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Should you take NSAIDs before exercising?
Generally speaking, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." Unless the preventive measures you take actually prevent the cure! Such is the case with taking NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs)before you exercise in order to ward off the aches and pains that you know will set in after your exercise session. It sounds logical on the surface - you know your knee or hip will bother you after gardening, golfing, tennis, running or even running errands - so you pop a few Advil beforehand. NSAIDs work by inhibiting the production of chemicals that cause inflammation and inflammation is what causes you pain.
However, inflammation is also how the body heals itself. The inflammatory response is a natural defense mechanism that is triggered whenever body tissues are damaged in any way. Most of the body defense elements are located in the blood, and inflammation is the means by which body defense cells and defense chemicals leave the blood and enter the tissue around the injured or infected site. Inflammation occurs in response to physical trauma, intense heat and irritating chemicals, as well as to infection by viruses and bacteria.
Each time you work out you cause changes in your muscles, ligaments, bones, etc. Your body needs to recover from these changes - to heal - so that you can resume your exercise activity in a day or two. NSAIDs will limit or stop the healing response, which could in turn lead to an overuse injury.
NSAIDs also stop the production of prostaglandins, whose job is to protect your intestinal lining. In addition to digesting your food, your intestines are your last line of defense against bacteria entering your body. Without that protection, bacteria can eventually enter your bloodstream. In order for your body to fight off that infection, it will release powerful chemicals that will actually cause systemic inflammation. So thinking that you are keeping inflammation at bay and enhancing your performance by taking NSAIDs prophylactically actually allows the opposite to occur.
The bottom line is that taking an NSAID before exercise will increase inflammation, put your gut at risk, your heart at risk, your kidneys at risk and it will have no effect on your recovery. Limit your use of NSAIDs to post-trauma, from headache to surgery. In treating chronic joint pain, follow the advice of your orthopaedic surgeon. Do you have a question about NSAID use for joint pain? Call us at 239-596-0100 to schedule a consultation.
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