I'm curious what people are using as a substitute for Excedrin now it's all been

[RKP5637]

pulled from the shelves. I recently discussed this with a pharmacist and she said others said only Excedrin worked for them for aches and pains. The dr. said a narcotic might work, not interested in that. Also I'm just talking about off the shelf products like Excedrin, not looking for medical advice or prescription type products.

[hlthe2b]

1. Huh? It was part of a recall in January due to broken pills, etc., but I have no reason to believe

that that is anything but temporary. The excedrin formulation is also readily available as generic formulations--store brands.

Have I missed something?

[RKP5637]

3. The pharmacist I talked with said it might be off the shelf for a year as it's purged. She said

she had received a number of questions from customers finding the substitute products did not work as well for them. Reading the labels it's pretty simple to find a substitute, but apparently not working for some.

[hlthe2b]

5. I have to question this suggestion re: the generics. This is not any really special formula.

It is merely 250 mg Acetaminophen (Tylenol)
250 mg Aspirin
60 mg caffeine

All which you could buy separately and take individually. All are cheap and thus to suggest the generics are less effective is silly, in my personal AND professional opinion.

There are some drugs that generics might be questionable. But, this isn't one of them. I think the pharmacist's customers who state this are suffering from "brand" bias, which is not uncommon (Marketers depend on it, in fact).

[cbayer]

2. Exedrin is merely a combination of aspirin, acetaminophen and caffeine.

There is no magic in that pill.

[RKP5637]

4. That's what I always thought too ...

[hlthe2b]

6. I thought you might originally been worried about FDA action on acetaminophen... which

they have been discussing in terms of prescription drugs that include it, like percocet and vicodin. Acetaminophen can be very liver toxic when used among heavy drinkers or those with underlying liver disease-which likewise often is accompanied by pain that might be treated by prescription acetaminophen-contining drugs.


However, FDA has made it clear that they are not going to take action on OTC medications containing (comparatively) low doses of acetamonophen. I had been watching this closely, but thought at first you might be suggesting that something had changed, but I checked and it has not.

[RKP5637]

7. Thanks very much for the latest on acetaminophen. They had me on a fairly heavy dose of

acetaminophen after an operation, but that was awhile back. Fortunately I don't drink and have no history of liver conditions. Thanks for you replies!!!

[hlthe2b]

8. Sure... happy to do so.

[Little Star]

9. We use Aleve. It works for us and we like it.

[RKP5637]

10. Thanks! Someone here also told me just a bit ago that they had started using Aleve and it

seemed to work well for them and they liked it. When I saw your message just now, I went upstairs and checked with them and they said they felt much better today with Aleve.

[Little Star]

11. It's the only over the counter pain reliever that works for me...

and my husband swears by it too.

[sueh]

12. A pharmacist today recommended the drug store's off-brand Equaline headache formula as it has

the same ingredients found in Excedrin, acetamaniphen, aspirin (NSAID), and caffeine.

The Equaline brand is sold here in Illinois at Jewel-Osco. Jewel-Osco is part of the Robertson's or Ralph's chain.

[RKP5637]

13. Thanks!!! n/t

[sueh]

14. You're welcome :)

[RebelOne]

15. I have always used Ibuprofen.

I cannot take any product that has aspirin in it. And I cannot take any prescription pain pills especially codeine. Aspirin and codeine tear up my stomach. Ibuprofen works just fine for me.

[RKP5637]

16. Thanks! That's what one of my drs. recently recommended to me too. n/t

[eShirl]

18. careful with ibuprofen with a sensitive stomach

my brother can't take ibuprofen anymore because it damaged his stomach lining.
he used to take it, long-term, on an empty stomach with just a little skim milk and no food.

[JDPriestly]

17. Acupuncture and physical therapy for me -- exercise.

I use pain killers to bring down swelling after dentist's visits or for actual illnesses. But day-to-day, I find exercise works best for arthritis. Depends on the cause of the pain. I really try to avoid painkillers.