Vitamins and minerals also play roles in normal biochemistry and maintaining, so they're less likely to cause side effects. Of course, if you're taking medicine to treat a chronic condition, please work with your physician to transition from one treatment to another. Alternatives to the Top 5 OTC Drugs Analgesics. Tylenol and Advil are the best-selling OTC drugs in the United States. Most analgesics, which also include aspirin, are used to relieve headaches, muscle soreness, and inflammation and pain related to arthritis or injuries.
Natural alternatives abound.
Roy Altman, M.D., of the University of Miami School of Medicine, recommends using capsaicin cream to ease sore arthritic joints, and his studies have shown that it does work. The cream's warm sensation goes away with regular use - as does the pain. Just recently, Neil Ellison, M.D., of the Mayo Clinic reported in the August Journal of Clinical Oncology that capsaicin cream also relieves post-surgical pain. He had asked patients to rub the cream around their incision sites for eight weeks. Most benefited from pain reduction after using the cream.