Have you ever picked up a pack of Nurofen Express Period Pain? You know the one - hot pink packaging, costs more than own-brand painkillers, and promises it “targets period pain fast.” Well it turns out that it doesn’t really – or at least no more than plain old ibuprofen. Nurofen’s different targeted pain products, such as pills to combat back pain or tension headaches, are actually all the same. A court in Australia has found that apart from the packaging, they’re all identical. The only thing that separates them from normal ibuprofen is that they have some additional products that speed up the process of ibuprofen getting into the blood stream. But they cannot target pain in specific area of the body. “I tell my customers they can buy normal ibuprofen or go for the one in the pretty packaging,” says pharmacist Sanjay Ganvir, of Greenlight Pharmacy, who explains that the way it's boxed is really the only notable difference. Some of his customers will take his advice, but others trust brands like Nurofen so much that they still fork out the extra money for it. Doubtless they’re now furious that they’ve been duped into believing in its powers for years when they could have just bought a pack of 16 200mg tables for 35p at Sainsbury’s. But there could also be more negative consequences to this. Ganvir points out that if women don’t realise that they’re taking ibuprofen, they may accidentally double up dosage by taking differently packaged ibuprofen for joint pain or a migraine. “You wouldn’t necessarily think this is the same as the medicine I’m already taking for my cold, or that the doctor suggested I take for my headache. It’s the job of the pharmacist to make sure you’re aware.” The problem is that these medicines are available over the counter, so people don’t necessarily speak to a pharmacist, and could end up taking too much ibuprofen which could lead to health complications. Experts suggest the best thing for women with period pain to do is consult a GP. “You can’t flood your GP’s surgery with period pain [complaints],” says Michael Dooley, a consultant gynaecologist at King Edwards VII’s hospital. “You wouldn’t necessarily think this is the same as the medicine I’m already taking for my cold, or that the doctor suggested I take for my headache. It’s the job of the pharmacist to make sure you’re aware.” Sanjay Ganvir “But if any period pain is upsetting your social or work life significantly and it’s not responding to over the counter painkillers, it needs appropriate treatment. If the pains get any worse, and there is any increase, approach the GP.” The benefits of a visit to the GP are that they can work out the exact cause of the pain. “Some people do have fibroid or endometriosis which, if picked up early, can be prevented,” he says. “If everything else is fine and you’re getting period pain it’s probably down to angina of the uterus.” If it’s just period pain, with no other more severe complications, there are then a few options. That’s self-medication (hot water bottles, exercise, you know the drill), over the counter medication (Dooley says that there is no ‘best’ option – depending on what normally works for you, go for ibuprofen or aspirin) and the lesser known option: prescribed medication. “The one you want is mefenamic acid, which most women know as Ponstan,” says Dr Justine Setchell of King Edwards VII. “That works particularly on muscles in the uterus to loosen them and relieve pain.” Unlike ibuprofen or paracetamol which relieve inflammatory pain and can’t target areas, mefenamic acid does just work on the uterus. It has to be prescribed by a doctor, but Dr Setchell says that generally it should be fine for any woman who has bad period pain that can not be controlled with normal painkillers. She wants to make sure more women know this option is available to them, and try and get medical help if they are struggling to cope with their period pains: "Go to your GP – it could be that you have a specific condition or that mefenamic acid would help you. Just don’t suffer in silence." “A lot of women aren’t aware of mefenamic acid. Because they think they can get specific [period pain relief] across the counter, they’re actually suffering in silence thinking that’s all that’s available to them. “But if plain ibuprofen isn’t working, one, you don’t have to suffer and two, if you are suffering, it may need some further investigation.” So there you have it – if your pains are manageable, ditch the so-called ‘period pain relief’ and start buying own-brand anti-inflammatories like aspirin or ibuprofen. But if you need something stronger? Go to your GP – it could be that you have a specific condition or mefenamic acid would help you. Just don’t suffer in silence or invest in a tablet that's doing very little. Source
