A Natural Alternative to Advil for Neck Pain
Upper cervical is a natural treatment and relief that is not temporary: If you take care of your body, your body will take care of you. When it comes to neck pain, relief is often wanted right away and in this day and age, it is common to go for an over the counter medication for fast results.
Advil is something everyone is familiar with and it is used so often it is easy to forget what it can actually do to the body. A 2018 study by Dr. David Kaufman of Boston University points out about 15% of adults taking ibuprofen (Advil included) are exceeding the maximum recommended daily dose. Why is this alarming though? And why should we be careful with taking Advil?
Advil has serious side effects, including internal bleeding and heart attacks. On the main Advil website, they state it is not only the #1 selling pain reliever but saying it has been “providing safe, effective pain relief for over 30 years”.
But how safe is a drug that comes with a label of warnings about stomach bleeding, heart attack, and stroke risks? It is naturally easy for us to form our own opinions on how safe something is by comparing how much of the population use it: because of this, we often look over what current norms can do to us, especially when it comes to over the counter drugs.
Those who use Advil for neck pain do so for instant relief, but does Advil help repairing neck pain?
Many things can cause neck pain and are often due to irritation of the nerves (such as pinched nerves) and straining. Your neck has a tough job to do – holding the weight of your head, about 11 pounds, all day long. It helps keep your head balanced and the little things like sleeping wrong or having bad posture can cause your neck pain.
To help with this pain, Advil will stop the production of hormones, the prostaglandins, which cause pain and inflammation in the body. That being said, does Advil help to repair neck pain? The answer is no, Advil does not go after the underlying issue of neck pain; it only hides your pain while the problem silently persists.
In addition, those who take Advil consistently often increase their doses to maintain efficiency and sometimes can end up no longer bringing relief at all. Choosing Advil for neck pain might be a common choice, but it does very little in addressing the underlying cause of your neck pain.
How Safe is Advil?
For every now and then, it is considered okay to use. Ibuprofen is reported to be the better choice for joint and muscle pain than other painkillers, but for those who are in need of relief constantly: individuals should not heavily rely on Advil to take care of their neck pain. Not only does it not correct the cause of neck pain, but constant use can take a toll on the body and its normal functions. Below is a list of common and rare side effects of taking ibuprofen:
Common Side Effects:
- Stomachache
- Heartburn
- Dizziness
- Rash
- Drowsiness
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Constipation
- Ringing in Ears
Serious Side Effects:
- Liver Failure or Inflammation of Liver
- Low Platelet Count
- Blood in Urine
- Urinary Tract Infection
- Agranulocytosis (a condition in which bone marrow is unable to make enough white blood cells)
- Anemia (low red blood cell count)
- Severe and potentially life-threatening skin reactions (such as Stevens-Johnson Syndrome or Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis, also known as TEN)
- Stroke
- Heart Attack
- High Blood Pressure (usually a greater risk with long-term use and while taking certain other medications)
- Kidney Damage
Advil and liver side effects
Advil can damage your liver, especially if Advil is taken frequently or combined with either alcohol or other medications. Ibuprofen may cause a transitory rise in alanine aminotransferase (ALT), an enzyme that is released when liver cells are damaged or die which is why Advil and liver side effects should not be ignored.
Natural Treatment and Relief for Neck Pain
In order for your body to win its fight against neck pain, the cause of the neck pain needs to be corrected. Upper cervical adjustments focus on the top two bones of your body, just below the base of your skull.
If you are looking for an all-natural alternative to Advil or looking to find an Advil substitute that focuses on correcting the cause of your neck pain, upper cervical adjustments could be what you are looking for.
The slightest misalignment of your top two bones of the spine can affect your nerves, muscles, and other soft tissue located in your neck area causing you neck pain. This misalignment can then affect your entire body: A shoulder becoming higher than the other, one hip being lower, and a difference in your leg length.
Because your body starts to adjust itself to keep your head level, shoulder, or back pain could happen with your neck pain, or the pain can feel like it’s moving around.
It is not unusual for headaches to occur as you experience neck pain, as an upper cervical misalignment can disrupt your blood flow to the brain or pooling of cerebrospinal fluid. Once adjustments are made to correct your upper cervical area, headaches start to decline and your pain is relieved.
Advil may provide the fast neck pain relief you need, but if you want something more long-lasting or even permanent (at least until you may have another misalignment), upper cervical adjustments for your neck pain is a recommended natural alternative to Advil that will target the cause to be rid of the symptoms rather than hiding your pain as the problem worsens over time.
These adjustments will allow your body to heal itself and take the pressure off of your nerves and brain stem which enables your brain to fully communicate and send messages successfully to your system again.
Upper cervical adjustments are very gentle and do not “pop” bones into place. This region of the spine is very delicate and all adjustments in this area are very precise and done with great care. This treatment is one of the very few treatments that have shown great benefits to those suffering from neck pain. Not only can upper cervical be an Advil substitute for relieving your neck pain, but it can tackle the cause of it.
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