When Should We Not Take Ibuprofen?

Ibuprofen is one of the most widely used drugs in the world. Specifically, it is the sixth or seventh best-selling. However, most of us do not know when we should not take ibuprofen and we buy it every time something hurts us, without taking into account the adverse effects or the situations for which it is contraindicated.

This is a commonly used anti-inflammatory that is often abused to treat common ailments such as headaches, menstrual pain, or toothaches. Self-medication with these types of drugs is quite common.

Although you need a prescription right now to get the 600-milligram ibuprofen, you can still get the 400-milligram ibuprofen at pharmacies over the counter. For this reason, it is essential to be informed about adverse effects and about those situations in which it is dangerous to take this medicine.

Ibuprofen is included in the list of essential drugs created by the World Health Organization. This list includes a series of basic medicines that should not be lacking in any health system.

Below we will mention some of the situations in which the use of ibuprofen is contraindicated. However, there are more, so you should read the leaflet of this medicine and consult with your doctor if its use is advisable or not.

Cardiovascular diseases

Cardiovascular diseases are the most frequent diseases in the population of developed countries and are the leading cause of mortality in the world. In other words, more people die each year from any of these diseases than from any other cause.

Ibuprofen, like other drugs that belong to the family of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, increase the chances of suffering from cardiovascular disease by more than 40%. This can lead to a serious heart problem such as a heart attack.

However, it does not mean that you cannot take ibuprofen at a specific time or for a good cause. What you cannot do is abuse it in minimal pain. The risk of these diseases increases when ibuprofen doses exceed 2,400 milligrams a day.

We should not take ibuprofen together with anticoagulant medications

According to the studies carried out,  we should not take ibuprofen together with some anticoagulants such as the well-known aspirin. The reason for this is that ibuprofen can alter the antiplatelet effect of aspirin by blocking the ability of this drug to reach its site of action.

In this way, ibuprofen can not only worsen any tendency to develop gastritis, but also limit the cardioprotective effect of aspirin.

During pregnancy we should not take ibuprofen

The pregnancy period is a critical time for both mother and baby, so care must be improved. As with other medications, if you need to take ibuprofen we recommend that you first consult with your doctor. Ibuprofen is a drug that is harmful to the baby, especially during the first and second trimesters of pregnancy.

Some of the effects that can occur include an increased chance of suffering from attention deficit and hyperactivity. Therefore, the use of this drug during pregnancy is not advisable.

Alcohol and sport

We should not take ibuprofen if we are going to drink alcohol or play sports. In the first case, although at low doses nothing has to happen, at higher doses it can cause liver damage and stomach ulcers.

In the case of sports, high doses of ibuprofen can damage the kidneys.

Despite being a safe drug, its use is widely abused and on many occasions it is used without just cause. There are specific situations in which its use is contraindicated due to lack of information.

We recommend that you always read the drug leaflet. We also encourage you to consult with both the doctor and the pharmacist any questions you may have in this regard.