1. Don’t Take Acetaminophen for Arthritis

If your doctor is still recommending acetaminophen for arthritis pain, then she’s not reading the medical journals. A major study published in the respected Archives of Internal Medicine found that acetaminophen worked no better than a sugar pill at relieving arthritis pain. Plus, in large doses it could cause kidney damage and liver damage. Instead, work with your doctor to find alternative means of managing your pain, ranging from exercise to nonsteroidal medications like ibuprofen, which studies find works much better than acetaminophen for this type of inflammatory pain.

2. Don’t Mix Pain Relievers for Different Pains

You’re taking ibuprofen for your arthritis and acetaminophen for your headache and an over-the-counter flu remedy that, unbeknownst to you, also contains acetaminophen. Whoa! You’ve just overwhelmed your liver. So read the labels of your pain relievers and cold and flu remedies before popping another pill, and check out our guide to better manage your medicines.

3. Go For the Lowest Dose of Painkillers

First you pop an all-day naproxen for your sore back. But a few hours later, your back still sore, you unthinkingly shake out a couple of ibuprofen from the bottle in your purse. That night before you go to bed, you take a couple of acetaminophen (night-time formula) to help you sleep. Keep on this way and you’re putting yourself at risk for high blood pressure. Seems that women who consume high doses of non-acetylsalicylic acid pain relievers like acetaminophen and ibuprofen are much more likely to develop high blood pressure than women who don’t. Start keeping a medication diary in which you note the time, dose, and type of over-the-counter drugs you’re taking; the total amount just might surprise you.

4. Pick Pain Medication On Price, Not Symptom

Even though it’s become a major marketing ploy for over-the-counter pain relievers to tout their “specialty” on the label (for instance, Excedrin Migraine), such products all contain the same basic ingredient regardless of the type of pain they’re purported to address. So check the label of the product you’re interested in, note the amount of active ingredient in each dose, then pick up the cheapest generic brand containing the same thing and save yourself a few bucks (and another headache!)

5. Burn Out Arthritis Pain with Chile-Pepper Salve

There are no fancy, 30-second television spots or national campaigns, and since no one is marketing it to your doctor, you may never hear about it, but chile peppers (to be more precise, the active ingredient in chile peppers—capsaicin) are one of the most effective pain relievers around for arthritis pain. You don’t swallow capsaicin, however; you apply a cream containing it to the painful area. Experts think it works by depleting something called substance P, a chemical that transmits pain messages to your brain. Give it time: You have to apply capsaicin four times a day for several days before it kicks in, but the relief will be worth it. If you can find the cream combined with glyceryl-trinitrate (GTN), a compound that stimulates the release of nitric oxide, grab it. Not only does GTN reduce the stinging that occurs when you first apply the capsaicin cream, but the two together seem to work better than either alone at reducing pain. Keep your hands away from your face and eyes when applying, and wash your hands immediately after each application.

6. Take Fish Oil for Neck and Back Pain

More than 70 million people in the U.S. alone take prescription non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) to reduce inflammation and pain. Yet these drugs are now the leading cause of health problems and death related to prescription medications, says the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Imagine if there was a completely natural compound that would not only relieve your pain, but provide additional health benefits as well? No ifs, ands, or buts about it: fish oil supplements can. When researchers from the neurosurgery department at the University of Pittsburgh asked 125 people with back and neck pain who were already taking NSAIDs to add 2,400 milligrams a day of omega-3 fatty acids for two weeks, followed by 1,200 milligrams per day thereafter, 59 per cent said they completely stopped their NSAID medication after two weeks and were pain-free, while 60 per cent of the rest of the participants who were still taking NSAIDs said their overall level of pain had improved when they added the fish oil. Look for pharmaceutical-grade fish oil, which is guaranteed toxin-free.

7. Wrap Your Pain with Warmth

The drug companies aren’t going to tout this study, but you can get more pain relief from a muscle-warming wrap than you can from ibuprofen or acetaminophen. At least, that’s what a well-designed study of 371 people with low back pain found. Plus, if you wear the wrap overnight, you’ll have less pain for at least two days—even without the wrap! However, in the interest of full disclosure, we should tell you that the wrap’s manufacturer—Procter & Gamble—sponsored the study. We say, go ahead and try it anyway. It certainly isn’t going to increase your risk of liver, kidney, and heart damage the way over-the-counter pain relievers can!

8. Try This Non-Drug Tactic To Relieve a Headache

Got a headache? Before you make the cash registers ring at the local pharmacy, try this drug-free remedy: From a standing position, bend forward from the hips and settle your forehead onto the padding of a chair. Relax in this position for 30 seconds, feeling the gentle pressure against your head. Then sit down in the chair, spread your fingers, slide them into your hair, and make a fist. Pull your hair gently away from your scalp, hold for three seconds, and release. This relieves tension in the connective tissues underlying your scalp. Continue this process of grabbing handfuls of hair and pulling gently. Work your way from the top of your head to the sides and finally to the back. With the tension relieved in your entire scalp, you should feel refreshed and ready to resume your day. Head still throbbing? Try one of these headache helpers.