Pain Medication Abuse can Give Kids Headaches

The June, 2001 issue of the Journal of Child Neurology reports that overuse of common over-the-counter pain medications (aspirin, acetaminophen, etc.) can trigger chronic headaches in adolescents.

The study was done at the Meir General Hospital in Kfar Saba, Israel. According to one of the researchers, Dr. Rachel Hering-Hanit, "Pediatricians . . . should be aware of the possibility that the continuous progressive increase in headache frequency might be due to abuse." She went on to say, "They should avoid advising children to take pain medications 'at liberty'."

In commentary, imagine waking up in the middle of the night because your smoke alarm is going off, taking the batteries out and going back to bed. Wouldn't you want to find out what's causing the smoke? Taking pain medications is much the same way; simply 'turning off' symptoms does not mean that you have reached and taken care of the underlying problem.

Perhaps a better approach is to restore health and proper function through Chiropractic Care. Keeping a body working right is a lot easier than getting one working right again.