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| cal pain-killers and anti-inflammatories for relief. Drugs do lessen inflammation and the resulting pain temporarily, but they also can cause digestive upset and dizziness. Even more worrisome, the liver and kidneys must deal with their toxicity, an additional stress to these organs. In 1994 the National Kidney Foundation reported that kidney failure problems can occur from taking only one acetaminophen tablet a day for a year. Large amounts of other pain relievers, such as ibuprofen, naproxen and indomethacin, increase the likelihood of kidney problems as much as eight times. |
| The anti-inflammatory drug phenylbutazone carries so many serious side effects that it must be closely supervised and it is almost never suggested for long- |
| term use. Medical researchers say synthetic aspirin, the most widely-sold pain-killer and anti-inflammatory in the world, is so potent that the FDA would demand it be sold only by prescription if it were introduced today. |
| The use of pain relievers such as codeine, acetaminophen, mepericine (Demerol), ibuprofen and even aspirin to relieve a headache may only make it worse. When the New England Center for Headache in Greenwich, Connecticut took patients off their daily dose of five to six painkillers, a surprising two-thirds of them had fewer headaches by the end of the month. After two months, four-fifths were more pain-free than when they were taking the pills. At least one study found that in the majority of cases, steroids like codeine also made people with CFS worse in the long run. Cortisone (Prednisone), taken as an anti-inflammatory and for pain relief, decreases the brain chemicals serotonin and ACTH. This can lead to depression and increased cholesterol, two ailments no one needs, especially someone with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. In addition, taking corti- |
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