The wildly popular — but dangerous — OTC drug lurking in your medicine cabinet

If you’ve heard about the dangers of acetaminophen (Tylenol), there’s a very good chance you’ve only heard the half of it — maybe even less.

This is an especially important concern for any arthritis patients who use acetaminophen frequently to avoid the dangers of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).

But don’t let anyone tell you that you have to stick to either one or the other. In other words, you don’t have to pick your poison (and that’s essentially what they are)…

There are many effective non-drug pain relievers that work just as well for arthritis without worrying about a trip to the ER or blowing out a major organ.

Little relief, BIG dangers

Acetaminophen is famously toxic to the liver, when taken in excessive doses. The average yearly statistics for liver-related adverse events in the US are grim:

  • 78,000 emergency room cases
  • 33,000 hospitalizations
  • 450 deaths

The large majority of these cases are due to a combination of acetaminophen and the use of other medicines (mostly over-the-counter products) that also contain acetaminophen.

Many people, for instance, use cold and allergy medicines without realizing they’re getting a dose of acetaminophen. So if they double up on doses, then take a few Tylenol, suddenly their livers are in the danger zone. Add excess alcohol to that mix and the situation can go south fast.

Arthritis patients are at even greater risk. Relying on acetaminophen as a primary pain killer requires daily — or near daily — usage for many patients.

That’s why I was surprised to see an article on the Arthritis Foundation website that advocates use of acetaminophen. The article addresses some of the drug’s dangers, but it also makes this claim: “It doesn’t carry the stomach and heart risks linked to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.”

Unfortunately, that’s just not true. (I’ll tell you more about these two risks in a moment.)

What’s worse, the drug is proven to be a bad choice for arthritis. Two years ago, a meta-analysis of studies from researchers at Switzerland’s University of Bern concluded: “Acetaminophen is not effective in relieving osteoarthritis pain in the hip or knee, and does not improve joint function.”

As one pain specialist explained to HealthDay News, inflammation drives the pain of osteoarthritis. But acetaminophen is not an anti-inflammatory.

It’s as simple as that: not effective, and absolutely not safe.

Hidden long-term harms

As I mentioned above, anyone who turns to regular acetaminophen use to avoid the heart and digestive tract dangers of NSAIDs could steer themselves onto a path containing some very nasty surprises.

In Dr. Marc Micozzi’s Arthritis Relief and Reversal Protocol, he talks about the well-known hazards of acetaminophen, but points out that the emergencies, hospitalizations, and deaths we hear so much about don’t reflect the damage seen in long-term use of the drug.

He cites a 2015 study in the UK that linked long-term acetaminophen use with increased risk of high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, kidney disease, and gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding.

Some of the frightening findings of this study include:

  • The death rate among acetaminophen users was 90 percent higher than those who didn’t take the drug
  • People who took the highest doses were 70 percent more likely to suffer nonfatal heart toxicity — which is quite literally, a poisoned heart
  • Even those who used the lowest doses had an 11 percent higher risk of nonfatal heart toxicity
  • Individuals who took the highest doses also had a 50 percent higher chance of suffering internal bleeding and other GI complications

Dr. Micozzi notes the irony: “The so-called ‘experts’ told us to switch to acetaminophen because of the risk of GI bleeding with aspirin. At least aspirin also lowers your risk of heart disease, and even cancer, instead of skyrocketing it!

“Death, heart damage, internal bleeding — and let’s not forget the kidneys: The drug was linked to a 30 percent decrease in kidney function, too. At the highest doses, it more than DOUBLED the risk of kidney damage.”

To add insult to those very serious injuries, the drug doesn’t even work for joint, back, neck, or shoulder pain. And to that, Dr. Micozzi adds, “In fact, one study showed that taking Tylenol delayed healing from back pain by a full day.

“Here’s my advice: Never take Tylenol for anything. Ever. Period.”

Other drugs and other dangers

Although NSAIDs are far more effective than acetaminophen for arthritis, Dr. Micozzi has quite a bit to say about NSAID dangers, too. I’ll save his full take on NSAIDs for another day, but this a good moment to quickly revisit a study I told you about this past spring.

Danish researchers tracked records of every out-of-hospital cardiac arrest that occurred in Denmark between 2001 to 2010. And out of nearly 29,000 cases, almost 12 percent were linked with NSAID use.

One of the researchers was alarmed enough to suggest that all NSAIDs should be available only by prescription — even at low doses.

As I mentioned above, you don’t have to “pick your poison” when it comes to acetaminophen and NSAIDS. Dr. Micozzi himself suffers from knee osteoarthritis, so he knows exactly what works and what does not — what’s safe, and what’s not.

If you’re interested in learning about effective, drug-free approaches to safely soothe arthritis and joint pain, refer to Dr. Micozzi’s Arthritis Relief and Reversal Protocol. To learn more about this learning tool, or to enroll today, simply click here.

 

SOURCES

http://www.arthritis.org/living-with-arthritis/treatments/medication/drug-types/analgesics/acetaminophen-safety.php
Taking Acetaminophen Safely
Arthritis Foundation

https://www.webmd.com/arthritis/news/20160317/acetaminophen-wont-help-arthritis-pain-study-finds#1
Acetaminophen Won’t Help Arthritis Pain, Study Finds
HealthDay News
March 17, 2016