"Life IS Pain, Princess"

Time to allow me a random health tangent. (I was profiled by Fox News for my boldly amateurish health research, after all. See archive: February 14, 15, & 21.)

If you have a choice, go with ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) or aspirin for those pesky hangovers. Although more studies will be done to confirm the findings, it appears as though ibuprofen and aspirin have extra health benefits.

So, everyone knows that taking aspirin is good for your heart--many adults over the age of 50 take a small dose daily. What is less known is the other possible upsides to aspirin and ibuprofen: protection against Parkinson's Disease (ibuprofen) and a lower incidence of breast cancer (in both ibuprofen and aspirin users). Given that information, there's no reason to take acetaminophen or naproxen--that is, Tylenol or Aleve, for mild pain, since an alternative exists that may actually help your body in the long run, as well as the short run of the pounding headache or aching back (...yes, we are getting old).

It's too early to start popping an Advil every day, since the overuse of NSAIDs (or "Non Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs," as this class of painkillers is charmingly known) can cause oh, you know, stomach bleeding if used too frequently. But, if you're going to reach for a painkiller, you might as well kill two birds with one stone.

Ok, that's enough big science-y words for today.

What did this post have to do with The Princess Bride? Very little. Although I did manage to pull that tenuously relevant quote. I just like it. And it's always a good time to remind everyone of that movie and its greatness.