkillers need to be resorted to with caution, especially as far as children are concerned.

A bit of good news about Calpol, the version of paracetamol that is, unfortunately, given to children.

A bit of good news about Calpol, the version of paracetamol that is, unfortunately, given to children. - See BBC News report. - The bit of good news is that the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency says there will be more specific dosing instructions for this product, with narrowed age brackets. This will probably reduce some of the dangerous and damaging over-prescribing of paracetamol to toddlers that has been going on.

"Dr June Raine, the MHRA's director of vigilance and risk management of medicines, insisted the change was not because of safety concerns.

"The change is to ensure children get the most optimal dose of paracetamol suitable for their age.

"This updated dosing advice will clarify the doses, making it easier for parents and carers to know exactly how much paracetamol they should give their children.""

I'm sorry, Dr Raine, that you " insisted the change was not because of safety concerns". - It damn well ought to have been for safety concerns! I regard giving painkillers to little children as harmful, risk-laden folly.

Apart from the very real and present physical harm that can result, the practice of medicating every little pain and symptom in a child's life can produce an adult who will carry on the habit, looking for health and well-being in pills and potions, instead of in good food, good nutrition, good friends, fresh air, exercise and all the other good, drug-free benisons you, Dear Reader, would yourself list.

Here's an excellent article that gives information about the harmful ingredients that are added to Calpol as well as the paracetamol itself. And here's another such article.

Doctors are over-prescribing paracetamol to toddlers

The Telegraph reports that doctors are over-prescribing paracetamol to toddlers. "One-in-four young children are being given too much of the pain relief drug, putting them at risk of liver damage, scientists found. A study of medical records of some youngsters found that a quarter between the ages of one and three were prescribed an "excessive" paracetamol dosage by their doctor."

That is an extremely high proportion of toddlers being overdosed. I have blogged with my views about giving painkillers to babies/toddlers before. No-one wants to risk their child getting liver damage from taking painkillers. Paracetamol, aka Calpol, is not harmless. I advocate comfort and cuddles for little ones, rather than pharmaceutical painkiller drugs with all their risks. Unlike drugs, a kiss and a cuddle have no adverse side-effects:

Give a kiss and a hug,
Not a painkiller drug.

Parents too readily give children paracetamol and ibuprofen for mild fever

Parents too readily give children paracetamol and ibuprofen for mild fever, the Telegraph reports. There are problems with dosage and over-dosage for children, and with combining the use of each of these drugs in turn, and with the very decision to try to lower the fever anyway, since fever is one of the ways in which the body seeks to fight infection.

Personally I deplore giving these painkiller drugs to children at all. Children should be protected from pharmaceutical drugs and their many potential and actual adverse side-effects. But parents are assailed by frequent advertisements for painkillers, and doctors' training is laced with over-reliance on the prescribing of drugs, i.e. the treatment of illness rather than the promotion and maintenance of health. Painkillers for children were unheard of when I was a child and we were all the better for not being given them. I'm sure we are all better off without most drugs and without their harmful side-effects.

Making sure we eat nutritious meals and get sufficient vitamins and minerals, especially vitamin D and calcium, the vitamin and mineral most often deficient or depleted in people's diets, is the best protection from infection, and prevention is always far better than cure.

Acetaminophen (Paracetamol) use in adolescents linked to doubled risk of asthma

New evidence linking the use of acetaminophen to development of asthma and eczema suggests that even monthly use of the drug in adolescents may more than double risk of asthma in adolescents compared to those who used none at all; yearly use was associated with a 50 percent increase in the risk of asthma.
Read article at physorg.com

Comment by Dr Rath Foundation: Based upon research involving more than 300,000 13- and 14 year old children in 113 centers throughout 50 countries, the results of this study follow hot on the heels of independent research that links acetaminophen (Paracetamol) not only to asthma but also to hearing loss and adverse vision events. As such, as the leading cause of liver failure in the United States and carrying a much increased risk of stroke and heart attack, it is becoming increasingly clear that the dangers of acetaminophen are far higher, and more numerous, than the business with disease and its friends in the drug regulatory agencies would have you believe.

Giving paracetamol to babies after they have had a vaccination reduces the effectiveness of the vaccination

BBC News reports that giving paracetamol to babies after vaccinations may impair the effectiveness of the vaccination.

It seems to me that it would in any case always be preferable to avoid giving unnecessary medication to children, especially babies.

Paracetamol has been linked to three-fold increased risk of asthma in children

Giving young children Calpol or other paracetamol medicines increases the risk of them developing asthma, research has shown. Children aged six and seven who had paracetamol at least once a month were at three times the risk of having asthma than those who were never given it. Babies who were given the drug under the age of one were more likely to have asthma at six or seven but the greatest risk was amongst those who were receiving high doses, defined as once a month for 12 months.
Read article in the Daily Telegraph (UK)

Rosehip could be more effective than painkillers at easing the pain of arthritis sufferers, scientists claim.

Rosehip 'better than painkillers' for arthritis

Extracts from the Telegraph:

"The pain-relieving properties of rosehip, which has previously been linked to reduced inflammation in osteoarthritis, have been suggested for decades. Now scientists have found that powder made from a wild variety of rosehip, Rosa canina, is better at reducing pain in patients than paracetamol."

"A review of studies, published in the medical journal, Osteoarthritis and Cartilage, looked at the effect of the powder on more than 300 patients who were given different pain-relieving medications for an average of three months.

They found that rosehip was almost three times more effective than standard paracetamol at relieving pain. It was also almost 40 per cent more effective than another common therapy, the drug glucosamine.

Rosehip powder also did not have the side-effects associated with other pain medications, including constipation and drowsiness.

The team which conducted the study, led by Dr Robin Christensen, of the Frederiksberg Hospital in Copenhagen, believes the powder works by also tackling the inflammation associated with osteoarthritis.

Dr Kaj Winther, an inflammation specialist at the Frederiksberg Hospital, said: "This is very exciting news for arthritis sufferers. Some of the main advantages of taking an alternative medication such as rosehip to reduce pain are that, firstly, it is readily available over the counter and, secondly, unlike traditional painkillers, it does not produce unpleasant side-effects.""

Many pains, including the pain of osteoarthritis, are reduced/relieved by avoiding salt/sodium and salty food. - See Sodium in foods and Associated health conditions

Food Commission warns about additives in children's medicines

Warning on additives in children's medicines

Extracts from the Telegraph:

"Additives linked to hyperactivity in children are still used as ingredients in some medicines used by youngsters, a report out today warns.

The Food Commission found that 28 of 70 medicines suitable for under-12s contained one or more of the additives."

"The seven E numbers included in the report were part of a Food Standards Agency study carried out by Southampton University.

Its research found that 17 paracetamol products contained one or more of the additives.

Four medicated throat syrups, two ibuprofen products and five brands of two different antibiotics also contained at least one of the seven E numbers each."

Prescribed drugs are a snare and a delusion....

Here is an example of what I mean, taken from my recent stay in hospital:

A female patient was troubled by the pain of constipation (which was likely to have been caused by the morphine medication administered because of her operation to mend a broken hip). She was given pain-killers for this constipation pain - pain-killers that have constipation as one of their many adverse side-effects!

She was then given Lactulose to relieve the constipation. - She said this made her feel sick and so she was given further medication to treat the feeling of sickness! - This drug culture is madness! (Nor did the Lactulose work for her and so she ended up having an enema!)

It is my belief that our bodies and minds can cope with most pain - that they indeed evolved to do so.

They did not evolve to cope with vast quantities of pharmaceutical junk!

I insisted on not being given morphine for my operation, and although I suffered a lot of very severe pain during the 4 weeks I was in hospital I coped with it, and the only analgesics I took were paracetamol when I had reason to believe that a migraine was on its way. - When I notice the visual disturbance - jagged lights, etc - of an incipient migraine, if I quickly take 2 paracetamol this usually prevents the headache from coming. - And I know from experience that I do not seem to suffer ill-effects from paracetamol taken in this way and do have the great benefit of averting the migraine.

Similarly, when I had a hysterectomy in 1994 I resolutely refused to have morphine, and I made an excellent recovery, unhampered by the side-effects of morphine.


Lose weight and improve your health in many ways without drugs or expense by eating less salt! Go on! - Try it! - You will feel so much better!

How to Lose weight!

See my website http://www.wildeaboutsteroids.co.uk/.html (The site does not sell anything and has no banners or sponsors or adverts - just helpful information.)

Read my Mensa article on Obesity and the Salt Connection

See Sodium in foods and

Associated health conditions and

http://www.wildeaboutsteroids.co.uk/story.html - my 'political' page

http://www.wildeaboutsteroids.co.uk/socio.html - social and economic considerations

I can be contacted via my website if you need my further help. My help is free.

Many additives found in children's medicines - report by the Food Commission. - Sweeteners, dyes, preservatives - possible side-effects...

Cocktail of additives found in child medicines - form The Guardian

Extract:

"Children's medicines contain a cocktail of additives which are banned in food and drink aimed at under-threes, says a report out today from the Food Commission.

Dyes, preservatives, and sweeteners were found in cough syrups, paracetamol tablets and teething gels. One product contained eight E numbers.

The campaign group looked at 41 medicines for children under three. Only one, Superdrug children's dry cough syrup, was totally free of colourings and preservatives. Some of the additives can lead to asthma or act as mild laxatives, and most are banned from food and drink for under-threes, even though they are allowed in medicines aimed at young children."

"Some 31 out of 41 products contained preservatives, the most common being benzoates - E numbers E210 to E219; reactions can include skin rashes or wheezing. Only some of the medicines displayed warnings of additives' possible side effects.

Buttercup infant cough syrup had two E number dyes, while Calpol paracetamol, Anbesol teething gel, Sudafed children's syrup, and Superdrug children's chesty cough syrup, contained one azo dye apiece. Tixylix night cough syrup, sold for children over one year old, contained both benzoate and sulphite preservatives. Some medicines contained sweeteners sorbitol, maltitol and xylitol, which can have a laxative effect in high doses.""


Protect your child from obesity. - See http://www.wildeaboutsteroids.co.uk/children.html
Lose weight by eating less salt! Go on! - Try it!
See my website www.wildeaboutsteroids.co.uk
(The site does not sell anything and has no banners or sponsors or adverts - just helpful information.)