By Reckless Dan
Orion -- I found your article on your Bug-Out Bag to be excellent and I could find only one minor item to criticize --- you need to include some Aspirin in your first aid supplies, along with the Tylenol. Unless, of course, you are one of those who may be allergic to Aspirin.
There are several reasons for this. For one thing, Tylenol (acetaminophen) is not an anti-inflammatory agent, although it is an effective non-prescription pain reliever. Aspirin, however, is both a pain reliever and an anti-inflammatory. There may be some circumstances in which Aspirin may be a better choice than the Tylenol. Say you have an infected tooth while you're way out in the boondocks, and it's killing you. Both Tylenol and Aspirin will help relieve the pain, but Aspirin will reduce both the pain and the inflammation.
Another point which many people may not be aware of --- If you are taking Tylenol for pain relief and find that you are not getting as much relief as needed, try taking one Aspirin tablet with your next dose of Tylenol. Aspirin has the chemical effect of significantly increasing the analgesic effect of both acetaminophen and ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin). And I don't believe there are any negative drug interaction problems, as long as you follow the label instructions and don't overdose yourself.
I was told of this years ago by an Osteopathic Physician back in Iowa, when I was recovering from a back injury after being bucked off a horse. He had me on Tylenol with Codeine for quite a while due to recurrent severe back pain. But after a while, he took me off that, told me to just take the plain Tylenol. Well, the plain Tylenol alone wasn't giving me enough relief, so I complained to the good doctor. He told me "no more Codeine for you, young man". But he did suggest that I take an Aspirin with the Tylenol, said it'd give me more relief and he was absolutely correct. It worked surprisingly well to keep my pain bearable so I could at least get some sleep.
Also, Aspirin works much better than Tylenol, for some people, in reducing fevers.
If you look up "Aspirin" in the PDR (Physicians' Desk Reference) or in one of the other good reference books relating to drugs (I picked up a copy of The Pill Book, 11th Edition a while back) you'll find statements such as ... "Aspirin may be the closest thing we have to a wonder drug. Aspirin is the standard against which all other drugs are measured for relieving pain and reducing inflammation". Tylenol and Advil are also real good, of course, within their limitations. And certainly for people who can't tolerate Aspirin. Much safer for small children than Aspirin, too.
BTW, another really good reference book that I would recommend is Ask Your Pharmacist by Lisa M. Chavis, R.Ph. Both the above-cited books are available in paperback and are well worth the modest investment.
-- Reckless Dan