Natural Alternatives for Pain Relief

What are NSAIDs?

NSAIDs are pain relievers that reduce pain and swelling at the site of injury. About twenty NSAIDs are available with a doctor's prescription. Three of these, ibuprofen, naproxen, and ketoprofen, also are available over-the-counter. The over-the-counter versions of some of these drugs are better known by names like Advil^®, Motrin^®, Aleve^®and Orudis^®.The only difference is that prescription versions are a higher strength than those purchased over-the-counter. Other examples of NSAIDs include products with aspirin that are available over-the-counter, like Bayer^®and Excedrin^®. NSAIDs also can be found in common cold and flu medications such as Advil Cold and Sinus^®, Dimetapp Sinus^®, Motrin IB Sinus^® and Aleve Cold and Sinus^®. (Look for aspirin, naproxen or ibuprofen on the box or bottle to find out if your medicine contains an NSAID.)

Newer NSAIDs include meloxicam (Mobic^®) and a class of drugs known as COX-2 specific inhibitors. Examples of these drugs include celecoxib (Celebrex^®), valdecoxib (Bextra^®) and rofecoxib (Vioxx^®). These newer NSAIDs are available only through a doctor's prescription and may be safer for the stomach.

*Acetaminophen (Tylenol^®) is not an NSAID.

Read the following chart to find out if NSAIDs are in your medicine cabinet.

All drugs listed are available only by a doctor's prescription, except for where noted.