Paracetamol is a drug with analgesic and antipyretic properties mainly used to treat fever and mild to moderate painand it is one of the most consumed in the world.
But now, a study warns of the dangers of its continued consumption in older people. Specifically, an analysis carried out by scientists at the University of Nottingham has discovered a “dose-dependent” relationship between the use of the analgesic and digestive, heart and kidney problems.
The study, published by Arthritis Care & Researchand which followed the health of more than half a million people over 65 for 20 years, reveals that those who were prescribed paracetamol twice in six months are at risk particularly high risk of complications.
Compared to a control group of the same age group, those with that number of prescriptions were more likely to suffer from stomach ulcers, heart failurehypertension and chronic kidney disease.
The more paracetamol a person consumed, the more likely they were to also have a stomach ulcer will bleed or split open.
The pain reliever is often prescribed to older people to help them manage the symptoms of different chronic diseases, such as arthritis and osteoporosis.
Studies suggest that around 90% of people over 75 years of age regularly take paracetamolmainly to treat joint and bone pain, as well as the consequences of falls.
But the author of the new study, Professor Weiya Zhangan epidemiologist at the National Biomedical Research Institute of Health and Care at the University of Nottingham, says patients should “carefully consider” whether or not to take the medication frequently.
“The use of paracetamol as a first-line analgesic for long-term diseases such as osteoarthritis in older people should be carefully considered,” he says in statements reported by the Daily Mailadding that the evidence shows that it has a “minimal pain relief effect.”
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