Former Vioxx patients are confused because conventional medicine doesn't offer natural health options

Of course, there are all sorts of options for treating arthritis pain, and every one of them is safer than using prescription drugs. Just off the top of my head, I can name several that reduce or outright eliminate arthritis pain: phototherapy (laser treatments), astaxanthin (a potent antioxidant), cherry extract, various Chinese herbs, consuming extra water, avoiding all milk and dairy products, exposure to natural sunlight, and physical therapy (joint mobility and strength training).

Yet some patients just want their drugs. "Give me my Vioxx!" Some people aren't willing to change anything or put forth any effort beyond popping a pill. Good health takes effort, folks. There is no magic pill solution. And finally, we're learning the truth about that in the United States today. Big Pharma is the modern version of Big Tobacco: use their products long enough, and they will probably kill you.

• Since the drug's recall forced her to give it up, she says the aches and stiffness that Vioxx vanquished have returned some days.
• Lori Rubinstein, who has fibromyalgia, was taking Vioxx when Merck pulled it.
• The pain reminds her of the time before she began taking Vioxx five years ago, when some mornings her body hurt so badly that her husband helped her dress.
• Sales of the drug were halted worldwide on Sept. 30, after a study showed it doubled the risk of heart attack and stroke.
• Vioxx "was the best pain drug I had been on in 27 years," says the 47-year-old Manhattan resident, who has fibromyalgia, a chronic condition that causes pain in muscles and joints.
• Weeks after Vioxx's recall, three other popular painkillers --- Bextra, Celebrex and Aleve --- also were linked to cardiovascular concerns, although less persuasively in the view of some medical experts.
• After the Vioxx studies, a warning went on Bextra's label, saying those who have had heart surgery should use the drug with caution, if at all.
• Then the National Cancer Institute halted two studies using Celebrex, saying the drug appears to increase the risk of heart problems, although earlier studies contradict those findings.
• Some patients and doctors say that, as far as they're concerned, the drugs' benefits are established.
• With Vioxx's withdrawal, the conflicting evidence on Celebrex and the other pain medications still on the market has added to patients' and doctors' frustration.
• "I'm so confused, I don't know what I'm doing," says Bob Jacques, 51, who has suffered for two decades from a condition that combines the flaky skin of psoriasis with the joint inflammation and pain of arthritis.
• They showed an elevated risk for heart problems among those taking high doses of the drug compared with those taking a placebo.