Ibuprofen and Antibiotics are Making You Fatigued!

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and antibiotics make us tired. Why? Because these drugs poison our mitochondria.

The source of human energy: Mitochondria

Most cells in your body have hundreds to thousands of little powerhouses called mitochondria. Every muscle cell has thousands of mitochondria. The mitochondria turn all the oxygen we breath into fuel for us. Our mitochondria keep us alive.

Use of NSAIDs and antibiotics cause less cellular energy production until these drugs are out of our system. Less energy causes worsened fatigue and healing.

What are NSAIDs?

NSAIDs reduce inflammation so they are most often prescribed for pain. They include aspirin, ibuprofen, celecoxib, naproxen, indomethacin and many more. Besides slowly poisoning our mitochondria, NSAIDs also have the common adverse effect of causing ulcers in the stomach and intestines.

What if I am taking ibuprofen, aspirin or other NSAIDs regularly?

For anyone popping NSAIDs because of pain after exercise or for chronic pain, you are likely making things worse. Occasional use may be fine for temporary pain relief. However, constant use of NSAIDs will blunt the body's natural healing response and repair mechanisms. The result in athletes, weekend warriors, anyone who is active, or anyone with muscle or joint injuries is every time you re-aggravate your injuries, the NSAIDs will blunt your ability to fully heal.

Over time this causes weakening and eventually degeneration of ligaments, tendons and muscles. Degeneration leads to unstable joints, weaker muscles and constant pain. In the case of your spine, it makes you more prone to disc herniations. The bottom line is you do not want to become reliant on NSAIDs because at best they mask a symptom and at worse cause you poor healing and fatigue.

Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

These are illnesses that feature severe chronic fatigue and one common cause is poor mitochondrial health. By adding food for your mitochondria (yes, they eat more than oxygen), you can reboot them and resolve your symptoms.

What can I do to avoid mitochondrial poisoning and subsequent fatigue?

Avoid taking NSAIDs and antibiotics whenever possible and use natural alternatives that can be as effective and much safer. However, for some serious infections, antibiotics are necessary. My only complaint is antibiotics are still too freely prescribed even for infections that research shows little benefit for and in some cases no benefit at all.

There are many natural remedies that are inflammation balancing instead of blunting. They will speed up appropriate healing without depleting you of energy. Some even increase physical and mental energy as a “side effect”! Plus whenever you need to take antibiotics or NSAIDs, take mitochondrial nutrients to replenish them so they keep happily producing energy for you.

Consult your Naturopathic Doctor if you need an alternative to treat your pain, inflammation or infection.

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