Huh? What’s That About Painkillers?
As a chiropractor I believe that there are many reasons for people to avoid taking painkillers whenever possible. Most people know that not only can painkillers become quickly addictive, but that they carry risky side effects. Though many of us are familiar with many of the negative side effects of painkillers, here’s one that surprised me. A new study in men hints that taking over-the-counter painkillers on a regular basis can actually lead to hearing loss, especially in younger men. And, an even bigger surprise, the study focused on the most common over-the-counter painkillers, Tylenol and Advil. So listen up!
Researchers found that men younger than age 50 who regularly took acetaminophen more than two times a week had roughly double the risk of hearing loss compared to men who did not take acetaminophen regularly. Acetaminophen is the active ingredient in Tylenol and certain other pain relievers. They also found that men within this same age group who regularly took ibuprofen (the main ingredient in Advil) or other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID) at least twice a week had a nearly two-thirds higher risk of hearing loss than men who took NSAIDs less often. Men who took aspirin twice a week had a one-third higher risk.
The findings, which were published in the American Journal of Medicine March 2010, stem from nearly 27,000 men enrolled since 1986 in the Health Professionals’ Follow-Up Study. As part of the study, the men, who were between 40 and 74 years old at the outset, provided information on analgesic use, hearing loss and other relevant factors every 2 years for 18 years, during which time 3,488 men were diagnosed with hearing loss. For more information on this interesting study, go to Reuters.com