Do You Know Your Over-the-Counter Painkillers?
By DB
@dgobucks226 (37621)
June 15, 2017 4:20pm CST
Do You Know Which Over-The-Counter Painkiller Is Best For Your Discomfort? Test Your Knowledge---
You probably tried many different brands of painkillers over the years, but are you sure that it was the right choice? Which type works best on fevers, or muscle soreness, or arthritis?
In additon, medical history and diet are considerations one should also think about when choosing which over-the-counter drugs to treat a symptom. Something you might want to ask your doctor about on your next visit.
Anyway, here is a list of the popular OTC brands used by most people to treat different kinds of pain symptoms: Tylenol, Advil/Motrin, Aleve, and Asprin. I'm sure there are other brand products which act similarly, but for our test purposes will use these products.
Here is something else you might find of interest. The OTC's listed here may treat all of your symptoms, but studies suggest some may be better for "specific" symptoms. 
So now, if your inclined to play, see if you can correctly match the symptoms below to the four choices listed in the above paragraph. I will send you a "like/thumbs up" response if your comment/response answers are correctly matched to each symptom. Here goes:
OTC Brands- Tylenol -------- Advil/Motrin ---------- Aleve ------- -- Aspirin
Symptoms:
Fever-
Headache-
Menstrual Cramps-
Hangover-
Sore Muscles-
Arthritis-
Sinusitis-
Earaches-
Toothaches-
Heart Attack/Stroke Prevention
Good Luck!
So now, if your inclined to play, see if you can correctly match the symptoms below to the four choices listed in the above paragraph. I will send you a "like/thumbs up" response if your comment/response answers are correctly matched to each symptom. Here goes:
OTC Brands- Tylenol -------- Advil/Motrin ---------- Aleve ------- -- Aspirin
Symptoms:
Fever-
Headache-
Menstrual Cramps-
Hangover-
Sore Muscles-
Arthritis-
Sinusitis-
Earaches-
Toothaches-
Heart Attack/Stroke Prevention
Good Luck!9 people like this
11 responses
@TiarasOceanView (70020)
• United States
15 Jun 17
They are handy little things aren't they DB?
But for severe chronic pain might need some chronic hahah
(not me but someone)
(not me but someone)2 people like this
@VivaLaDani13 (60812)
• Perth, Australia
9 Dec 18
@dgobucks226 I'm not all that good when it comes to medicines. Like I have little knowledge about it but enough to know what to take if something is wrong or just head over to pharmacy but that's rare. I don't really like to take any type of medicines / painkillers for anything. Only time I really take anything was codeine for when my gallbladder was hurting ( no need for that anymore as I had it taken out in August ).
If I have a headache, I will try to avoid headache tablets for as long as I can. I prefer the natural remedies like closing eyes, ice pack behind neck or heat pack, drinking water, green tea. Same with if I have a cold. No cold and flu tablets for me. Prefer natural remedies.
I try to keep all that out of my system as much as possible. Which drives some of my family members crazy lol they don't understand why I don't just take medicine for things like the flu but I keep saying I prefer natural home remedies. Hey I'm still alive so it's all good. 
1 person likes this
@VivaLaDani13 (60812)
• Perth, Australia
11 Dec 18
@dgobucks226 That's exactly what I do when I have a blocked nose during a cold or if I have a headache due to sinus blockage. I massage and press certain points on my face to try help. It's very interesting.
1 person likes this
@VivaLaDani13 (60812)
• Perth, Australia
13 Dec 18
@dgobucks226 Me too! I also like to boil water and breathe in the steam to help unblock sinus. Or keep a heat pack across my nose lol seems to help. So cool.
I also like to boil water and breathe in the steam to help unblock sinus. Or keep a heat pack across my nose lol seems to help. So cool.1 person likes this
@jujunme (2501)
• United States
16 Jun 17
i just know what works best for me and my family since everyone 's body is different
we take Bayer for fever(the best) and Advil for pain
Also i see you have Sinusitis listed and since i suffer from a sinus condition any of the listed products work, except aspirin as long as they are specifically made for sinus problems
@jujunme (2501)
• United States
16 Jun 17
@dgobucks226 Thank you for the info
Tylenol isn't something i would use for my sinus condition , funny thing is, the thing that helps me the most is breathing into a pot of very hot water it clears my sinus and sometimes the pain lessens as well i think i've tried every sinus medicine under the sun, some work and some don't, so i think i'm just stuck with the condition.
1 person likes this
@dgobucks226 (37621)
•
16 Jun 17
@jujunme I also suffer from sinusitis and nasal congestion. I have good and bad days. I also find the neti pot where you use the salt packets really helps. I found some u-tube videos which showed ways to massage your sinus passages to relieve pressure. I also use those videos and they do help. Finally, when I see my doctor, because I usually will get an infection when the weather changes in the fall, he recommends Mucinex along with giving me an antibiotic. Thanks for sharing!
@jujunme (2501)
• United States
16 Jun 17
@dgobucks226 Thanks again for the information
i will check out the u-tube video since it's the pain that bothers me the most.
i will check out the u-tube video since it's the pain that bothers me the most.1 person likes this
@dgobucks226 (37621)
•
24 Mar 23
Whoa! You went way back to find this post rebelann. You are correct aspirin is best for those conditions you mentioned. Tylenol is very good for headaches, aches and pains, to Treat arthritis and other chronic painful conditions, and Lower fevers.
Advil, Motrin and Aleve are good for menstrual cramps. But they are also used for pain relief too.
1 person likes this
@bluesa (15022)
• Johannesburg, South Africa
17 Jun 17
@dgobucks226 I used to take Advil for toothache and pms. Now I get prescription painkillers for headaches. I know Aspirin helps thin blood to possibly prevent strokes, etc.
@dgobucks226 (37621)
•
17 Jun 17
Yes, those are good choices. What kind of prescription do you take for your headaches? Is it sinus, tension, migraine? My doctor usually prescribes antibiotics when I have a sinus infection.
What kind of prescription do you take for your headaches? Is it sinus, tension, migraine? My doctor usually prescribes antibiotics when I have a sinus infection.1 person likes this
@bluesa (15022)
• Johannesburg, South Africa
17 Jun 17
@dgobucks226 , I get tension headaches and sometimes suffer from fibrositis, so I now and again take Tramazac as prescribed. And I take non-drowsy antihistamines. Yeah, antibiotics are best for infections.
1 person likes this
@dgobucks226 (37621)
•
17 Jun 17
@bluesa What is fibrositis Catherine? I know it must be some kind of imflammation? Sorry for being so curious
1 person likes this
@Courtlynn (67089)
• United States
15 Jun 17
Every persons body is different. M mom takes aleve for pain, but my brother and I have always taken Tylenol.
1 person likes this
@dgobucks226 (37621)
•
15 Jun 17
According to this study Aleve or Advil/Motrin work best on most types of pain. I will provide an update on which works best for what ailment in a future post. Thanks for your imput
@Courtlynn (67089)
• United States
15 Jun 17
@dgobucks226 what works for some, wont necessarily work for others.
enjoy your night/day
@dgobucks226 (37621)
•
16 Jun 17
@Courtlynn According to the study all painkillers will work. I'm sure if you like a particular product it would be hard to switch brands. The study was comparing the degree of effectiveness of each of the products to a particular symptom someone suffers from. However, the way studies usually go, nothing is written in stone..
@dgobucks226 (37621)
•
18 Jun 17
Yes, I take similar medication for stomach and acid reflux issues. Fortunately, I do not suffer from migraines
Thanks for responding
Thanks for responding1 person likes this
@jaiho2009 (39140)
• Philippines
16 Jun 17
Painkiller/s- that's the meds that I hated the most.
There are few painkillers that can be bought over the counter here in our place too, but we should always be careful when taking one.
@jaiho2009 (39140)
• Philippines
16 Jun 17
@dgobucks226 you can add more, painkillers are silent killers too.
1 person likes this
@dgobucks226 (37621)
•
16 Jun 17
Your right! Especially if one has other medical conditions where they are taking blood thinners or blood pressure meds! Used in combination with some OTC's they can make a person susceptible to bleeding more if they happen to cut themselves.
@topffer (42155)
• France
15 Jun 17
The list of what you can have over-the-counter depends of the country where you live. Aleve is not available over-the-counter in France, but we can have stronger painkillers mixing paracetamol (=tylenol) and codeine. It is also possible to get some codeine alone.
@dgobucks226 (37621)
•
16 Jun 17
That's interesting. So you can get Tylenol with codeine over the counter with no prescription? In the US we would need a doctor's prescription. What other OTC brands are available for purchase in France? Thanks for your feedback..
@FourWalls (86727)
• United States
16 Jun 17
I'm stuck with Tylenol because all of the other OTC pain relievers have a warning that asthmatics shouldn't take them. I can take a baby aspirin, but too much aspirin will cause an asthma attack.
@dgobucks226 (37621)
•
16 Jun 17
Boy that sucks...Health conditions like yours are not factored into this particular study.
@jujunme (2501)
• United States
17 Jun 17
@dgobucks226 I believe low dose Bayer aspirin is #1 for the prevention of strokes and heart attacks.in fact, quite a few Doctors recommend taking 1or 2 tablets daily for this very reason
1 person likes this
@teamfreak16 (43602)
• Denver, Colorado
16 Jun 17
@dgobucks226 Geez, I sure hope not.
1 person likes this
@dgobucks226 (37621)
•
16 Jun 17
Just don't use it to prevent heart attacks or strokes, but you probably don't need to worry about that
