![\"Hand](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/0_Hand-containing-medication-with-glass-of-water.jpg\")
<\/p>\nIbuprofen is available without prescription across the UK<\/p>\n
Most people have taken ibuprofen at some point(Image: Peter Cade via Getty Images)<\/p>\n
You’ve likely reached for ibuprofen at some point before now, while feeling under the weather<\/a>. And while most adults and teenagers<\/a> aged 17 and over can use this medication without issue, certain individuals may need to think twice.<\/p>\n The painkiller is available in various forms, from tablets and capsules to liquid and granules. In advice published on its website, the NHS<\/a> outlines who ought to avoid ibuprofen and highlights possible side effects, some of which may come as a surprise. For example, the NHS cautions against taking ibuprofen by mouth or applying it topically if you’ve ever had an allergic response or experienced symptoms including wheezing, a runny nose or skin irritation following the use of aspirin<\/a>, ibuprofen or other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as naproxen.<\/p>\n The health<\/a> service also recommends expectant mothers stay away from this drug. Additionally, individuals of a certain age, or those born after a specific date, may be unaware that taking ibuprofen increases their susceptibility to stomach ulcers.<\/p>\n NHS guidance explains: “If you’re over 65, ibuprofen can make you more likely to get stomach ulcers. Your doctor will prescribe you a medicine<\/a> to protect your stomach if you’re taking ibuprofen for a long-term condition.”<\/p>\n Those wanting to confirm whether ibuprofen is appropriate for them should tell their GP if they:<\/p>\n have ever experienced stomach bleeding or a perforation in your stomach due to an NSAIDsuffer from severe heart failure, severe kidney failure or severe liver failurehave had more than one instance of a stomach perforation, stomach bleeding or a stomach ulcerhave a health condition that increases your risk of bleedinghave uncontrolled high blood pressure<\/a>are pregnant or trying to conceivehave heart disease or mild to moderate heart failure, or if you’ve previously had a strokehave kidney or liver issuessuffer from asthma, hay fever<\/a> or allergieshave Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitishave chickenpox \u2013 as taking ibuprofen can heighten the risk of certain infections and skin reactions<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ibuprofen is available without prescription across the UK Most people have taken ibuprofen at some point(Image: Peter Cade…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":483802,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[34858,64,63,137,490,514,3285,3287,3069],"class_list":{"0":"post-483801","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-medication","8":"tag-aspirin","9":"tag-au","10":"tag-australia","11":"tag-health","12":"tag-medication","13":"tag-mental-health","14":"tag-nhs","15":"tag-prescriptions","16":"tag-teenagers"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/483801","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=483801"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/483801\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/483802"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=483801"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=483801"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=483801"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}