Motrin?

[Fbmb]

I’m frustrated and confused. I called Motrin today to check on their adult tablets and their children’s liquid, and I was told that they have no information about gluten for either product. 

I have used that gluten free drugs list online before but I don’t know how that website can list Motrin as safe with the actual company can’t even tell me if either product contains gluten.

i have used the adult tablets before and I give my son the liquid, and I haven’t noticed any issues. But I would like to confirm that it’s safe before I continue using it. Thoughts?

[cyclinglady]

Who knows?  This company is under McNeil which is under Johnson and Johnson.  They were fined by the government in 2015 for $25 million for distributing KNOWN contaminates in their Infant Tylenol.  Different drug same company.  

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I avoid all their products like the plague, which I am positive that I am financially ruining them. ???    “Johnson and Johnson, a family owned company”.  Ha!  What a crock!  Like they care about families.  We are talking about babies!  

Ask your pharmacist for a safer alternative.  Some brands, like Target, will show gluten-free on the box/label.  

[squirmingitch]

I am betting that you got a new customer service person who didn't really know the ropes yet. When stuff like that happens to me; I just call back later in the day or the next day & end up with some other person who has been working there longer. However, like cyclinglady, I'm boycotting Johnson & Johnson. 

I use Advil & have never had any problem BUT the Liqui-gels & the migraine have wheat so stay away from those. I did call Pfizer who makes Advil but it was a long time ago. They did assure me at that time that I had no cause to worry as long as I stayed away from the Liqui-gels or migraine versions.

Here's a link from August 2017 where Jane Anderson checked on lots of gluten-free pain relievers:

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[Posterboy]

4 hours ago, Fbmb said:

I’m frustrated and confused. I called Motrin today to check on their adult tablets and their children’s liquid, and I was told that they have no information about gluten for either product. 

I have used that gluten free drugs list online before but I don’t know how that website can list Motrin as safe with the actual company can’t even tell me if either product contains gluten.

i have used the adult tablets before and I give my son the liquid, and I haven’t noticed any issues. But I would like to confirm that it’s safe before I continue using it. Thoughts?

Fbmb,

I would suggest you read the Tylenol thread (it covers NSAIDs well not just Tylenol)

It covers this same topic well.

I would also read this CBS article that summarizes the use of Ibuprofen (active ingredient) in Motrin well.

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they say it well.

quoting

"Experts say the study is not meant to scare people away from using NSAIDs, but rather to be more mindful when using them. . . Treat them like any medications. Only use them if you really need to, lowest dose possible, for least amount of time."

I think most people forget they should only be used as needed for occasional pain and it sounds how you are taking them.

here is the livestrong article on motrin's indgredients.

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Livestrong says it (motrin) uses corn starch

quoting

Motrin: Inactive Ingredients

"Other inactive ingredients found in Motrin include carnauba wax, collidal silicon dioxide, corn starch, FD&C yellow #6, hypromellose, iron oxide, magnesium stearate, polydextrose, polyethylene glycol, pregelatinized starch, propylene glycol, shellac, stearic acid and titanium dioxide. Many of these ingredients are those used in creating the medication's outer shell coating."

but it sounds like to me Fbmb the lawyers' wont' let them say it is gluten free.  But if you can trust the labeling laws then it would seem to be gluten free . .. .even if the company won't say so. .  .if it's safe to use use long term might be a different question.

*** this is not medical advice but I hope it is helpful.

posterboy,

 

[Fbmb]

I do only use them as necessary. I probably take ibuprofen 3-4 times a year for a bad headache. I give it to my kids when they spike fevers, as they are prone to febrile seizures. 

 

Ill just use children’s Advil and Advil tablets for me. Advil seems to work faster than Motrin anyway. 

[Fbmb]

19 hours ago, Posterboy said:

Fbmb,

I would suggest you read the Tylenol thread (it covers NSAIDs well not just Tylenol)

It covers this same topic well.

I would also read this CBS article that summarizes the use of Ibuprofen (active ingredient) in Motrin well.

Open Original Shared Link

they say it well.

quoting

"Experts say the study is not meant to scare people away from using NSAIDs, but rather to be more mindful when using them. . . Treat them like any medications. Only use them if you really need to, lowest dose possible, for least amount of time."

I think most people forget they should only be used as needed for occasional pain and it sounds how you are taking them.

here is the livestrong article on motrin's indgredients.

Open Original Shared Link

Livestrong says it (motrin) uses corn starch

quoting

Motrin: Inactive Ingredients

"Other inactive ingredients found in Motrin include carnauba wax, collidal silicon dioxide, corn starch, FD&C yellow #6, hypromellose, iron oxide, magnesium stearate, polydextrose, polyethylene glycol, pregelatinized starch, propylene glycol, shellac, stearic acid and titanium dioxide. Many of these ingredients are those used in creating the medication's outer shell coating."

but it sounds like to me Fbmb the lawyers' wont' let them say it is gluten free.  But if you can trust the labeling laws then it would seem to be gluten free . .. .even if the company won't say so. .  .if it's safe to use use long term might be a different question.

*** this is not medical advice but I hope it is helpful.

posterboy,

 

Also, my friend’s husband is a pharmacist and he adamantly rejected that study. He said that taking a low dose of ibuprofen on occasion for a headache or a fever isn’t going to give an otherwise healthy person a heart attack. He said that’s irresponsible and fear mongering. He said that it’s different when a person is taking high doses over a long period of time, but that he and his colleagues, including doctors, have zero concerns about the occasional use of ibuprofen. As a pharmacist I trust him 100%.

all that aside, I was simply asking if Motrin is gluten free. 

[Posterboy]

Fbmb,

I actually quoted the CBS article because I thought it gave a fair and balanced view.

It mentioned that quoting "If someone has to use an NSAID for pain relief, the best advice is to use the lowest possible dose and for shortest amount of time possible." and then gave ranges for those doses considered to in the high range.

It also noted absolute risk of cardiac problems were considered rare for the general population.

quoting

"While the absolute risk of having a Open Original Shared Link after taking this medication is very small, experts say consumers should exercise caution when deciding whether or not to take NSAIDs, particularly people who are already at risk for heart trouble."

Sometimes we are guilty of reading the headlines . . . and not the body/or discussion points.

And why I hadn't noticed it before I went and looked at an old package of pain relievers my brother takes like candy (it seems) they were only meant to be taken 10 to 14 days for temporary relief.

As with anything, there is a right and wrong way to take it.

The tylenol thread was more about the GI issues of NSAIDs which are often overlooked.

But I stay away mostly due to the acute Kidney issues they can cause. . . all though if I was taking NSAIDs and I was still having GI problems on gluten free diet I probably would stop them (NSAIDs) to see if it didn't help my remaining GI problems now that I know they can cause GI problems too!

see this link entitled "Significant Acute Kidney Injury Due to Non-steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs: Inpatient Setting"

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Basically if your kid has trouble with creatine in the kidneys then NSAIDs should not be used except under doctor supervision.

I had a friend who took them for arthritis who's kidneys finally shut down on Celebrex (under doctor's supervision) . . .no she didn't have a heart attack because her kidneys shut down first.

see this link entitled "Acute renal failure after treatment with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs."

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Here is the full absract

Eur J Pediatr. 2004 Mar;163(3):148-50. Epub 2004 Jan 24.

Acute renal failure after treatment with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.

Ulinski T1, Guigonis V, Dunan O, Bensman A.

Author information

Abstract

"Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are known to have adverse effects on kidney function. Situations with a stimulated renin-angiotensin system such as volume depletion or pre-existing chronic renal failure predispose to acute renal failure (ARF) via inhibition of prostaglandin synthesis by NSAIDs. To date, NSAIDs are frequently used as antipyretic drugs even in situations predisposing to ARF. Within 20 months, seven children presenting with diarrhoea and/or vomiting and fever were treated with therapeutic doses (11.5-32 mg/kg per day) of ibuprofen for 1 to 3 days before developing ARF. Maximum plasma creatinine levels were 180-650 micromol/l. One patient required emergency dialysis for hyperkalaemia, uraemia, and hyperphosphataemia. After cessation of NSAID treatment and rehydration, all patients recovered completely with a normalised creatinine level after 3 to 9 days. Once the acute phase is controlled, long-term outcome is excellent. Interstitial nephritis, another possible adverse effect of NSAIDs, might require steroid treatment and is the major differential diagnosis. Only histological examination can confirm the exact pathomechanism of ARF after NSAID exposure. If immunological events are responsible for the ARF, the recovery period is usually longer.

CONCLUSION:

non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are potentially dangerous in situations with even moderate volume depletion."

and I will quote it again this is in  "ibuprofen (Motrin) for 1 to 3 days before developing ARF"

Here is the full study entitled "Significant Acute Kidney Injury Due to Non-steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs: Inpatient Setting" as quoted above

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quoting  part of  their conclusions

"Physicians need to use caution when treating fever with NSAIDs in younger children with abnormal creatinine. Physicians should discuss the risks of administering OTC NSAIDs to children.  Awareness of the dangers of using NSAIDs could reduce the episodes of nephrotoxicity."

Did your doctor warn you  taking Motrin could cause Acute Renal Failure (ARF) in your kids.

And this is in OTC's which most people don't talk to pharmacist about them in the first place.

Fbmb . . . I know you are using them correctly and properly but you need to be aware of the risks?

Anything that can harm my kidneys especially as a prediabetic (or even if you are otherwise healthy) I try and keep as far a distance as possible from and one of the many reasons I don't like to use NSAIDs if at all possible.  And I do have Afib. . . so they hit close to home you might say.

I was recently proscribed them for a recent tooth extraction (in higher doses) and I toughed it out and found by the 2nd day the pain had gone away.

And one of the many reasons  I don't like PPIs.

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but people take them (PPIs) like candy everyday. . . because once started they can be down right almost impossible to stop.

*****Ask your pharmacist about the kidney risk.  . .  I only know because a friend had issues with them (celebrex specifically).

And yes  I know about the PRECISION study to verify after 10 years and 500 Million dollars to prove celebrex was no worse than other NSAIDS which will shut your kidney's down way/long time before you have a heart attack.

as reported on CNN

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this is after merck pulled  a similar drug (vioxx) due to it's safety issues.

but at least the cox-2 inhibitor celebrex is easier on the stomach at least.

quoting from the CNN article

"All the participants also received Nexium (esomeprazole), a drug that reduces stomach acid, for "gastric protection." The risk of ulcers, chronic bleeding and other gastrointestinal problems are known complications of older-generation NSAIDs. As might be expected, the new study showed that the rate of ulcers or gastrointestinal bleeding was 54% higher for ibuprofen and 41% higher for naproxen, compared with celecoxib."

how they would now this with someone also taking PPI's I am not sure since PPIs also has Kidney issues'.

I was trying to highlight the GI issues with them quoting "The risk of ulcers, chronic bleeding and other gastrointestinal problems are known complications of older-generation NSAIDs" . . . I didnt' know until recently and I study it a lot myself and I am assuming GFinDC didn't either and why they started the tylenol thread in the first place I would gather.

****this is not medical advice but I hope it is helpful.

You can't do what you don't know.

And the CNN article in concluding quoting a heart doctor says it well.

"At the end of the day, NSAIDs are not great for us. There are side effects to every medication," Steinbaum said. "What I tell people is, the lowest dose you can get away with, the better it is."

5 hours ago, Fbmb said:

I do only use them as necessary. I probably take ibuprofen 3-4 times a year for a bad headache. I give it to my kids when they spike fevers, as they are prone to febrile seizures. 

I wish all people were so judicious and wise in their use of NSAIDs including my brother.

2 Timothy 2: 7 “Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things” this included.

Posterboy by the grace of God,