1 00:00:00,360 --> 00:00:02,760 Speaker 1: Guess what, mango, what's that will? So I know we 2 00:00:02,840 --> 00:00:06,360 Speaker 1: regularly hear these stories about the downsides of texting, you know, 3 00:00:06,400 --> 00:00:09,480 Speaker 1: the dangers of texting while driving, or all these stories 4 00:00:09,520 --> 00:00:11,520 Speaker 1: about how we're no longer present because we're looking at 5 00:00:11,520 --> 00:00:14,079 Speaker 1: our phones when we're around family and friends. But it 6 00:00:14,200 --> 00:00:16,040 Speaker 1: was actually a study I was reading recently, and it 7 00:00:16,079 --> 00:00:18,840 Speaker 1: was from the journal Pain Medicine, and it showed the 8 00:00:18,840 --> 00:00:22,840 Speaker 1: benefits of texting during surgery. So I'm guessing we're not 9 00:00:22,880 --> 00:00:24,920 Speaker 1: talking about major surgeries here. Well, yeah, I mean we're 10 00:00:24,920 --> 00:00:27,400 Speaker 1: talking about surgeries where the patient is still awake and 11 00:00:27,400 --> 00:00:30,280 Speaker 1: and often feeling some kind of discomfort or pain during 12 00:00:30,320 --> 00:00:33,159 Speaker 1: that surgery. So the study involved a hundred patients and 13 00:00:33,159 --> 00:00:35,800 Speaker 1: they were having these minor surgeries, and they had them 14 00:00:35,840 --> 00:00:37,960 Speaker 1: do three different things. So some of the patients were 15 00:00:38,000 --> 00:00:41,120 Speaker 1: asked to text, some were playing angry birds, and some 16 00:00:41,200 --> 00:00:44,599 Speaker 1: were doing nothing. And they found that of the three groups, 17 00:00:44,680 --> 00:00:47,239 Speaker 1: those who were texting actually had the least need for 18 00:00:47,320 --> 00:00:51,319 Speaker 1: additional narcotics, and they also experienced the greatest relief from 19 00:00:51,320 --> 00:00:54,160 Speaker 1: that pain. But here's what's most weird about it. The 20 00:00:54,240 --> 00:00:56,680 Speaker 1: effect was most profound when they were texting with a 21 00:00:56,720 --> 00:01:00,040 Speaker 1: complete stranger really not not like someone you know and 22 00:01:00,120 --> 00:01:02,720 Speaker 1: someone who cares about you. Well, actually, I'm sure there's 23 00:01:02,760 --> 00:01:05,400 Speaker 1: some benefit to that as well, but the greatest benefit 24 00:01:05,440 --> 00:01:07,560 Speaker 1: was when they were texting with someone they didn't know. 25 00:01:08,040 --> 00:01:09,520 Speaker 1: And they think it has to do with the type 26 00:01:09,520 --> 00:01:12,000 Speaker 1: of conversation you'd have with the loved one versus you know, 27 00:01:12,040 --> 00:01:14,480 Speaker 1: one with somebody that you don't know. So think about it. 28 00:01:14,480 --> 00:01:16,400 Speaker 1: With a loved one, if you're in a lot more pain, 29 00:01:16,480 --> 00:01:19,160 Speaker 1: you're you're likely to be talking about what's on your 30 00:01:19,200 --> 00:01:22,280 Speaker 1: mind with that or what's bothering you. But with a stranger, 31 00:01:22,440 --> 00:01:24,479 Speaker 1: you kind of have to put on a happy face 32 00:01:24,520 --> 00:01:26,680 Speaker 1: and be a little bit more positive and your interaction 33 00:01:26,800 --> 00:01:29,399 Speaker 1: you want to make a good impression, and that somewhat 34 00:01:29,440 --> 00:01:32,679 Speaker 1: forced the positive attitude actually help them withstand a higher 35 00:01:32,760 --> 00:01:34,920 Speaker 1: level of pain, and that's really fascinating. It's also kind 36 00:01:34,920 --> 00:01:37,280 Speaker 1: of cool to think that your phone's best app is 37 00:01:37,319 --> 00:01:40,080 Speaker 1: as a pain killer. That's right, right, And it's a 38 00:01:40,120 --> 00:01:43,199 Speaker 1: reminder of that pain itself is such a strange thing, 39 00:01:43,600 --> 00:01:45,920 Speaker 1: and while there are multiple ways to manage certain pain, 40 00:01:46,200 --> 00:01:48,480 Speaker 1: it feels like most people aren't all that familiar with 41 00:01:48,520 --> 00:01:51,560 Speaker 1: the differences among some of the major forms of pain relief. 42 00:01:51,840 --> 00:01:53,520 Speaker 1: So on today's episode, we're going to focus on the 43 00:01:53,560 --> 00:01:57,560 Speaker 1: science behind the things like ibuprofen, a seda, menafin, aspirin, 44 00:01:57,680 --> 00:02:00,000 Speaker 1: as well as some others, and along the way we'll 45 00:02:00,080 --> 00:02:03,000 Speaker 1: dive into some of the most surprising forms of pain relief. 46 00:02:03,280 --> 00:02:26,600 Speaker 1: So let's get started. Hey there, podcast listeners, welcome to 47 00:02:26,639 --> 00:02:29,120 Speaker 1: Part Time Genius. I'm Will Pearson and as always I'm 48 00:02:29,200 --> 00:02:31,400 Speaker 1: joined by my good friend man Gesh Ticketer and on 49 00:02:31,440 --> 00:02:33,960 Speaker 1: the other side of the soundproof glass sorting his meds 50 00:02:33,960 --> 00:02:39,280 Speaker 1: into a massive three hundred and sixty five day pill organizers. Unbelievable. 51 00:02:39,440 --> 00:02:42,280 Speaker 1: That's our friend and producer Tristan McNeil. I mean, I've 52 00:02:42,280 --> 00:02:45,200 Speaker 1: got to say the sheer level of micromanagement on display 53 00:02:45,240 --> 00:02:48,000 Speaker 1: here is both kind of inspiring but also a little 54 00:02:48,000 --> 00:02:51,440 Speaker 1: bit unnerving at the same time, So kudos to you, Tristan. 55 00:02:51,600 --> 00:02:54,079 Speaker 1: I mean, it's especially interesting because the only pills he 56 00:02:54,120 --> 00:02:57,160 Speaker 1: actually takes with those lintstones chewable vitamins, which makes that 57 00:02:57,240 --> 00:03:00,919 Speaker 1: giant phil caddy a little like overkill. Well, Tristan refuses 58 00:03:00,960 --> 00:03:03,680 Speaker 1: to take shortcuts. You've gotta respect him for that. And 59 00:03:03,720 --> 00:03:07,320 Speaker 1: speaking of shortcuts, today we're talking about common pain killers, 60 00:03:07,520 --> 00:03:09,760 Speaker 1: you know, which have become many people's go to quick 61 00:03:09,800 --> 00:03:13,280 Speaker 1: fix for everything from headaches to hangovers, and most of 62 00:03:13,320 --> 00:03:15,160 Speaker 1: us keep at least one of these over the counter 63 00:03:15,200 --> 00:03:18,680 Speaker 1: medications on standby and the medicine cabinet or next to us. 64 00:03:18,680 --> 00:03:21,480 Speaker 1: But you know whether that's aspirin or hyboprofin or taile 65 00:03:21,520 --> 00:03:24,640 Speaker 1: and all. But despite that ubiquity, a few of us 66 00:03:24,639 --> 00:03:27,080 Speaker 1: could tell you even the most basic facts about the 67 00:03:27,080 --> 00:03:30,400 Speaker 1: pills that we so readily swallow. In fact, according to 68 00:03:30,440 --> 00:03:32,800 Speaker 1: a two thousand one survey from the National Council on 69 00:03:32,840 --> 00:03:36,520 Speaker 1: Patient Information and Education, only one third of the public 70 00:03:36,640 --> 00:03:39,440 Speaker 1: is able to identify the active ingredient in their pain 71 00:03:39,520 --> 00:03:42,600 Speaker 1: killer of choice, And with over the counter pain relievers 72 00:03:42,600 --> 00:03:46,240 Speaker 1: accounting for over five billion in sales last year, that's 73 00:03:46,240 --> 00:03:48,840 Speaker 1: a big chunk of the population that medicates with something 74 00:03:48,840 --> 00:03:52,160 Speaker 1: they really don't know that much about. So for today's episode, 75 00:03:52,240 --> 00:03:54,320 Speaker 1: we're actually gonna shine some light on the little known 76 00:03:54,360 --> 00:03:56,880 Speaker 1: facts behind a few of the world's most commonly taken, 77 00:03:57,280 --> 00:03:59,840 Speaker 1: at least understood medications. So we'll try to get an 78 00:03:59,880 --> 00:04:01,720 Speaker 1: eye idea of where they come from and what they're 79 00:04:01,760 --> 00:04:04,120 Speaker 1: best suited for, as well as what the future of 80 00:04:04,120 --> 00:04:06,920 Speaker 1: pain management might look like, alright, ma, go, so where 81 00:04:06,920 --> 00:04:09,280 Speaker 1: do you think we should start. So, I mean, this 82 00:04:09,360 --> 00:04:11,240 Speaker 1: might sound a little basic, but I thought it'd be 83 00:04:11,240 --> 00:04:13,680 Speaker 1: helpful to start with a quick refresher on what pain 84 00:04:13,760 --> 00:04:17,120 Speaker 1: really is and how a non prescription painkiller actually works 85 00:04:17,160 --> 00:04:19,200 Speaker 1: to relieve it. So for the first part of that, 86 00:04:19,240 --> 00:04:22,080 Speaker 1: pain is really just this early warning system. It's our 87 00:04:22,120 --> 00:04:24,440 Speaker 1: body's way of letting us know that we're injured or 88 00:04:24,720 --> 00:04:27,400 Speaker 1: even though we're doing something that we probably should stop doing. So, 89 00:04:27,520 --> 00:04:29,479 Speaker 1: for instance, if you put your hand on the hot stove, 90 00:04:29,839 --> 00:04:32,280 Speaker 1: special nerve receptors in your skin will actually respond to 91 00:04:32,320 --> 00:04:35,039 Speaker 1: the damage from the heat, and that sensation is then 92 00:04:35,080 --> 00:04:37,359 Speaker 1: sent as a chemical message to the spinal cord and 93 00:04:37,480 --> 00:04:40,159 Speaker 1: your brain stem, and from there the message travels to 94 00:04:40,200 --> 00:04:42,880 Speaker 1: the brain, which is where the sensation is registered and 95 00:04:43,080 --> 00:04:47,280 Speaker 1: processed and finally perceived as pain. And that's a helpful description, 96 00:04:47,320 --> 00:04:48,960 Speaker 1: but it is kind of weird to take a step 97 00:04:48,960 --> 00:04:50,800 Speaker 1: back and think about it, like it almost makes it 98 00:04:50,880 --> 00:04:54,560 Speaker 1: sound kind of bureaucratic that like, this pain is this 99 00:04:54,600 --> 00:04:56,839 Speaker 1: memo that's got to be passed around from office to office, 100 00:04:56,920 --> 00:04:59,479 Speaker 1: gotta get everybody's approval, and then it finally gets to 101 00:04:59,520 --> 00:05:03,279 Speaker 1: the big loss upstairs, you know, right, So it obviously 102 00:05:03,320 --> 00:05:06,080 Speaker 1: takes more time to describe the experience of feeling the 103 00:05:06,120 --> 00:05:08,719 Speaker 1: pain that actually does to feel it, which is pretty 104 00:05:08,760 --> 00:05:11,880 Speaker 1: much instantaneous. But it's still helpful to know the ins 105 00:05:11,880 --> 00:05:14,839 Speaker 1: and outs of the process because that's ultimately how pain 106 00:05:14,920 --> 00:05:18,000 Speaker 1: killers work. Like, they interfere with the body's transmissions of 107 00:05:18,000 --> 00:05:20,480 Speaker 1: pain signals. And this is where the difference between pain 108 00:05:20,560 --> 00:05:24,239 Speaker 1: killers comes into because each kind targets a different point 109 00:05:24,240 --> 00:05:27,640 Speaker 1: in the communication chain. So, for example, aspirin and ibuprofen 110 00:05:27,680 --> 00:05:30,320 Speaker 1: our end sets and that's n S a i D, 111 00:05:30,520 --> 00:05:35,080 Speaker 1: which stands for a non steroidal anti inflammatory drugs. These 112 00:05:35,080 --> 00:05:37,279 Speaker 1: medications cut off the pain signals at the side of 113 00:05:37,279 --> 00:05:39,920 Speaker 1: the injury. But something like a set of menafin, which 114 00:05:39,920 --> 00:05:42,920 Speaker 1: is a different kind of pain reliever, works much differently. 115 00:05:43,320 --> 00:05:45,039 Speaker 1: All right, we'll obviously get to them. Why don't we 116 00:05:45,040 --> 00:05:46,920 Speaker 1: stick to the end sets for now? So how does 117 00:05:46,960 --> 00:05:50,640 Speaker 1: one of these run interference on these pain signals? Sure? So, 118 00:05:50,839 --> 00:05:53,160 Speaker 1: when the nerve receptors in our cells are damaged, they 119 00:05:53,160 --> 00:05:56,640 Speaker 1: produce chemicals that perform a variety of functions. Right, Some 120 00:05:56,760 --> 00:05:58,960 Speaker 1: lower the pain threshold and the injured cells to make 121 00:05:59,000 --> 00:06:02,200 Speaker 1: sure we get the message others produce inflammation and swelling 122 00:06:02,320 --> 00:06:05,000 Speaker 1: is a way to cushion the cells from further injury. Alright, 123 00:06:05,000 --> 00:06:07,479 Speaker 1: so these chemicals must be what the end SAIDs are targeting, 124 00:06:07,560 --> 00:06:11,159 Speaker 1: right since they're anti inflammatories. Right, So and and said like, 125 00:06:11,200 --> 00:06:14,160 Speaker 1: aspirin works by halting the production of the chemicals responsible 126 00:06:14,200 --> 00:06:16,800 Speaker 1: for the pain and swelling, and the aspirin binds with 127 00:06:16,839 --> 00:06:20,479 Speaker 1: the enzymes that produce these chemicals, which basically neutralizes the 128 00:06:20,560 --> 00:06:22,960 Speaker 1: enzymes and prevents the chemicals from being made at all. 129 00:06:23,400 --> 00:06:25,320 Speaker 1: Oh wow, that's interesting. All right, So the damage that 130 00:06:25,400 --> 00:06:27,320 Speaker 1: prompted the pain is still there, but but we no 131 00:06:27,400 --> 00:06:30,040 Speaker 1: longer perceive the pain. Is that what's going on exactly? 132 00:06:30,080 --> 00:06:32,400 Speaker 1: So the pain killers don't actually heal injuries, and they 133 00:06:32,440 --> 00:06:34,560 Speaker 1: don't even kill the pain really, they just kill your 134 00:06:34,600 --> 00:06:37,360 Speaker 1: awareness of pain by cutting off that signal out the source. 135 00:06:37,880 --> 00:06:39,960 Speaker 1: That sounds pretty deep. So the pain is still there, 136 00:06:40,000 --> 00:06:42,359 Speaker 1: we just don't feel the pain. But all right, Well, 137 00:06:42,360 --> 00:06:44,680 Speaker 1: speaking of the pain awareness, how does an end said 138 00:06:44,720 --> 00:06:47,400 Speaker 1: nowhere to go? Like, how's it able to pinpoint the 139 00:06:47,440 --> 00:06:50,560 Speaker 1: part of the body that's injured? So it doesn't really 140 00:06:50,600 --> 00:06:53,279 Speaker 1: like the aspirin dissolves in the stomach and it's carried 141 00:06:53,320 --> 00:06:55,840 Speaker 1: to all parts of the body through the bloodstream. It's 142 00:06:55,880 --> 00:06:57,680 Speaker 1: just that the damage part is the only place it 143 00:06:57,720 --> 00:07:00,760 Speaker 1: will actually find pain related enzymes to bind with. Well, 144 00:07:00,760 --> 00:07:02,520 Speaker 1: that makes sense. So so what about a sta menaphin 145 00:07:02,560 --> 00:07:04,919 Speaker 1: Like it it doesn't reduce inflammation, that it must be 146 00:07:05,000 --> 00:07:08,760 Speaker 1: doing something else, right, Yeah, so that's the amazing thing, right, Like, 147 00:07:08,839 --> 00:07:11,120 Speaker 1: even though a sida menaphin was discovered in the eighteen 148 00:07:11,160 --> 00:07:13,920 Speaker 1: hundreds and it served as the active ingredient tilen al 149 00:07:13,960 --> 00:07:15,920 Speaker 1: since I want to say, in the nineteen fifties, we 150 00:07:16,040 --> 00:07:18,640 Speaker 1: still really don't know how it works. I mean, just 151 00:07:18,720 --> 00:07:20,960 Speaker 1: listen to his physicians note that comes with toilen all 152 00:07:21,000 --> 00:07:25,480 Speaker 1: bottles quote. Although the analgesic effects of a sida menaphin 153 00:07:25,600 --> 00:07:28,880 Speaker 1: is well established, the site and mode of action have 154 00:07:29,040 --> 00:07:32,640 Speaker 1: not been clearly elucidated. And that's stunning. Yeah, so they 155 00:07:32,720 --> 00:07:34,800 Speaker 1: feel like it's saying this stuff works, but we have 156 00:07:34,840 --> 00:07:37,280 Speaker 1: no idea how. Yeah, it's so weird. But you know, 157 00:07:37,360 --> 00:07:39,920 Speaker 1: they do have some theories. So for example, it's possible 158 00:07:39,960 --> 00:07:42,040 Speaker 1: that a seda menafin works the same way and SAIDs to, 159 00:07:42,480 --> 00:07:45,800 Speaker 1: but it just isn't effective against the chemicals responsible for inflammation. 160 00:07:46,240 --> 00:07:48,320 Speaker 1: And then there's this other theory that a side BeneFin 161 00:07:48,400 --> 00:07:50,760 Speaker 1: actually affects our sensation of pain by working on the 162 00:07:50,960 --> 00:07:54,120 Speaker 1: endocannabinoid system, which you know, you might guess is the 163 00:07:54,160 --> 00:07:58,120 Speaker 1: same system that responds to cannabis or marijuana. So you know, 164 00:07:58,200 --> 00:08:00,920 Speaker 1: this is according to researchers at Lund Universe City in Sweden, 165 00:08:01,200 --> 00:08:04,840 Speaker 1: and sentimental fin activates two ion channels in the brain 166 00:08:04,920 --> 00:08:07,480 Speaker 1: and spinal cord, and these are the two channels that 167 00:08:07,520 --> 00:08:10,600 Speaker 1: also respond to cannabinoids. And the weird thing though, is 168 00:08:10,640 --> 00:08:14,440 Speaker 1: that these ion channels can actually trigger pain and its responses, 169 00:08:14,480 --> 00:08:17,880 Speaker 1: so it's pretty strange that activating them would actually reduce 170 00:08:17,920 --> 00:08:20,520 Speaker 1: the pain. But you know, like I said, nobody really 171 00:08:20,520 --> 00:08:22,560 Speaker 1: knows for sure how these all work. Well, you know, 172 00:08:22,600 --> 00:08:24,240 Speaker 1: you mentioned that a set of menifit has been around 173 00:08:24,280 --> 00:08:26,720 Speaker 1: since the eighteen hundreds, So why don't we switch gears 174 00:08:26,720 --> 00:08:28,280 Speaker 1: and talk a little bit more about the history behind 175 00:08:28,320 --> 00:08:30,920 Speaker 1: a few of the common pain killers. Yeah, So, you know, 176 00:08:31,000 --> 00:08:33,440 Speaker 1: I'm always tempted to start from the beginning and dig 177 00:08:33,440 --> 00:08:36,079 Speaker 1: into the weird history beyond the topic, but with something 178 00:08:36,160 --> 00:08:38,360 Speaker 1: like pain relievers, it feels like it might be a 179 00:08:38,400 --> 00:08:41,320 Speaker 1: tad too ambitious. I mean, pain is something that humans 180 00:08:41,320 --> 00:08:43,720 Speaker 1: have had to contend with on a daily basis, and 181 00:08:43,840 --> 00:08:47,360 Speaker 1: at this point we've actually spent millennia like experimenting with 182 00:08:47,360 --> 00:08:50,240 Speaker 1: different kinds of ways to manage it. It's kind of 183 00:08:50,280 --> 00:08:53,120 Speaker 1: a lot to cover, you know. Actually, when I was 184 00:08:53,120 --> 00:08:55,680 Speaker 1: studying abroaden Tibet, we went to the Kirang Valley, which 185 00:08:55,880 --> 00:08:59,920 Speaker 1: hadn't had much contact with western civilization, and our professor 186 00:09:00,000 --> 00:09:02,000 Speaker 1: told us that people used to manage their headaches by 187 00:09:02,000 --> 00:09:04,079 Speaker 1: putting these pieces of tape on the sides of their heads. 188 00:09:04,360 --> 00:09:07,040 Speaker 1: In fact, if you give them aspirin or a town 189 00:09:07,080 --> 00:09:09,920 Speaker 1: all or whatever, it would actually really really affect them. 190 00:09:10,000 --> 00:09:12,839 Speaker 1: And it was kind of funny because marijuana actually grew 191 00:09:12,880 --> 00:09:15,480 Speaker 1: wild in the fields there everywhere, it was all over 192 00:09:15,480 --> 00:09:17,400 Speaker 1: the place, but no one smoked as pain release. They 193 00:09:17,440 --> 00:09:20,040 Speaker 1: just used these little strips of tape to manage their pain, 194 00:09:20,520 --> 00:09:22,840 Speaker 1: and you know, maybe it works. I didn't actually try 195 00:09:22,880 --> 00:09:26,000 Speaker 1: didn't try some tape. We could easily devote a whole 196 00:09:26,000 --> 00:09:29,040 Speaker 1: episode to bizarre pain management techniques that people have tried 197 00:09:29,080 --> 00:09:31,560 Speaker 1: in the past. You look at everything from like boring 198 00:09:31,640 --> 00:09:34,720 Speaker 1: holes and people's skulls, the banging gongs, to scare away 199 00:09:34,760 --> 00:09:37,360 Speaker 1: painful spirits, which I know you still do sometimes. But 200 00:09:37,760 --> 00:09:39,760 Speaker 1: you know what, those ancient remedies that have the most 201 00:09:39,760 --> 00:09:42,760 Speaker 1: bearing on pain killers of today, they're actually the botanical ones. 202 00:09:43,200 --> 00:09:45,080 Speaker 1: So for instance, you know, you look at the ancient Greeks, 203 00:09:45,080 --> 00:09:47,560 Speaker 1: they they chewed bark and the leaves of willow trees 204 00:09:47,600 --> 00:09:50,440 Speaker 1: in order to help produce things like fever or relief 205 00:09:50,480 --> 00:09:54,160 Speaker 1: pain during childbirth. Ancient Egyptians did something pretty similar with 206 00:09:54,160 --> 00:09:56,720 Speaker 1: the leaves from myrtle bushes. You look at the Native 207 00:09:56,760 --> 00:09:59,679 Speaker 1: Americans to actually chewed birch bark as their pain relieving 208 00:09:59,679 --> 00:10:02,280 Speaker 1: plan of choice, and those all turned out to be 209 00:10:02,400 --> 00:10:05,960 Speaker 1: pretty great ideas because actually all three of those plants 210 00:10:05,960 --> 00:10:08,400 Speaker 1: contain high levels of salas like acid, which is the 211 00:10:08,440 --> 00:10:12,360 Speaker 1: active ingredient, and aspirin, which is awesome, but I always 212 00:10:12,360 --> 00:10:16,040 Speaker 1: thought the active ingredient aspirin was aspirin, like, it's not 213 00:10:16,120 --> 00:10:18,640 Speaker 1: its own thing. If you want to get technical, the 214 00:10:18,679 --> 00:10:21,920 Speaker 1: active ingredient and aspirin is called a setal salacelic acid 215 00:10:22,040 --> 00:10:24,320 Speaker 1: or a s A. You know, see that the pain 216 00:10:24,360 --> 00:10:27,040 Speaker 1: relieving chemical that's most common to all these plants I 217 00:10:27,080 --> 00:10:30,559 Speaker 1: mentioned also had the unfortunate side effect of wreaking havoc 218 00:10:30,600 --> 00:10:33,160 Speaker 1: on our digestive systems. So it was a big deal 219 00:10:33,200 --> 00:10:37,160 Speaker 1: in when this German scientist who was working for Bear Pharmaceutical, 220 00:10:37,360 --> 00:10:40,360 Speaker 1: he was able to synthesize a less harmful and easier 221 00:10:40,400 --> 00:10:42,480 Speaker 1: to digest chemical and that was this A S A 222 00:10:42,640 --> 00:10:45,120 Speaker 1: that we're talking about. So the Bear company named this 223 00:10:45,200 --> 00:10:48,440 Speaker 1: new drug aspirin, and it was the first mass produced 224 00:10:48,520 --> 00:10:50,720 Speaker 1: over the counter pain reliever to come to the market. 225 00:10:51,000 --> 00:10:53,120 Speaker 1: In fact, the word itself was a trademark term, you know, 226 00:10:53,200 --> 00:10:54,600 Speaker 1: kind of like tile and all or some of these 227 00:10:54,640 --> 00:10:57,839 Speaker 1: others for about twenty years. But after that aspirin became 228 00:10:57,880 --> 00:11:00,480 Speaker 1: a generic word for the A S A based medicine 229 00:11:00,520 --> 00:11:03,960 Speaker 1: in most markets. Actually still today, Bear holds the trademark 230 00:11:04,000 --> 00:11:08,720 Speaker 1: in some countries. So what about another end said like ibuprofen. 231 00:11:08,920 --> 00:11:12,240 Speaker 1: Is that the actual chemical ingredient or is it just 232 00:11:12,280 --> 00:11:15,680 Speaker 1: another trademark term that died in went generic. No, Iybroprofen 233 00:11:15,760 --> 00:11:18,400 Speaker 1: is its own active ingredient, which you'll find in branded 234 00:11:18,480 --> 00:11:22,120 Speaker 1: versions like advil or motrin. And although the chemicals themselves 235 00:11:22,160 --> 00:11:25,080 Speaker 1: are different, ibuprofen works pretty similarly to the A S 236 00:11:25,160 --> 00:11:28,119 Speaker 1: A and aspirin. In fact, the man who discovered ibuprofen. 237 00:11:28,160 --> 00:11:30,400 Speaker 1: His name was Dr Stewart Adams. He did so while 238 00:11:30,400 --> 00:11:33,439 Speaker 1: he was looking into how aspirin worked. This was back 239 00:11:33,480 --> 00:11:36,320 Speaker 1: in the early nineteen fifties. Adams was working in the 240 00:11:36,320 --> 00:11:39,080 Speaker 1: research department at a place called Boots Pure Drug Company, 241 00:11:39,080 --> 00:11:41,240 Speaker 1: and this was in England, and his goal at the 242 00:11:41,240 --> 00:11:43,599 Speaker 1: time was to find the new way of treating rheumatoid 243 00:11:43,720 --> 00:11:47,000 Speaker 1: arthritis that wasn't reliant on steroids and all the side 244 00:11:47,000 --> 00:11:49,640 Speaker 1: effects that come along with those. So, I mean at 245 00:11:49,640 --> 00:11:52,520 Speaker 1: this time aspirin was already in you. So we've already 246 00:11:52,559 --> 00:11:54,800 Speaker 1: said it was non steroidal and and it was great 247 00:11:54,840 --> 00:11:57,959 Speaker 1: for inflammation, Like why didn't Arthuris patients just use that? 248 00:11:58,240 --> 00:12:00,679 Speaker 1: Well they did, but they were drawbacks to any pain 249 00:12:00,760 --> 00:12:03,160 Speaker 1: killer that will be talking about. In the case of aspirin, 250 00:12:03,240 --> 00:12:05,680 Speaker 1: it usually has to be given in fairly high doses 251 00:12:05,720 --> 00:12:08,280 Speaker 1: and that of course greatly increases the risk of side 252 00:12:08,280 --> 00:12:12,120 Speaker 1: effects like allergic reaction or indigestion or in some cases 253 00:12:12,160 --> 00:12:15,160 Speaker 1: even internal bleeding. So Adams and his team were after 254 00:12:15,200 --> 00:12:17,839 Speaker 1: an alternative that could be better tolerated if if they 255 00:12:17,840 --> 00:12:21,360 Speaker 1: were going to be used regularly, and it didn't come easily, 256 00:12:21,640 --> 00:12:24,880 Speaker 1: I mean, together with a chemist and a technician. Adams 257 00:12:24,880 --> 00:12:27,959 Speaker 1: actually tested the potency of more than six hundred chemical 258 00:12:28,040 --> 00:12:30,560 Speaker 1: compounds over the course of about a ten year period. 259 00:12:31,240 --> 00:12:33,000 Speaker 1: And I mean you do hear about sort of like 260 00:12:33,040 --> 00:12:35,679 Speaker 1: a tenure cycle for drugs coming to come about. But like, 261 00:12:36,280 --> 00:12:38,400 Speaker 1: was it just like trial and error until they figured 262 00:12:38,440 --> 00:12:40,559 Speaker 1: out this winning compound? Yeah, it was. And I mean 263 00:12:40,559 --> 00:12:42,920 Speaker 1: a few of the most promising ones were actually tested 264 00:12:42,960 --> 00:12:45,640 Speaker 1: by the team itself, like something you would never see 265 00:12:45,720 --> 00:12:49,240 Speaker 1: happening today. And so was the team just knocking back 266 00:12:49,240 --> 00:12:51,559 Speaker 1: these experimental pills and like they had no idea what 267 00:12:51,679 --> 00:12:53,520 Speaker 1: sort of damage would cause. Well, I mean the handful 268 00:12:53,520 --> 00:12:56,240 Speaker 1: of compounds they tested firsthand were ones that had already 269 00:12:56,240 --> 00:12:59,679 Speaker 1: passed the toxicity test, but otherwise pretty much I mean. 270 00:12:59,840 --> 00:13:02,440 Speaker 1: In fact, Dr Adams later revealed that his discovery of 271 00:13:02,440 --> 00:13:05,719 Speaker 1: ibaprof and was due to him ingesting a promising compound 272 00:13:06,040 --> 00:13:09,120 Speaker 1: as a way of dealing with a bad hangover. So apparently, 273 00:13:09,160 --> 00:13:11,120 Speaker 1: sometime in the early sixties he was scheduled to give 274 00:13:11,160 --> 00:13:14,160 Speaker 1: this important speech, but the night before he had spent 275 00:13:14,240 --> 00:13:16,440 Speaker 1: some time at the bar wasn't really feeling up to 276 00:13:16,480 --> 00:13:18,880 Speaker 1: the task. And here's how he described the event in 277 00:13:18,920 --> 00:13:21,640 Speaker 1: an interview he said, I was first up to speak, 278 00:13:21,720 --> 00:13:23,320 Speaker 1: and I had a bit of a headache after a 279 00:13:23,440 --> 00:13:25,960 Speaker 1: night out with friends, so I took the six hundred 280 00:13:25,960 --> 00:13:28,320 Speaker 1: milligram dose just to be sure and found it was 281 00:13:28,400 --> 00:13:31,160 Speaker 1: very effective. I love that before he was giving this 282 00:13:31,200 --> 00:13:32,880 Speaker 1: big speech, he was like, let me just try a 283 00:13:32,920 --> 00:13:34,640 Speaker 1: little bit of this stuff. We've been mixing up one 284 00:13:34,679 --> 00:13:37,319 Speaker 1: of the ten thousand different things or six hundred different 285 00:13:37,360 --> 00:13:40,520 Speaker 1: chemical compounds. Yeah, and that the night before that he 286 00:13:40,600 --> 00:13:43,600 Speaker 1: was just drinking aver Right. It's a good strategy. So, 287 00:13:43,840 --> 00:13:46,480 Speaker 1: I mean, obviously it sounds insane, and it does also 288 00:13:46,480 --> 00:13:48,920 Speaker 1: sound like a ringing endorsement for iban proof and as 289 00:13:48,960 --> 00:13:51,679 Speaker 1: a hangover cure. But uh, what about some other common 290 00:13:51,720 --> 00:13:54,120 Speaker 1: pain killers, Like we should probably talk about some of 291 00:13:54,160 --> 00:13:56,600 Speaker 1: their striends and weaknesses as well. Yeah, I definitely want to, 292 00:13:56,640 --> 00:14:12,000 Speaker 1: but before we do, let's take a quick break. You're 293 00:14:12,040 --> 00:14:13,840 Speaker 1: listening to part Time Genius and we're talking about the 294 00:14:13,840 --> 00:14:17,320 Speaker 1: science behind the world's most common pain killers. All right, Mango. 295 00:14:17,400 --> 00:14:19,920 Speaker 1: So obviously we love a bunch of different products under 296 00:14:19,920 --> 00:14:23,000 Speaker 1: the same category of these non prescription pain relievers, and 297 00:14:23,360 --> 00:14:25,280 Speaker 1: one of the biggest downside to this is that we 298 00:14:25,320 --> 00:14:28,160 Speaker 1: tend to use them all interchangeably. So I know you 299 00:14:28,200 --> 00:14:29,800 Speaker 1: were doing some digging into this so too, So tell 300 00:14:29,840 --> 00:14:31,920 Speaker 1: me what kind of stuff should we consider when you 301 00:14:31,920 --> 00:14:35,200 Speaker 1: know choosing which pill we need to pile. So, I 302 00:14:35,240 --> 00:14:37,600 Speaker 1: mean a great place to start is whether or not 303 00:14:37,640 --> 00:14:40,400 Speaker 1: you're pain involves any kind of swelling, and if it does, 304 00:14:40,480 --> 00:14:43,280 Speaker 1: you should definitely go with an end set. And from 305 00:14:43,320 --> 00:14:45,000 Speaker 1: there it really comes down to what kind of pain 306 00:14:45,080 --> 00:14:47,280 Speaker 1: you have and if you're dealing with any other conditions. 307 00:14:47,360 --> 00:14:50,720 Speaker 1: For example, aspirin works well for headaches and for reducing 308 00:14:50,720 --> 00:14:53,640 Speaker 1: inflammation and joints, but like you mentioned earlier, it can 309 00:14:53,680 --> 00:14:57,320 Speaker 1: be pretty rough on your stomach. Again, it's also an anticoagulant, 310 00:14:57,480 --> 00:14:59,280 Speaker 1: which is why you can reduce the risk of heart 311 00:14:59,320 --> 00:15:02,320 Speaker 1: attack or stro can some people, but anybody who's already 312 00:15:02,320 --> 00:15:04,680 Speaker 1: on blood thinners should steer clear for the same reason. 313 00:15:05,080 --> 00:15:07,360 Speaker 1: All right, So, so going back to iboprof and what's 314 00:15:07,400 --> 00:15:10,600 Speaker 1: the deal with that one? So, just like Dr Adams intended, 315 00:15:10,640 --> 00:15:13,480 Speaker 1: ibuprofen is less irritating to the stomach than aspirin is, 316 00:15:13,760 --> 00:15:15,640 Speaker 1: but it still offers a lot of the same perks. 317 00:15:15,880 --> 00:15:19,360 Speaker 1: And for someone with acid reflux or ulcers, hypoprofen is 318 00:15:19,360 --> 00:15:22,200 Speaker 1: a good way to go. It's also particularly useful for 319 00:15:22,320 --> 00:15:26,960 Speaker 1: dealing with pain, for menstrual cramps or arthritis, toothaches, even sprains. 320 00:15:27,040 --> 00:15:29,920 Speaker 1: You know, sometimes it has better results than aspirin. All right, 321 00:15:29,960 --> 00:15:31,880 Speaker 1: So what about something like a leave that that's an 322 00:15:31,880 --> 00:15:35,200 Speaker 1: inset too, right it is. Yeah, So the active ingredient 323 00:15:35,240 --> 00:15:38,240 Speaker 1: in that one is called neoproxin, and it's available in 324 00:15:38,280 --> 00:15:40,960 Speaker 1: doses that are much stronger and longer lasting than those 325 00:15:41,040 --> 00:15:43,760 Speaker 1: of aspirin and hyperprofen, and that makes it great for 326 00:15:43,840 --> 00:15:48,240 Speaker 1: treating inflammation based pain like arthritis or even something like sunburn. However, 327 00:15:48,280 --> 00:15:51,360 Speaker 1: there are downsides and aproximate strength, and one of them 328 00:15:51,400 --> 00:15:54,240 Speaker 1: is that it can cause gastro intestinal problems and it 329 00:15:54,280 --> 00:15:56,720 Speaker 1: can also take a while to kick in, so because 330 00:15:56,720 --> 00:15:59,160 Speaker 1: it's not fast acting, it's not actually a great choice 331 00:15:59,160 --> 00:16:01,680 Speaker 1: for quick relief from something like a headache. All right. 332 00:16:01,720 --> 00:16:04,360 Speaker 1: So there's some nuanced differences between the different end sets 333 00:16:04,440 --> 00:16:06,880 Speaker 1: that might make you pick one over another in some cases, 334 00:16:06,920 --> 00:16:09,040 Speaker 1: but it feels like for the most part, you know, 335 00:16:09,080 --> 00:16:11,240 Speaker 1: any of them would do the trick for common pains 336 00:16:11,360 --> 00:16:13,840 Speaker 1: or inflammation. But but that's not really the case with 337 00:16:13,880 --> 00:16:16,760 Speaker 1: the seta menaphon though, right, Yeah, So a seta menafant 338 00:16:16,800 --> 00:16:19,680 Speaker 1: is really the odd man out among these common pain killers. 339 00:16:20,000 --> 00:16:23,520 Speaker 1: It lacks the anti inflammatory properties of its end said counterparts, 340 00:16:23,520 --> 00:16:26,200 Speaker 1: but you know, for simple pain relief, a seeda menafin 341 00:16:26,280 --> 00:16:28,480 Speaker 1: does have a few things going for it. For one thing, 342 00:16:28,520 --> 00:16:31,040 Speaker 1: it's generally very easy on the stomach, so for people 343 00:16:31,080 --> 00:16:34,080 Speaker 1: with stomach sensitivities, like a seta menaphin is probably the 344 00:16:34,120 --> 00:16:36,080 Speaker 1: first thing they reach for when a headache pops up. 345 00:16:36,560 --> 00:16:39,680 Speaker 1: It's also not an anticoagulant like aspirin is, so it's 346 00:16:39,720 --> 00:16:43,360 Speaker 1: safer for hemophiliacs or people on bloodending medications as we 347 00:16:43,440 --> 00:16:46,600 Speaker 1: talked about, or even for kids. It's interesting that the 348 00:16:46,640 --> 00:16:49,560 Speaker 1: seeda menaphon is the safer choice in some cases because 349 00:16:49,840 --> 00:16:51,520 Speaker 1: isn't that the one that's supposed to be really bad 350 00:16:51,560 --> 00:16:54,920 Speaker 1: for your liver. Yeah, so, taken regularly or to access 351 00:16:55,240 --> 00:16:57,920 Speaker 1: seta menafin can actually cause some serious damage to deliver. 352 00:16:58,440 --> 00:17:00,760 Speaker 1: It's the top cause of acute liver failure in the 353 00:17:00,840 --> 00:17:02,840 Speaker 1: U S. I didn't realize this before this episode, but 354 00:17:03,080 --> 00:17:04,840 Speaker 1: you know, a big reason for that is that it's 355 00:17:04,840 --> 00:17:07,040 Speaker 1: all too easy to overdose on a seat A menafin 356 00:17:07,440 --> 00:17:10,399 Speaker 1: and their recommended dosage for pain relief and the mountain 357 00:17:10,400 --> 00:17:13,399 Speaker 1: needed to overdose aren't actually that far apart. So according 358 00:17:13,400 --> 00:17:17,040 Speaker 1: to the CDC and FDA, between fifty thou to eighty 359 00:17:17,080 --> 00:17:19,400 Speaker 1: thou people in the US head to the emergency room 360 00:17:19,480 --> 00:17:22,399 Speaker 1: each year due to seed a menafin overdose. Wow, so 361 00:17:22,440 --> 00:17:24,639 Speaker 1: it's just super easy to take too much of it 362 00:17:24,720 --> 00:17:27,359 Speaker 1: or what? Yeah, it's probably because the seeda menafin isn't 363 00:17:27,400 --> 00:17:29,719 Speaker 1: confined to just tile at all, like it crops up 364 00:17:29,720 --> 00:17:32,520 Speaker 1: in over the counter cold and flu remedies, and it's 365 00:17:32,560 --> 00:17:35,840 Speaker 1: also in prescription pain killers like percocet, so people who 366 00:17:35,840 --> 00:17:38,679 Speaker 1: don't pay close enough attention to the labels might unknowingly 367 00:17:38,720 --> 00:17:42,200 Speaker 1: consume more than the recommended doses. And because the drug 368 00:17:42,240 --> 00:17:45,720 Speaker 1: can accumulate in your liver and also your bloodstream, even 369 00:17:45,720 --> 00:17:48,159 Speaker 1: taking slightly too much a seat a menafin over the 370 00:17:48,160 --> 00:17:50,680 Speaker 1: course a few days can lead to an overdose. It's 371 00:17:50,720 --> 00:17:53,480 Speaker 1: this phenomena called a staggered overdose, but it can be 372 00:17:53,560 --> 00:17:56,119 Speaker 1: every bit as deadly. Well, we're talking about a seeda 373 00:17:56,119 --> 00:17:58,840 Speaker 1: menafin being hard on the liver, so so given that, 374 00:17:58,880 --> 00:18:01,399 Speaker 1: I'm guessing it's not that helpful when you're trying to 375 00:18:01,440 --> 00:18:04,680 Speaker 1: fight something like a hangover, right, oh definitely not. I mean, 376 00:18:05,000 --> 00:18:07,480 Speaker 1: tons of people are probably popping a couple of tile 377 00:18:07,600 --> 00:18:09,560 Speaker 1: al after a night of drinking in the hopes of 378 00:18:09,640 --> 00:18:12,280 Speaker 1: wording off a hangover. But this is one of those 379 00:18:12,320 --> 00:18:15,680 Speaker 1: mistakes that comes from using pain killers interchangeably, because taking 380 00:18:15,680 --> 00:18:18,879 Speaker 1: a seedominafin with alcohol, even just a little bit, is 381 00:18:18,880 --> 00:18:22,440 Speaker 1: actually a terrible idea. Really so so why is that? So? 382 00:18:22,600 --> 00:18:24,879 Speaker 1: This is a little tricky and Gabe actually walked me 383 00:18:24,920 --> 00:18:28,440 Speaker 1: through it. But basically, because the drug is mostly metabolized 384 00:18:28,440 --> 00:18:31,840 Speaker 1: in the liver, where it's joined with something called glutoth ione, 385 00:18:32,520 --> 00:18:35,239 Speaker 1: it's then turned into this non toxic compound that can 386 00:18:35,240 --> 00:18:39,120 Speaker 1: be removed later through urination. However, alcohol is actually known 387 00:18:39,119 --> 00:18:42,280 Speaker 1: to reduce the livers glutothione levels, and when a seeda 388 00:18:42,320 --> 00:18:45,439 Speaker 1: menafin is metabolized without it, the drugs turns into this 389 00:18:45,520 --> 00:18:48,760 Speaker 1: far more toxic substance, and this is actually bad news 390 00:18:48,840 --> 00:18:51,240 Speaker 1: for your kidney. So once study showed that taking the 391 00:18:51,240 --> 00:18:53,800 Speaker 1: recommended dose of a seeda menapin with a small to 392 00:18:53,920 --> 00:18:56,760 Speaker 1: moderate amount of alcohol can actually increase the risk of 393 00:18:56,840 --> 00:19:00,439 Speaker 1: kidney disease by a hundred and twenty All right, well, 394 00:19:00,480 --> 00:19:02,960 Speaker 1: so obviously common pain killers aren't as across the board 395 00:19:03,040 --> 00:19:05,120 Speaker 1: safe as you know. They're over the counter status might 396 00:19:05,119 --> 00:19:07,840 Speaker 1: make you think they are. We talked about insects, you know, 397 00:19:07,960 --> 00:19:10,960 Speaker 1: their ability to recapoc on your stomach lining and the 398 00:19:11,000 --> 00:19:12,919 Speaker 1: fact that the regular use of the scene menofin can 399 00:19:12,960 --> 00:19:16,200 Speaker 1: cause permanent damage to your liver or even your kidneys. 400 00:19:16,200 --> 00:19:18,160 Speaker 1: And with those risk in mind, I do think it's 401 00:19:18,160 --> 00:19:20,239 Speaker 1: good to point out that these pain relievers they're not 402 00:19:20,320 --> 00:19:23,800 Speaker 1: meant to be long term or daily treatments. In fact, 403 00:19:23,800 --> 00:19:26,760 Speaker 1: people who regularly take these medications for headaches actually put 404 00:19:26,760 --> 00:19:29,560 Speaker 1: themselves at risk for something called rebound headaches, which are 405 00:19:29,560 --> 00:19:32,720 Speaker 1: caused by the drugs wearing off. Yeah, so I think 406 00:19:32,720 --> 00:19:34,920 Speaker 1: it's a smart idea to occasionally take stock if you're 407 00:19:34,960 --> 00:19:38,000 Speaker 1: over the counter drug use, Like if you're taking something 408 00:19:38,119 --> 00:19:40,159 Speaker 1: that you use daily for the same reason, then you 409 00:19:40,160 --> 00:19:43,560 Speaker 1: should probably consult your doctor about other treatment options, Like 410 00:19:43,600 --> 00:19:46,160 Speaker 1: there could be an underlying issue that's just being masked 411 00:19:46,160 --> 00:19:48,800 Speaker 1: by these pain killers. Yeah, that's good advice for sure. 412 00:19:48,800 --> 00:19:50,480 Speaker 1: And all right, well, if you don't mind, I kind 413 00:19:50,480 --> 00:19:52,119 Speaker 1: of want to switch gears a little bit. You know, 414 00:19:52,119 --> 00:19:54,520 Speaker 1: we've talked a little bit about the medications that that 415 00:19:54,680 --> 00:19:58,080 Speaker 1: are not helpful for drinking alcohol. But there's there's actually 416 00:19:58,119 --> 00:20:01,159 Speaker 1: a recent study that suggests alcohol hall itself is a 417 00:20:01,160 --> 00:20:03,440 Speaker 1: pretty good way to manage pain, you know, perhaps even 418 00:20:03,520 --> 00:20:06,400 Speaker 1: better than some of the pain killers we've talked about. Well, 419 00:20:06,600 --> 00:20:08,520 Speaker 1: I mean, you do sometimes hear about alcohol is a 420 00:20:08,560 --> 00:20:11,200 Speaker 1: way to dullar numb pain, especially in country music. And 421 00:20:11,480 --> 00:20:14,639 Speaker 1: since we've already established that's basically what pain killers do, 422 00:20:14,760 --> 00:20:17,480 Speaker 1: I guess it does make sense. Of course, if you 423 00:20:17,520 --> 00:20:20,080 Speaker 1: were to regularly use alcohol for pain management, you've run 424 00:20:20,080 --> 00:20:22,560 Speaker 1: into similar long term problems as with n sets or 425 00:20:22,600 --> 00:20:25,560 Speaker 1: a sid menafine. Absolutely, I mean, it's an interesting study 426 00:20:25,600 --> 00:20:27,120 Speaker 1: and it might be good to know on a pinch, 427 00:20:27,160 --> 00:20:30,479 Speaker 1: but I've not any medical professional would actually recommend drinking 428 00:20:30,480 --> 00:20:32,520 Speaker 1: as a way to treat chronic pain. And I'm pretty 429 00:20:32,520 --> 00:20:34,399 Speaker 1: sure that we should not go on the record is 430 00:20:34,400 --> 00:20:37,560 Speaker 1: suggesting that, you know, we're not suggesting that. But tell 431 00:20:37,600 --> 00:20:39,840 Speaker 1: me what the study said, all right, So, researchers at 432 00:20:39,880 --> 00:20:42,639 Speaker 1: the University of Greenwich in London, they gathered volunteers for 433 00:20:42,680 --> 00:20:45,560 Speaker 1: a study on pain and alcohol, and they found that 434 00:20:45,560 --> 00:20:48,679 Speaker 1: the participants reported to reduce sensitivity to pain with every 435 00:20:48,800 --> 00:20:51,760 Speaker 1: drink consumed. And this is actually the interesting part like, 436 00:20:51,840 --> 00:20:55,040 Speaker 1: the effect was cumulative, So after three drinks for men 437 00:20:55,160 --> 00:20:58,480 Speaker 1: and two for women, the participants pain thresholds rose from 438 00:20:58,560 --> 00:21:02,440 Speaker 1: small to moderate lash large. According to the researchers, this 439 00:21:02,560 --> 00:21:06,280 Speaker 1: pain relieving effect on alcohol on pain intensity is comparable 440 00:21:06,359 --> 00:21:08,960 Speaker 1: to opioids and actually more powerful than a set of 441 00:21:09,000 --> 00:21:11,560 Speaker 1: metaphing Wow. So do we know why that's the case? 442 00:21:12,160 --> 00:21:14,800 Speaker 1: They really don't know exactly why. I mean, the researchers 443 00:21:14,800 --> 00:21:18,400 Speaker 1: suggested that the alcohol may block the transmission of pain signals, 444 00:21:18,440 --> 00:21:21,879 Speaker 1: you know, to the spinal cord, but alcohols anxiety relieving 445 00:21:21,960 --> 00:21:24,400 Speaker 1: properties could also be a part of this as well. 446 00:21:25,000 --> 00:21:27,159 Speaker 1: But either way, it's a little dangerous that alcohol is 447 00:21:27,200 --> 00:21:29,800 Speaker 1: as effective as it is in relieving pain. I mean, 448 00:21:30,359 --> 00:21:34,040 Speaker 1: swapping chronic pain for alcohol abuse isn't exactly trading up, 449 00:21:34,560 --> 00:21:36,639 Speaker 1: and that potential to create a whole new problem is 450 00:21:36,640 --> 00:21:40,439 Speaker 1: one of the biggest dangers with self medicating. But you know, amazingly, 451 00:21:40,640 --> 00:21:42,879 Speaker 1: we're not even the only animals to try this. I 452 00:21:42,880 --> 00:21:45,159 Speaker 1: found a few examples of other species that take their 453 00:21:45,200 --> 00:21:47,720 Speaker 1: health into their own paws. But before I tell you 454 00:21:47,720 --> 00:22:03,479 Speaker 1: about that, why don't we take a quick break? Okay, So, 455 00:22:03,560 --> 00:22:06,400 Speaker 1: what's the drink of choice? For these self medicating animals 456 00:22:06,440 --> 00:22:08,159 Speaker 1: that you talked about that like, do they stick to 457 00:22:08,200 --> 00:22:09,919 Speaker 1: beer and wine or do they go straight to the 458 00:22:09,960 --> 00:22:13,240 Speaker 1: hard stuff or what's their strategy. So there is a 459 00:22:13,280 --> 00:22:16,000 Speaker 1: species of monkeys in Uganda that's the leave to self 460 00:22:16,040 --> 00:22:18,280 Speaker 1: medicated for pain, but they're not hitting up the bar 461 00:22:18,400 --> 00:22:21,639 Speaker 1: to do it. Instead, they consume massive amounts of tree bark, 462 00:22:21,800 --> 00:22:24,639 Speaker 1: which is what humans used to do with willow bark. Right, So, 463 00:22:24,680 --> 00:22:27,720 Speaker 1: a team of a collegists studied a troop of Colobus monkeys, 464 00:22:28,000 --> 00:22:31,000 Speaker 1: some of which were infected with a parasite called whipworm, 465 00:22:31,040 --> 00:22:33,600 Speaker 1: and the team noticed that the infected monkeys spent way 466 00:22:33,680 --> 00:22:36,960 Speaker 1: less time moving and grooming and even mating than the 467 00:22:36,960 --> 00:22:39,760 Speaker 1: other monkeys, but they also ate twice as much tree 468 00:22:39,800 --> 00:22:41,879 Speaker 1: bark as them, even though all the monkeys stuck to 469 00:22:41,920 --> 00:22:44,840 Speaker 1: the same feeding schedules. All right, so sick monkeys were 470 00:22:44,840 --> 00:22:47,760 Speaker 1: purposefully eating more bark than usual, that's what you're saying. 471 00:22:47,800 --> 00:22:51,200 Speaker 1: But I mean, couldn't the sickness have just made them hungrier? Yeah, 472 00:22:51,240 --> 00:22:53,800 Speaker 1: I mean it could be a coincidence, but it would 473 00:22:53,840 --> 00:22:56,040 Speaker 1: have to be a pretty big one. Seven of the 474 00:22:56,119 --> 00:22:58,439 Speaker 1: nine species of trees and shrubs that the sick monkeys 475 00:22:58,560 --> 00:23:02,080 Speaker 1: ate from are actually known to have armacological properties, and 476 00:23:02,280 --> 00:23:04,880 Speaker 1: those are the same plants that local humans actually used 477 00:23:04,880 --> 00:23:07,879 Speaker 1: to treat illnesses, including the whipworm illness. All right, so 478 00:23:07,960 --> 00:23:10,600 Speaker 1: maybe not a complete coincident. It's just weird to think, though, 479 00:23:10,640 --> 00:23:14,200 Speaker 1: that some animals might knowingly take medicine for their illnesses, though, 480 00:23:14,240 --> 00:23:16,920 Speaker 1: isn't it. Yeah, And I mean, self medicating monkeys are 481 00:23:17,040 --> 00:23:19,640 Speaker 1: one thing, right, Like, they aren't that far removed from 482 00:23:19,680 --> 00:23:22,000 Speaker 1: us in terms of evolution. But there's another team of 483 00:23:22,000 --> 00:23:25,080 Speaker 1: researchers out at the University of Helsinki that claims to 484 00:23:25,080 --> 00:23:28,359 Speaker 1: have found the first evidence of self medicating insects. So 485 00:23:28,440 --> 00:23:31,840 Speaker 1: here's how an article in Scientific American broke down this discovery. 486 00:23:32,040 --> 00:23:35,120 Speaker 1: When the biologists exposed to hundreds of for Mica fusca 487 00:23:35,160 --> 00:23:38,320 Speaker 1: ants to a dangerous fungus, many of the infected insects 488 00:23:38,440 --> 00:23:41,920 Speaker 1: chose to consume four to six percent hydrogen peroxide solution 489 00:23:42,240 --> 00:23:46,639 Speaker 1: made available for the experiment. Healthy ants avoided the household chemical, 490 00:23:46,880 --> 00:23:50,359 Speaker 1: which can quah infections and small doses, but it's otherwise deadly. 491 00:23:50,800 --> 00:23:53,560 Speaker 1: The sick ants that partook were less likely to succumb 492 00:23:53,560 --> 00:23:55,800 Speaker 1: to the grips of the fungus. I mean, I guess 493 00:23:55,800 --> 00:23:57,920 Speaker 1: it is pretty telling that only the sick ants drank 494 00:23:58,000 --> 00:24:00,760 Speaker 1: the solution. But what about in the wild. It's pretty different. 495 00:24:00,760 --> 00:24:04,040 Speaker 1: It's not like hydrogen peroxide is growing on trees or anything. Yeah, 496 00:24:04,040 --> 00:24:06,960 Speaker 1: I mean that's true, but the confound does grow inside 497 00:24:06,960 --> 00:24:10,280 Speaker 1: some plants. So researchers theorized that wild dance infected by 498 00:24:10,320 --> 00:24:12,560 Speaker 1: the fungus might actually be able to find relief by 499 00:24:12,560 --> 00:24:15,360 Speaker 1: eating plants that release hydrogen peroxide in order to fight 500 00:24:15,440 --> 00:24:18,280 Speaker 1: off aphids. That is pretty cool, But you know, actually 501 00:24:18,359 --> 00:24:20,600 Speaker 1: the animal kingdom isn't just a place for us to 502 00:24:20,680 --> 00:24:22,920 Speaker 1: watch to like learn how to manage our pain. It's 503 00:24:22,960 --> 00:24:25,200 Speaker 1: actually a place to go as a source of pain 504 00:24:25,240 --> 00:24:27,480 Speaker 1: relief in some cases. You know. For instance, I was 505 00:24:27,520 --> 00:24:29,719 Speaker 1: reading about a new kind of pain killer that's derived 506 00:24:29,720 --> 00:24:32,600 Speaker 1: from the toxic venom of a sea snail. So the 507 00:24:32,680 --> 00:24:34,640 Speaker 1: drug is called and I don't know if I'm pronouncing 508 00:24:34,640 --> 00:24:37,240 Speaker 1: this correctly. I think it's Zicona tide. But the really 509 00:24:37,280 --> 00:24:40,000 Speaker 1: standout name belongs to the snail itself. It's called the 510 00:24:40,040 --> 00:24:44,400 Speaker 1: Magician's comb. That is pretty screat And you know, I'm 511 00:24:44,440 --> 00:24:46,520 Speaker 1: always curious about this. I know we mentioned it a 512 00:24:46,520 --> 00:24:49,440 Speaker 1: little yesterday with that viper from Brazil. But how does 513 00:24:49,520 --> 00:24:52,760 Speaker 1: toxic venom make for good medicine? Well, this one works 514 00:24:52,800 --> 00:24:56,240 Speaker 1: actually by blocking calcium channels and the specific nerve cells 515 00:24:56,480 --> 00:24:59,359 Speaker 1: and that prevents certain pain signals from reaching the brain. 516 00:24:59,760 --> 00:25:02,480 Speaker 1: As this makes it super useful for treating patients with 517 00:25:02,560 --> 00:25:05,680 Speaker 1: pain that isn't that easily managed by traditional methods. And 518 00:25:05,760 --> 00:25:08,640 Speaker 1: we're talking about things people suffering from cancer or AIDS 519 00:25:08,840 --> 00:25:11,640 Speaker 1: or you know, several types of neurological disorders that they've 520 00:25:11,640 --> 00:25:15,119 Speaker 1: seen positive results with this c snail pain killer. But 521 00:25:15,160 --> 00:25:17,240 Speaker 1: if scientists have their way, this won't be the only 522 00:25:17,320 --> 00:25:20,520 Speaker 1: venom based pain reliever that's out there. Currently, research is 523 00:25:20,560 --> 00:25:23,600 Speaker 1: underway to make use of tarantula venom too, and if 524 00:25:23,600 --> 00:25:25,960 Speaker 1: it's successful, we could be looking at a whole new 525 00:25:26,040 --> 00:25:28,520 Speaker 1: kind of pain killer no one that can treat severe 526 00:25:28,560 --> 00:25:31,560 Speaker 1: pain without the risk of addiction, which is super exciting. 527 00:25:31,640 --> 00:25:33,760 Speaker 1: And the animal kingdom isn't even the only place to 528 00:25:33,800 --> 00:25:36,280 Speaker 1: find these kinds of breakthrough is because plants are actually 529 00:25:36,320 --> 00:25:39,680 Speaker 1: doing their part as well. Both marijuana and salvia are 530 00:25:39,760 --> 00:25:43,119 Speaker 1: promising candidates for non addictive pain relief, and even the 531 00:25:43,160 --> 00:25:46,600 Speaker 1: pain delling chemical capsation that's found in chili peppers is 532 00:25:46,640 --> 00:25:49,760 Speaker 1: on the table as a potential pain killer. Yeah, that's true, 533 00:25:49,760 --> 00:25:52,119 Speaker 1: and and really there's a greater need for treatments with 534 00:25:52,200 --> 00:25:54,760 Speaker 1: that kind of potential than there ever has been before. 535 00:25:55,160 --> 00:25:56,800 Speaker 1: I was looking at some of the statistics from the 536 00:25:56,840 --> 00:25:59,959 Speaker 1: Institute of Medicine, and apparently there over a hundred million 537 00:26:00,040 --> 00:26:03,840 Speaker 1: Americans currently suffering from some form of chronic pain, which 538 00:26:03,840 --> 00:26:06,560 Speaker 1: amounts to as much as six hundred billion dollars a 539 00:26:06,640 --> 00:26:10,360 Speaker 1: year in medical bills and lost productivity. And obviously, when 540 00:26:10,359 --> 00:26:13,080 Speaker 1: dealing with pain that's that severe, these over the counter 541 00:26:13,160 --> 00:26:15,800 Speaker 1: drugs aren't always going to cut it, and that's why 542 00:26:15,800 --> 00:26:18,320 Speaker 1: we're currently dealing with things like the opioid crisis in 543 00:26:18,359 --> 00:26:20,959 Speaker 1: our country now. So when the best tool for managing 544 00:26:21,040 --> 00:26:24,000 Speaker 1: high pain levels is highly addictive and debilitating in its 545 00:26:24,000 --> 00:26:26,120 Speaker 1: own right, I mean, you know, it's time to find 546 00:26:26,119 --> 00:26:29,320 Speaker 1: a better way. Absolutely, And one of the most promising 547 00:26:29,320 --> 00:26:34,240 Speaker 1: alternatives I've actually heard about comes from this really unexpected place, Mango, 548 00:26:34,320 --> 00:26:38,880 Speaker 1: even more unexpected than my magical cone sea snails. Yeah, 549 00:26:38,920 --> 00:26:42,600 Speaker 1: even more than magical sea snails. But you know, there's 550 00:26:42,640 --> 00:26:44,760 Speaker 1: a growing number of hospitals that are out there looking 551 00:26:44,800 --> 00:26:47,520 Speaker 1: into how virtual reality could be used for pain management, 552 00:26:47,960 --> 00:26:50,880 Speaker 1: like the clunky headsets like video games and stuff like that. 553 00:26:51,040 --> 00:26:54,080 Speaker 1: So clinical researchers have already had success using them to 554 00:26:54,119 --> 00:26:57,760 Speaker 1: treat panic attacks and other psychosomatic disorders, and now they're 555 00:26:57,760 --> 00:27:00,480 Speaker 1: actually starting to explore the text applications for eating pain 556 00:27:00,520 --> 00:27:03,679 Speaker 1: brought on from everything from like joint injuries to even cancer, 557 00:27:04,119 --> 00:27:06,119 Speaker 1: and so far trials with a pair of the three 558 00:27:06,200 --> 00:27:08,760 Speaker 1: D goggles have been proven to produce patients experience of 559 00:27:08,800 --> 00:27:12,880 Speaker 1: pain by a full twenty cent. Yeah, I mean there's 560 00:27:12,880 --> 00:27:15,320 Speaker 1: also hope that the technology can be extended to chronic 561 00:27:15,359 --> 00:27:17,800 Speaker 1: pain sufferers who would typically have to look to those 562 00:27:17,840 --> 00:27:21,399 Speaker 1: addictive prescription pain killers for relief. That's pretty incredible. I mean, 563 00:27:21,400 --> 00:27:23,680 Speaker 1: can you imagine if someone who had just had surgery 564 00:27:23,840 --> 00:27:26,080 Speaker 1: or gotten a car accident, they could just be sent 565 00:27:26,200 --> 00:27:28,520 Speaker 1: home with like a VR headset instead of you know, 566 00:27:28,560 --> 00:27:30,840 Speaker 1: like a bottle of percoset or something. That might be 567 00:27:30,840 --> 00:27:32,840 Speaker 1: a little bit hopeful. But it does sound like this 568 00:27:32,880 --> 00:27:36,200 Speaker 1: could really flip the script on pain management definitely. And 569 00:27:36,200 --> 00:27:39,320 Speaker 1: and VR treatment actually draws from techniques that have already 570 00:27:39,359 --> 00:27:43,440 Speaker 1: proven medically effective, you know, things like mindfulness and meditation. 571 00:27:43,600 --> 00:27:46,680 Speaker 1: But you know, most doctors wouldn't prescribe something like meditation 572 00:27:46,720 --> 00:27:48,840 Speaker 1: because there's a good chance patience won't go home and 573 00:27:48,840 --> 00:27:51,800 Speaker 1: follow through with that treatment. And by comparison, pain pills 574 00:27:51,800 --> 00:27:54,440 Speaker 1: have been a more certain and also more lucrative way 575 00:27:54,480 --> 00:27:58,240 Speaker 1: to go, but VR, with its promise of fun and escapism, 576 00:27:58,400 --> 00:28:01,199 Speaker 1: could actually do away with all that certainty, Like patients 577 00:28:01,200 --> 00:28:03,080 Speaker 1: will be far more likely to actually go home and 578 00:28:03,200 --> 00:28:04,919 Speaker 1: use it on their own. I mean that kind of 579 00:28:04,920 --> 00:28:07,840 Speaker 1: makes sense, but I'm curious, like, how exactly does VR 580 00:28:08,000 --> 00:28:10,800 Speaker 1: relief pain? Is it just that it calms people down, 581 00:28:10,880 --> 00:28:12,840 Speaker 1: because you know, if that's the case, it seems like 582 00:28:12,880 --> 00:28:15,000 Speaker 1: people could just sit there and watch a relaxing video 583 00:28:15,119 --> 00:28:17,840 Speaker 1: or something like that. So a major reason why VR 584 00:28:17,880 --> 00:28:20,200 Speaker 1: is so effective is that the games and environments that 585 00:28:20,280 --> 00:28:22,879 Speaker 1: generates are actually a great way to distract your brain, 586 00:28:23,400 --> 00:28:26,240 Speaker 1: and that level of immersion VR provides it actually gives 587 00:28:26,240 --> 00:28:29,000 Speaker 1: this distinct advantage over I don't know, just watching a 588 00:28:29,080 --> 00:28:31,719 Speaker 1: nature video on your smartphone, and that's because the experience 589 00:28:31,720 --> 00:28:34,640 Speaker 1: actually shuts off the neural pathways that typically transfer pain 590 00:28:34,640 --> 00:28:38,400 Speaker 1: signals from your peripheral nervous system. It occupies all the 591 00:28:38,440 --> 00:28:42,040 Speaker 1: brain's attention so that the sensation of pain is lesson significantly. 592 00:28:42,400 --> 00:28:44,280 Speaker 1: That's really interesting, and I admit I was a little 593 00:28:44,320 --> 00:28:47,040 Speaker 1: bit skeptical of this, but but it sounds pretty promising. 594 00:28:47,080 --> 00:28:49,760 Speaker 1: And I do love the idea of overcoming pain, like 595 00:28:49,800 --> 00:28:52,880 Speaker 1: not through just chemical trickery, but simply giving our brains 596 00:28:52,920 --> 00:28:55,840 Speaker 1: the freedom to focus on something else. You know, for 597 00:28:55,960 --> 00:28:58,320 Speaker 1: way too many people, the physical pain they live with 598 00:28:58,480 --> 00:29:01,520 Speaker 1: is just all consuming. You know, pain killers, whether they're 599 00:29:01,520 --> 00:29:04,000 Speaker 1: over the counter or even prescription, they're they're pretty limited 600 00:29:04,000 --> 00:29:06,280 Speaker 1: in their usefulness because of these side effects and the 601 00:29:06,320 --> 00:29:08,840 Speaker 1: high risk of addiction that we talked about. So it 602 00:29:08,960 --> 00:29:11,239 Speaker 1: is pretty hardening to hear about these new approaches like 603 00:29:11,280 --> 00:29:13,560 Speaker 1: this that make the idea of a pain free future 604 00:29:13,600 --> 00:29:16,240 Speaker 1: seem a little more attainable. Yeah, I couldn't agree with 605 00:29:16,240 --> 00:29:18,719 Speaker 1: you more. And you know, learning is another great way 606 00:29:18,760 --> 00:29:20,560 Speaker 1: to keep your mind off pain. So what do you 607 00:29:20,560 --> 00:29:22,920 Speaker 1: say we conduct our own clinical trial using the pain 608 00:29:23,040 --> 00:29:25,880 Speaker 1: killing power of facts. I mean, I'm gaining for effect up, 609 00:29:25,920 --> 00:29:27,560 Speaker 1: but I do think we should be clear, like, the 610 00:29:27,640 --> 00:29:31,160 Speaker 1: health benefits of trivia are not fully proven, So I 611 00:29:31,680 --> 00:29:34,240 Speaker 1: think the last thing we need is another lawsuit here, Mango, 612 00:29:34,760 --> 00:29:44,520 Speaker 1: that's right, all right, Well I'll kick us off. So 613 00:29:44,520 --> 00:29:46,760 Speaker 1: We've talked about a few things that have these surprising 614 00:29:46,800 --> 00:29:49,800 Speaker 1: abilities to reduce pain, and here's another one to add 615 00:29:49,840 --> 00:29:52,120 Speaker 1: to the list. Now. I know it's common wisdom to 616 00:29:52,160 --> 00:29:55,120 Speaker 1: say that money doesn't really lead to happiness, but you know, 617 00:29:55,160 --> 00:29:58,680 Speaker 1: there's no denying that our brains love money. In fact, 618 00:29:58,720 --> 00:30:01,120 Speaker 1: one study out of China show the just holding onto 619 00:30:01,160 --> 00:30:04,360 Speaker 1: it pretty much works like a drug. And the study 620 00:30:04,400 --> 00:30:06,880 Speaker 1: participants were asked to put their hands into some really 621 00:30:06,960 --> 00:30:10,320 Speaker 1: hot water, now not for long, but still very hot water. 622 00:30:10,640 --> 00:30:12,760 Speaker 1: And just before doing this, some of them had been 623 00:30:12,760 --> 00:30:15,440 Speaker 1: given a stack of money to handle, and some were 624 00:30:15,480 --> 00:30:18,480 Speaker 1: just given blank paper to shuffle through. And sure enough, 625 00:30:18,680 --> 00:30:21,040 Speaker 1: those who had handled the money had a higher tolerance 626 00:30:21,080 --> 00:30:24,160 Speaker 1: of pain. That's amazing. Well, you know, since you mentioned 627 00:30:24,200 --> 00:30:26,640 Speaker 1: hot water, I'm gonna go with the cold water test. 628 00:30:27,080 --> 00:30:29,280 Speaker 1: And you know, I have always envious the scientists who 629 00:30:29,280 --> 00:30:31,160 Speaker 1: get to conduct studies like the one we heard about 630 00:30:31,160 --> 00:30:33,959 Speaker 1: earlier where they were testing to see if swearing actually 631 00:30:33,960 --> 00:30:37,640 Speaker 1: reduces pain. And in this study, participants were asked to 632 00:30:37,640 --> 00:30:40,000 Speaker 1: put their arm in a bucket of ice water and 633 00:30:40,000 --> 00:30:42,800 Speaker 1: then given certain words say or shout out loud and 634 00:30:42,840 --> 00:30:44,240 Speaker 1: see how long they could keep their arm in the 635 00:30:44,320 --> 00:30:46,800 Speaker 1: ice water, and it turns out that those who were 636 00:30:46,800 --> 00:30:49,920 Speaker 1: swearing were able to keep their arms in for longer. 637 00:30:50,280 --> 00:30:52,480 Speaker 1: But you know, I was curious as to whether the 638 00:30:52,520 --> 00:30:55,560 Speaker 1: specific curse words had different effects, and it turns out 639 00:30:55,640 --> 00:30:58,520 Speaker 1: they do. Maybe not surprisingly, they found out that the 640 00:30:58,600 --> 00:31:01,720 Speaker 1: F bomb was much more effective than using the word bum. 641 00:31:01,760 --> 00:31:04,120 Speaker 1: The word bum. Yeah, I mean, I want to meet 642 00:31:04,120 --> 00:31:06,400 Speaker 1: these people who scream out the word bum when they're there. 643 00:31:07,600 --> 00:31:10,480 Speaker 1: All right, So we covered handling money and swearing. I 644 00:31:10,520 --> 00:31:13,520 Speaker 1: think we're making parents really happy today, So why don't 645 00:31:13,520 --> 00:31:15,480 Speaker 1: we do one that's a little bit different. And I 646 00:31:15,520 --> 00:31:17,920 Speaker 1: think we should revisit the meditation thing. And I do 647 00:31:18,080 --> 00:31:20,000 Speaker 1: know we talked a little bit about it earlier. But 648 00:31:20,320 --> 00:31:22,160 Speaker 1: there's this study out of wake Forest that I think 649 00:31:22,240 --> 00:31:24,720 Speaker 1: was pretty interesting. And if they found that after just 650 00:31:24,800 --> 00:31:27,200 Speaker 1: a few days of meditation training, you know, where they 651 00:31:27,200 --> 00:31:30,400 Speaker 1: help participants focus on something soothing instead of their pain, 652 00:31:31,080 --> 00:31:33,600 Speaker 1: those in the study actually saw a fifty seven percent 653 00:31:33,720 --> 00:31:37,360 Speaker 1: reduction in what they described as unpleasantness. And they reported 654 00:31:37,400 --> 00:31:39,960 Speaker 1: that was roughly the equivalent to the effects of morphine. 655 00:31:40,120 --> 00:31:43,080 Speaker 1: That's unbelievable. So here's a weird one, and I feel 656 00:31:43,080 --> 00:31:44,840 Speaker 1: like you'd have to test this to believe it. But 657 00:31:45,200 --> 00:31:47,840 Speaker 1: apparently if you feel a headache coming on, you can 658 00:31:47,880 --> 00:31:50,400 Speaker 1: actually eat a bit of green apple or even just 659 00:31:50,520 --> 00:31:53,000 Speaker 1: smell one to get some of the relief from a migraine. 660 00:31:53,360 --> 00:31:55,960 Speaker 1: And this was a study from the Research Foundation in Chicago, 661 00:31:56,360 --> 00:31:58,840 Speaker 1: and the researchers believed it's related to the finding that 662 00:31:58,920 --> 00:32:02,520 Speaker 1: the green apples smell does in fact reduced muscle contractions 663 00:32:02,520 --> 00:32:04,760 Speaker 1: in the head and neck, which would reduce that pain 664 00:32:04,760 --> 00:32:06,920 Speaker 1: from migraine. You know, I think we should do another 665 00:32:06,960 --> 00:32:09,280 Speaker 1: study where we test what would happen if you hold 666 00:32:09,280 --> 00:32:11,560 Speaker 1: a lot of cash, you scream the F bomb, and 667 00:32:11,600 --> 00:32:13,720 Speaker 1: you sniff an apple at the same time, and see 668 00:32:14,200 --> 00:32:18,320 Speaker 1: probably feel great. All right? Well, have you ever wondered 669 00:32:18,360 --> 00:32:21,280 Speaker 1: why we tend to grab our injuries when we get hurt, like, 670 00:32:21,480 --> 00:32:23,479 Speaker 1: you know, imagine you have an ankle's brain, what's the 671 00:32:23,520 --> 00:32:25,800 Speaker 1: first thing that you do? You sit down and you 672 00:32:25,840 --> 00:32:28,880 Speaker 1: grab your ankle. But apparently there's a reason for this. 673 00:32:29,240 --> 00:32:31,800 Speaker 1: So when we touch our injuries, it gives our brains 674 00:32:31,800 --> 00:32:35,040 Speaker 1: a chance to map out these injuries and better pinpoint 675 00:32:35,080 --> 00:32:40,000 Speaker 1: the location and then more effectively manage the pain. That's fascinating. Okay, Well, 676 00:32:40,000 --> 00:32:42,880 Speaker 1: I said my most important fact for last, and that's 677 00:32:42,920 --> 00:32:46,120 Speaker 1: the fact that Kenny Loggins and Dean Pitchford actually wrote 678 00:32:46,120 --> 00:32:49,000 Speaker 1: the title track for Footloose while under the influence of 679 00:32:49,000 --> 00:32:52,480 Speaker 1: pain curs. This is very important. So apparently Loggins had 680 00:32:52,520 --> 00:32:54,720 Speaker 1: just recently broken a rib while performing, you know, because 681 00:32:54,720 --> 00:32:56,360 Speaker 1: he likes to leave it all out on the stage, 682 00:32:56,720 --> 00:32:59,680 Speaker 1: doesn't And Pitchford was dealing with a pretty high fever 683 00:32:59,720 --> 00:33:02,040 Speaker 1: and up throat, and the two of them would meet 684 00:33:02,080 --> 00:33:03,960 Speaker 1: up to record, and they only had a few days, 685 00:33:03,960 --> 00:33:06,560 Speaker 1: so they couldn't let their ailments slow them down. And 686 00:33:06,600 --> 00:33:09,520 Speaker 1: as Pitchford said, quote, I think it was two or 687 00:33:09,560 --> 00:33:12,040 Speaker 1: three days. We kept up this garade of him showing 688 00:33:12,160 --> 00:33:14,440 Speaker 1: up on his pain killers and me and my pain killers, 689 00:33:14,480 --> 00:33:17,480 Speaker 1: and us getting the gist of the song. Wow. I mean, 690 00:33:17,880 --> 00:33:20,800 Speaker 1: can you imagine the magic that may have never happened 691 00:33:20,840 --> 00:33:23,600 Speaker 1: if they hadn't pushed through and worked on this world 692 00:33:23,760 --> 00:33:27,640 Speaker 1: changing song Mango. I mean, I may have never had 693 00:33:27,680 --> 00:33:30,120 Speaker 1: the opportunity to sing that song in my high school 694 00:33:30,120 --> 00:33:33,280 Speaker 1: show choir. I'll pull out the tape sometime to show 695 00:33:33,280 --> 00:33:35,000 Speaker 1: you in Tristan, or maybe I'll just leave it at 696 00:33:35,040 --> 00:33:38,000 Speaker 1: my parents house. But I'm honestly, I'm not sure I'd 697 00:33:38,040 --> 00:33:40,680 Speaker 1: be the man I am today without that experience, though, 698 00:33:40,720 --> 00:33:44,160 Speaker 1: So for that, I'm gonna have to give you today's 699 00:33:44,280 --> 00:33:46,640 Speaker 1: fact off trophy Mango. And if there was ever a 700 00:33:46,680 --> 00:33:50,120 Speaker 1: fact in my fact off windstreak, I'm glad that's the 701 00:33:50,120 --> 00:33:53,320 Speaker 1: one of congratulations. Thank you so much, and thank you 702 00:33:53,360 --> 00:33:55,960 Speaker 1: guys for listening. If we have forgotten any great facts 703 00:33:56,000 --> 00:33:58,200 Speaker 1: that you'd like to share with us about pain killers 704 00:33:58,280 --> 00:34:00,680 Speaker 1: or pain management, we'd love to hear those from. You 705 00:34:00,680 --> 00:34:03,560 Speaker 1: can always email us part time Genius at how stuff 706 00:34:03,600 --> 00:34:06,560 Speaker 1: Works dot com. You can always call our seven fact 707 00:34:06,640 --> 00:34:10,239 Speaker 1: hotline that's one eight four four pt Genius, or hit 708 00:34:10,280 --> 00:34:12,759 Speaker 1: us up on Facebook or Twitter. We've loved the great 709 00:34:12,760 --> 00:34:14,880 Speaker 1: facts that you guys have been sending, the great ideas 710 00:34:14,880 --> 00:34:17,200 Speaker 1: that you've been sending, so please keep them coming, and 711 00:34:17,280 --> 00:34:33,920 Speaker 1: thanks again for listening, Thanks again for listening. Part Time 712 00:34:33,960 --> 00:34:36,160 Speaker 1: Genius is a production of How Stuff Works and wouldn't 713 00:34:36,160 --> 00:34:38,920 Speaker 1: be possible without several brilliant people who do the important 714 00:34:38,960 --> 00:34:42,080 Speaker 1: things we couldn't even begin to understand. Tristan McNeil does 715 00:34:42,120 --> 00:34:44,400 Speaker 1: the editing thing. Noel Brown made the theme song and 716 00:34:44,400 --> 00:34:47,319 Speaker 1: does the mixy mixy sound thing. Jerry Rowland does the 717 00:34:47,360 --> 00:34:50,840 Speaker 1: exact producer thing Gaveluesier is our lead researcher, with support 718 00:34:50,840 --> 00:34:53,680 Speaker 1: from the Research Army including Austin Thompson, Nolan Brown and 719 00:34:53,760 --> 00:34:55,920 Speaker 1: Lucas Adams and Eve. Jeff Cook gets the show to 720 00:34:55,960 --> 00:34:58,359 Speaker 1: your ears. Good job, Eves. If you like what you heard, 721 00:34:58,400 --> 00:35:00,440 Speaker 1: we hope you'll subscribe, And if you really really like 722 00:35:00,520 --> 00:35:02,360 Speaker 1: what you've heard, maybe you could leave a good review 723 00:35:02,400 --> 00:35:05,000 Speaker 1: for us. Did we? Did we forget Jason? Jason who