Celebrex & Vioxx

[Guest guest]

The following is from the Dec. 2001 issue of Dr. n Whitaker's Health & Healing newsletter -

"Another black mark has been chalked up against top-selling painkillers Celebrex and Vioxx. These drugs, known as COX-2 inhibitors, are wildly popular because they are touted to be less likely to cause gastrointestinal ulceration and bleeding than aspirin, ibuprofen, and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). However, an FDA advisory panel earlier ths year called this safety advantage into question, and other research suggests that these drugs are hard on the kidneys.

Now researchers from the Cleveland Clinic have found that COX-2 inhibitors are associated with a modest increase in risk of heart attack and other cardiovascular events. This is yet another reason why I suggest that you avoid these expensive, over-hyped drugs. Instead, manage your arthritis with topical pain relievers, occasional NSAIDS, and most important, glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate, natural agents that don't just provide symptomatic relief but actually reverse arthritis by regenerating cartilage."

Ethel