Do Pain Pills Kill Muscle Growth?
One of the things everyone experiences when getting in shape is pain. For muscles to grow, you have to push them beyond the point where they're comfortable.
When you exercise, body aches and discomfort are some of the results. It's what you do when the pain starts that can make the difference between getting fit or falling flat.
To sell more products, over the counter pain medications are being marketed to young, physically fit adults as an easy way to stop post-workout pain. Look inside many gym bags, and you'll see that message has caught on.
In the United States alone, more than 70 million people are taking pills like ibuprofen to relieve pain and reduce inflammation. Ibuprofen is a class of drugs called NSAIDs or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
These simple little pills can blunt the pain of muscle inflammation (which happens immediately after a workout) or delayed onset muscle soreness (which can happen a day or two after a workout). Pop a pill and the soreness is reduced.
Here's the problem. NSAIDs also decrease muscle growth. You read that right. Over the counter NSAIDs like ibuprofen, aspirin and naproxen, as well as prescription NSAIDs like Celebrex actually hinder muscle growth. Here's how it happens.
When muscles are injured or stressed after a workout, an enzyme called cyclooxygenase (COX) is released. That enzyme inflames the muscle and causes pain. NSAIDs work by inhibiting the COX enzyme, reducing inflammation and the related pain.
Reducing pain is generally a good idea. But reducing pain by stopping inflammation is bad. Inflammation is something that muscles must go through to grow. What researchers at the University of Florida in Gainesville found is that people who take NSAIDs after a workout are stopping the muscle-protein synthesis that's required for muscle growth. NSAIDs aren't the only culprit. Acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, also suppresses protein synthesis.
There's more. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released a notice on April 7, 2005, that said:
"Manufacturers of non-prescription (over-the-counter) NSAIDs are being asked to revise their labeling to provide more specific information about the potential cardiovascular events (heart attack risk) and gastrointestinal bleeding risks of their individual products..."
In other words, take these products longer than the labels suggest, and you could suffer "life-threatening" results. The FDA also urged manufacturers to "remind patients of the limited dose and duration of treatment of these products..." Because of the extreme risk, one of the prescription NSAIDs, Vioxx, was even taken off the market.
That doesn't mean you should never take a pill when you're feeling pain, far from it. NSAIDs are appropriate, even necessary when you have an inflamed injury, need to reduce a fever or have a headache that won't stop. It just means you shouldn't be routinely popping a pill after every workout.
So do you just have to live with workout pain? Probably not. A recent study published in the journal Surgical Neurology showed a possible solution.
Researchers studied 125 people who took NSAIDs regularly for back and/or neck pain. The subjects were given 2,400 mg of omega-3 fatty acids for two weeks and then 1,200 mg a day from then on. After a month, the researchers asked subjects about side effects, spine pain, joint pain and if anyone had stopped using NSAIDs.
An amazing 60% of the people who participated in the study stopped taking NSAIDs completely and reported that their overall pain levels had improved. The researchers concluded that up to two-thirds of people currently taking NSAIDs could stop them, switch to omega-3 supplements and alleviate pain from inflammation.
As a bonus, taking omega-3 supplements have been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, enhance muscle growth and burn fat. It's the ultimate win-win. But don't go crazy.
If you're going to try omega-3 fatty acids, first check with your doctor and make sure they don't interact with any medications you may currently be taking. Don't take doses higher than the researchers studied and make sure the supplements you purchase are from a reputable manufacturer.
WARNING!
If you take 2,000 mg or more of omega-3 supplements, you should do so under a doctor's supervision. Supplementing with 2,000 mg or more of omega-3 daily can cause heart rhythm abnormalities.
Here's what you need to know about taking flaxseeds for your omega-3's.
Below we've included a chart of the four most popular pain medications and what they're best for. Remember, long-term usage of any medication should always be approved by your doctor.
A NOTE ABOUT FISH OIL AND CANCER:
Fish oil, which is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, is widely known for its benefits to heart health, including reducing the risk of heart disease. However, a 2013 study raised concerns by suggesting a potential link between high levels of omega-3s and an increased risk of prostate cancer. This caused some to worry about the safety of fish oil supplements for men.
Upon further examination, experts found significant flaws in that study, including its inability to prove that omega-3s directly cause prostate cancer. Newer research has not only refuted the connection but also suggested that omega-3s may actually lower the risk of dying from prostate cancer. Populations with high fish consumption, like Japanese men, tend to have lower prostate cancer mortality rates.
Today, experts continue to recommend fish oil for its heart health benefits. The American Heart Association advises consuming fatty fish twice a week. For those considering supplements, it's essential to consult a doctor, as fish oil can have mild side effects and may interact with other health conditions.
UPDATE 6/10/2024 - Increased Risk of Atrial Fibrillation
A large-scale prospective study, "Regular Use of Fish Oil Supplements and Course of Cardiovascular Diseases," followed 415,737 participants aged 40-69 over a median period of 11.9 years to assess the impact of fish oil supplementation on cardiovascular health. One-third of the participants were regular users of fish oil supplements. The study found that regular fish oil use was associated with a 13% higher risk of developing atrial fibrillation (AF), a concerning type of irregular heartbeat linked to sudden cardiac arrest, and a 5% increased risk of stroke among healthy individuals.
Regular use of fish oil supplements and course of cardiovascular diseases: prospective cohort study
Ge Chen, Zhengmin (Min) Qian, Junguo Zhang, Shiyu Zhang, Zilong Zhang, Michael G Vaughn, Hannah E Aaron, Chuangshi Wang, Gregory YH Lip, Hualiang Lin
bmjmedicine, Published May 21, 2024 - Online issue publication May 21, 2024
UPDATE: FDA Warning of NSAIDs
On July 9th, 2015, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a consumer update on NSAIDs. The title is: FDA Strengthens Warning of Heart Attack and Stroke Risk for Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs
Next time you reach into the medicine cabinet seeking relief for a headache, backache or arthritis, be aware of important safety information for non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
FDA is strengthening an existing warning in prescription drug labels and over-the-counter (OTC) Drug Facts labels to indicate that nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) can increase the chance of a heart attack or stroke, either of which can lead to death. Those serious side effects can occur as early as the first few weeks of using an NSAID, and the risk might rise the longer people take NSAIDs. (Although aspirin is also an NSAID, this revised warning doesn’t apply to aspirin.)
The OTC drugs in this group are used for the temporary relief of pain and fever. The prescription drugs in this group are used to treat several kinds of arthritis and other painful conditions. Because many prescription and OTC medicines contain NSAIDs, consumers should avoid taking multiple remedies with the same active ingredient.
You can download the release in PDF format by clicking HERE.
Reference Links:
Effect of omega-3 fatty acid diet on prostate cancer progression and cholesterol efflux in tumor-associated macrophages—dependence on GPR120
Pei Liang, Susanne M. Henning, Tristan Grogan, David Elashoff, Jonathan Said, Pinchas Cohen & William J. Aronson
NATURE Prostate Cancer and Prostatic Diseases , Published 23 October 2023
Consumption of Fish and ω-3 Fatty Acids and Cancer Risk: An Umbrella Review of Meta-Analyses of Observational Studies
Keum Hwa Lee, Hyo Jin Seong, Gaeun Kim, Gwang Hun Jeong, Jong Yeob Kim, Hyunbong Park, Eunyoung Jung, Andreas Kronbichler, Michael Eisenhut, Brendon Stubbs, Marco Solmi, Ai Koyanagi, Sung Hwi Hong, Elena Dragioti, Leandro Fórnias Machado de Rezende, Louis Jacob, NaNa Keum, Hans J van der Vliet, Eunyoung Cho, Nicola Veronese, Giuseppe Grosso, Shuji Ogino, Mingyang Song, Joaquim Radua, Sun Jae Jung, Trevor Thompson, Sarah E Jackson, Lee Smith, Lin Yang, Hans Oh, Eun Kyoung Choi, Jae Il Shin, Edward L Giovannucci, and Gabriele Gamerith
Advances in Nutrition, Published online 2020 Jun 3. doi: 10.1093/advances/nmaa055
Prostate Cancer Risk And Omega-3 Fatty Acid Intake From Fish Oil - A Closer Look at Media Messages Versus Research Findings
Walter Alexander
Pharmacy and Therapeutics (P&T), Published 2013 Sep; 38(9): 561–564.
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