How Do Pain Relievers Work? - George Zaidan

View full lesson: ed.ted.com/lessons/how-do-pain...
Some people take aspirin or ibuprofen to treat everyday aches and pains, but how exactly do the different classes of pain relievers work? Learn about the basic physiology of how humans experience pain, and the mechanics of the medicines we've invented to block or circumvent that discomfort.
Lesson by George Zaidan, animated by Augenblick Studios.

[@johndavid5312]

gets foot stuck in bear trap carries on walking what a legend

[@LunaProtogen]

john david Carries on to permanently damage bone tissue

[@Peppapig-th7fr]

1 min of silence

[@allanwells8756]

Two first names what a legend

[@SL-pg4dh]

Rip

[@flashback0180]

That's just diabetes

[@jw8628]

Remember there's no Nociceptors in your brain. That's why you don't feel you're brain cells dying while you watch reality shows.

[@stress.mp455]

This has been 3 weeks ago

[@rabbithawk256]

+Awesome EpicGamer Over 2 years ago.

[@guitarandrums]

There are*. Your*.

[@jw8628]

guitarandrums lol thanks

[@Jordan_Dossou]

omg. im soo glad i dont have nociceptor s in

[@soularpower]

currently 4am, took one, 200mg ibuprofen for a headache. got curious and searched up on how painkillers even work. was not dissapointed, 10/10.

[@bloo14738]

this is 2 years later but i hope you are feeling all better

[@fastestspring8491]

Same. I jus woke from a nap. Took half of an 8 n got curious. I forgot to eat btw lolll

[@regala_engaira4853]

I was having a toothache. Also took 200mg Ibuprofen, then suddenly got curious how these things work wonder.

[@elchapooo6668]

Same buddy 😂

[@terranceblakely1398]

Nothing is worse than a bad toothache..

[@xxxBradTxxx]

+Sir Poet try brain surgery

[@xxxBradTxxx]

***** I had brain surgery for epilepsy. My surgeon had to cut thru muscle and saw thru my skull to get to my brain. The regrowth of the muscles and re-fusing of the skull was the painful part.

[@STROONZONY]

+terrance b. try having cervical spinal fusion and the pain drip comes out overnite causing you to fall out of the hospital bed and black out from the agony, which feels like someone has lodged an axe in the back of your neck. You know you have suffered maximum pain when it causes blackout. Catching on fire was another major agony, which feels like someone is smashing you with a bunch of hammers.

[@DEADLY_HUMAN]

get kicked on balls

[@ayzaakrocky5325]

ever had otitis externa? ..

[@disklosr]

0:40 that animation was so innocent and dumb I couldn't stop laughing at it

[@Mr.Coldfire421]

disklosr You have to give thanks to your nervous system, if you don't have it you are the same with the animation you laugh at.

[@disklosr]

Spongebob Squarepants Without me, my nervous system wouldn't exist. So he's the one to thank me.

[@blue3374]

+disklosr I think it's more an interdependent system. Without your brain, you wouldn't be here and vice versa

[@disklosr]

Lily Brown I find it amazing that the brain's purpose is to control the body and all it's organs and make sure they stay alive, but instead just gives total control to its owner and step back.

[@blue3374]

disklosr Eh, I think that you aren't really the one who is constantly monitoring and messaging signals to your organs 24/7. But I'm not a doctor, so I'm not going to go around saying either of us is right or wrong. I'll just stick to 'opinions.'

[@willschannel_]

I like this guy's animation.

[@Deadlyaztec27]

Über It makes me feel high.

[@zac7863]

It reminds me of those weird drawings on Instagram, like the one where someone is throwing a baby

[@chavalomiguel5587]

George Zaidawn

[@big.scream]

Did you survived couid ??

[@dinosharttt]

Couid?

[@Fr4NCHILE]

Is anyone feeling pain at the moment? Like that is the reason why you found this video? I got a twisted ankle :( while practicing parkour yesterday :/

[@Nuhuhhehehe]

+Francisco Carmona well yes

[@Fr4NCHILE]

+Stephen Boque dude hahaha. I twisted my ankle just a few hour ago after New Years 😭 again :/

[@flarm]

+Francisco Carmona what kind of shoes are u wearing? u wanna get something low to the ground... i would reccommend indoor soccer shoes

[@MrJOKELA]

+Francisco Carmona Yeah :( I removed my wisdom tooth and took a pain a killer, it instantly killed the pain. So I wanted to find out how painkillers work :)

[@emummyx]

Tonsillitis 😞

[@checkoutmypageidappreciate8555]

who else cringed when the dude pricked his finger

[@ytalwaystech1196]

Me also

[@iconywinter8378]

Same😰😵

[@XavierMathewsEntertainment]

Made me jump.

[@melisa-jn9de]

I don't get it

[@stupidsteroids]

same

[@MrShelmo]

my dad has tried to explain this to me a while back but he just went into too much detail and i never really understood it. these animations make it so much easier to comprehend. thanks!

[@KaydenF901]

Nature made pain to tell Man: "Hey, don't do that!" Man made painkillers to tell Nature: "Oh, believe me, I CAN do that."

[@tracerhax]

*Underrated comment**

[@johnstevens1020]

LMAO

[@gregoryfenn1462]

To be fair, we only use mild painkillers like off-the-shelf paracetamol to stop pain that we can’t help, like headaches or back pain or period pain. It isn’t about letting us actively try to harm ourselves and not suffer for it. The damage has already been done in the past: we’re just minimising they punishment for it.

[@juveriafatima4678]

who's in loss..?

[@cas0276]

A lot of people suffer from chronic pains so even when they know exactly what's wrong because of a doctor telling them the pain will almost never go away and there is nothing they can do to help it Most people who take hard painkillers are people who suffer from chronic disease or have hurt a part of there body really badly and can only sit and wait for the pain to get better

[@corekensington8733]

This animation is fantastic as it is simple enough for anyone to understand what happens regardless of age or educations level. Well done again!

[@sawifythis]

I learned more in 4 minutes than I did in 3 weeks of biology.

[@issavibez394]

School is scam

[@sotinsim7113]

Facts

[@Centralcee170]

@@sotinsim7113y did u reply 10 years later 😂

[@Sketchy.editz123]

⁠​⁠​⁠@Centralcee170why did you reply 11 years later😂

[@imhellag]

that brain driving the car is one of the best things ive seen all day

[@blaizeafyah4293]

Really appreciated this, all knowledge should be this simple and comprehensive

[@RinaNewhouse]

This is great! I am making a brochure about ibuprofen for my chemistry class, and I had to write one column on its mechanism. At first, I was reading articles that just made me want to give up. Then, I realized that Ted-Ed is here for a reason, so I clicked on this video!!!! This helped me SO much better than the near-impossible-to-comprehend articles which explain the exact same concept! I'm nearly done with my brochure and I feel pretty proud of it!!! Let's see if my grade thinks the same... 😉😉😉

[@lucydolphin28]

How did you do??

[@RinaNewhouse]

I got an A+! :D

[@thiliphoman4154]

😃😀😄😅

[@1dayfree]

Brainwashed 😢

[@erikbedard713]

I'm a grown man but when I stub my toe on a wall corner I curl up in the fetal position for 5 mins due to the pain.

[@MyInventiveUserName]

1. Cox-1 and Cox-2 are always present in the body but they only work when damaged cells release arachidonic acid. 2. Yes, aspirin irreversibly blocks the enzymes that are already present in the body so new enzymes that are synthesized can react with arachidonic acid and cause pain. I hope that helps :)

[@IsisRenee1]

That explanation answered my follow up question. Thanks!

[@prakashminj8455]

No pain, no gain.

[@obliviondotdot9749]

Prakash Minj lol

[@hezronzimba763]

what

[@SirAzi01]

Pancreatitis, much pain no gain

[@packleader1215]

Prakash Minj Total life lesson

[@GlowingPie]

I wanted to write the same😁

[@aryaparekh1854]

Pain protects you from the world around you, and from yourself. Why did it hit me emotionally 🙂

[@Deesofetch]

I have a pharmacology exam in 3 days. This was very helpful thank you !

[@kingpaid995]

Deesofetch how did it to?

[@packleader1215]

Deesofetch How did it go?

[@qeawte2243]

it's been 2 years 😂 how did it go?

[@DarkFrostX5]

She failed fam.

[@donnydont]

„Exam in 3 days, better start learning on KZbin!“

[@MrTrees]

Fell on my shoulder and haven’t been able to lift it cause it hurts so much. Had some ibuprofen and it worked so much it interested me. Here I am. Now I know how pain works and how these magic science pills work. So cool man...

[@OMA2k]

If pain is meant as a warning system to protect ourselves and so we take care of the problems in our body, then how come women suffer pain (sometimes even great pain) when performing a perfectly normal bodily function such as menstruation? What kind of "warning" is that?

[@hsbswjwsb]

Yeah exactly

[@happydays6777]

It just means they have cramps

[@darksidecola4529]

same reason getting kicked in the balls hurts

[@Deadlyaztec27]

wolf pack winter It's precisely the same reason.

[@Kabeliel]

Good point. I Think the body has no conscious by itself. Every part of your body is dependable from the others and in this case menstruation is a special story of how body and cells work.

[@TheWolverine1984]

Awesome presentation , thank you !

[@ranpo677]

Thanks for explaining in plain english and with nice visuals.

[@chiroyakizn488]

Simple , understandable and deliver the idea perfectly 👏👏👏👏💜💜 outstanding work thank you so much ❤

[@MrCapi55]

At last, I know why do I sleep very well when having painkillers .Thank you ,George Zaidand.

[@megamagicstars2]

THIS IS INCREDIBLE AND SO SIMPLY PUT!! THANK YOU!!! :D

[@mtktkt3773]

thank u so much for this video. the animation was so easy to understand. very well done!

[@allangozun870]

I love this animation! very simple and easy to understand. Good job!

[@M.Melkonyan]

Animations are perfect, huge thanks from Armenia

[@SheCriesRed]

This helped me understand my condition of fibromyalgia a little better. Of how it works more or less.

[@fodorovic]

Great explanation & visualisation

[@i.antagonist]

Anyone else decided to search how pain relievers work, right after taking pain relievers?

[@zacharygrossman8316]

Who is watching this after taking a pain reliver?

[@chazjacob2512]

Me!

[@SuperFa6ooma]

It's great how a 4 minutes video summarised a lesson of 60 minutes.. Thank you =).

[@spaghettidogpal]

I have to thank you so much for the creation

[@fabiocerqueira5097]

Adorei a explicação!

[@TheBolinhadigudi]

"All pain comes from the desire of not wanting to feel it" Renato Russo

[@pratheesh2105]

thank you for this reminder

[@chrisaxis5043]

The golden quote

[@azmiihsan2768]

Thank you for the explanation

[@sayo1968]

words of thank are not even enough to thank you !!

[@gringobingo471]

"Through pain i gain strenght"

[@lozzylols]

I find if I go into a form of meditation and concentrate on the pain and the area it is in, I can reduce the pain. It's hard to explain but I try to imagine the pain, like the images in this video, and imagine calming them down and letting them float away, and it does seem to ease the pain yo some degree! Also I am often in pain as I have Fibromyalgia!

[@jaylyn1471]

You can one hundred percent control pain if you know it's all just in your head.

[@Rick_Cleland]

@@jaylyn1471 Not if one of your arms is chopped off.

[@aljpelayo2120]

Well explained. Thank you

[@TheBlaze4000]

i love videos like this, it makes me realize our human bodies are so awsome!!!

[@diegobelaunde4965]

Here because I went to a metal concert last night and I head banged my heart out, so now my neck is sore lol No regrets tho🤘🏽🤘🏽

[@wsigned1323]

That guy's going to keep walking with that bear trap clamped to his leg and I don't think there's anything we can do about it!

[@269kd]

Serves him right

[@AlainCarAudioManiac]

awesome video, thank you very much

[@duongtran9655]

Thanks so much for sharing ! Have a good night , good health and safety holidays ! 🤙

[@laurenfierro7863]

BRUV I just got that time of month pain on a whole other level

[@liamwelsh5565]

One thing that always was a mystery to me is when you have a minor injury such as a cut or scrape, you don't feel it until you consciously know you did it or physically looked at it. It has briefly covered at the end but not explained. Do we know why this happens?

[@AZ-il8uc]

I'm no scientist. But the brain is a very powerful thing. Ignorance is bliss. And if you don't know, you usually carry on in the same perceived state you were in pre injury. Granted it's a superficial injury. Kinda like with placebo effects. You tell someone it's going to work, they expect it to, so now their brain is geared towards "this thing is doing what they said it'll do"

[@spartan326gmz4]

Thanks for the lesson

[@CGJournalist]

Thank you for this very interesting video. I belive I now have a better understanding of how pain works.

[@mendher3219]

I was looking for 3:21 Thanks dude, I know this but just need a confirmation

[@theloserkid]

Does it work to die without feeling pain

[@justjuli3t]

Can you explain why Ibuprofen works a lot better for a toothache than a stronger painkiller like oxycodone? I have a throbbing toothache and I regularly take oxycodone for another medical problem so I took 1 for my toothache and it did nothing so then I had 2 ibuprofen and the pain went away 20mins later.

[@babypluto08]

Thanks for helping me. I got 5 teeth extracted and just downed 2 ibuprofen instead of the narcotics and I feel sooooo much better

[@Hellopeople4]

For Toothache best medicine is Clove oil , get from Indian grocerry store it cost you around $3 and dip qtips into it and hold that qtips affected teeth . You will see how instantly help . For best result 3 times btush your teeth a day with different toothpaste mean take one Colgate other Ayurvedic ( Dabur toothpaste ) and Sensodine . Then use clove oil . You will be amazed

[@mohammedal-hammadi5085]

Thank you so much, it's such a great video

[@skoopysallu]

Very very informative and excellently animated video......... Animations make knowledge more attractive.... I just love to watch Ted videos again and again........

[@davidndiulor8428]

If you are normal... Aw shit

[@srayanguhathakurta4488]

As a wise man once said, "Feel PAIN, Accept PAIN and Know PAIN...Those who do not know PAIN will never understand true peace." Guess he had a point.

[@ingredientIOS]

We more She blesses She pet my beard Malubululllll

[@nibo_am1315]

no thanks *takes pain killer*

[@urveshchilhate7552]

By Pain

[@WildlifeSampler]

PEINNN!! but no thanks, I would stick to painkillers

[@Monicazrapz]

i was always so interested and confused about this!!

[@kreshnikgjuraj9603]

Thanks for the very informative video!!

[@alenzhang4854]

0:40 apparently that person is also deaf

[@fluffypurplepop4629]

Thanks for this video I was wondering how the medication knows where the pain is so it can fix it. Turns out it doesn’t and goes all around the body which is interesting.

[@jaquelinecorvera5269]

This is such an entertaining and educative video. I effin love it.

[@jaypee9575]

It effin loves you too

[@chimneyshouse9701]

loxxxèxbxxushsbshhxhxhhxhnnnznbzbbzbsbsbbsbsbsbbsbsbsbsbbsbsnsnsnn a

[@MostPowerfulPMofIndia]

Wow such a deep research

[@julianab1388]

Who else cringed at about 1:23?

[@ruthazodo8048]

Me toooo

[@Thetruthiscosmic]

Wuss.

[@Naturalist-eh6sx]

Ikr

[@rha4690]

Juliana B kinda

[@endie1529]

Juliana B who stabs a dam need into their finger

[@Lieveo]

I think this Talk could have had quite a bit more information

[@333lunar]

Great video!! Thank you

[@IvoriWhite]

Wow great video. Was so easy to understand

[@ayesp6188]

This reminds me of when I was like 10 and I crushed a bunch of chalky ibuprofen, lined it up with the home phone and snorted it with a straw.

[@kristve6798]

excuse me, *what*

[@packleader1215]

Anybody else here pacing before bed, waiting for it to kick in?

[@maaroufchebbo2691]

Im a sever hemophiliac so km in alot of pain almost all the time but i have found out that music and talking with peanut while just keeping on a good mood and attitude eliminates the pain for the most part its really interesting how the human body works

[@NothingTheGreat]

Talking with peanut?

[@MountainLion96]

Beautiful animation, very interesting and informative video

[@ibelieveingaming3562]

If we can understand pain, we can build artificial nociceptors which receive input from a simulated body, essentially emulating nervous stimulation in the simulated world.

[@nirvana10393]

What a sad creation that would be.

[@branhoff]

Is there some advantage to ibuprofen’s approach of not permanently deactivating the enzyme as opposed to aspirin?

[@lozzylols]

I was curious about this as a aspirin wears off too doesn't it!

[@theheini5329]

@@lozzylols I think that just means the aspirin stays in the system and blocks COX1 and COX2 for a longer time than it does in Ibuprofen.

[@theunknown002]

thank you so much :D i always wondered about that

[@EdgarsChannel]

Thank you for the info

[@someasianweeb1660]

Him: let's say your at the beach and you get sand in your eyes, how do you know it's there? Me: because you told us there was sand in out eyes.

[@fredrikkarner4115]

hahaha

[@peterdavids31]

XD

[@AxeAR]

:v

[@gentlemanjones8469]

Learn to type properly.

[@theabirde]

@@gentlemanjones8469 *Please learn how to type properly.

[@kyo803]

When he started pushing his finger to the needle i screamed so loud...

[@inactivebfa.]

Thanks. That was informative

[@cosmicanu]

Placed crown on my tooth ..next day chopped off half of my nail by a sickle and deep cut in finger. Took pain killer and was curious to know how they work. This was such an amazing video.

[@perplexedmoth]

So if aspirin permanently blocks COX-n, like for how long?

[@michellewarner2634]

5 - 7 days

[@AxeAR]

@@michellewarner2634 Well, not so _permanently_ after all

[@dirtywash4890]

If you take enough tylenol you wont feel pain...ever again

[@amydocherty7317]

Boy Graffity I’m not certain AT ALL and am taking a wild guess right now but I’m assuming the Cox-n enzymes are replenished

[@cutureanantonio6723]

Ibuprofen is better

[@ScornMuffins]

As useful as pain is it would be nice to be able to stop it on cue in the event of a false alarm or such a time when damage cannot be prevented. Like how you can hold your breath up to a point but eventually you'll start breathing automatically again.

[@542Damian]

You can, it's called anger. If it's strong enought it will allow you to ignore pain.

[@Wrongrealities]

Damian Wójcik A person can overcome pain using any emotion, or concentrating on a peaceful place, but the adrenaline we produce when we are in danger, or for some reason need to react (it might be anger, but more often it is fear) is the best way to numb pain naturally... It's either that or PCP, but PCP is not natural and not good.

[@joseph2835]

Its called adrenaline

[@emanueldobrin8005]

Thank you, very interesting video.

[@firewifesadie]

Awesome lesson

[@harikishore2514]

Cox entered the chat. I: lost.

[@randomuserjusthere4930]

“Doktor, turn off my pain inhibitors.”

[@gabriel_kyne]

I love this animation!

[@ShubhamGupta99]

Much love man!

[@morphin4200]

I'm watching this sort of videos just for learning other languages using subtitles in the settings. Try this next time you're bored.

[@dds3524]

I never get bored.

[@codyhitchcock3443]

Wouldn't you choose a video with simpler language?

[@Sohamsta]

I agree that this is very helpful for vocab

[@frempley1]

Why is this video age restricted

[@ethanstyles8730]

Cox-1 and Cox-2 maybe, KZbin’s algorithmic workings are rather strange

[@GangstaCreeper]

I just had an essay assignment on this subject due a few hours ago today This would've been so useful at that time

[@d0ct0rgb]

awesome explications! thumbs up. thank you!

[@eventplanner461]

Okay, now tell me why I felt pain when I watched the animation push their finger into the needle.

[@fishsticks6969]

how does Paracetamol work ? what's the difference between Aspirin and Paracetamol

[@anotsosexysaxman5914]

believe it or not. we don't know for sure. I'm doing an assignment on ibuprofen and paracetamol and I was shocked when I heard it

[@emdadahmed5592]

Paracetamol is an antipyretic(fever reducer) & analgesic(pain reliever). However, aspirin is an NSAID aka Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug. It has 3 uses. In addition to being an antipyretic and analgesic, it also reduces swelling(inflammation). This anti-inflammatory property isn't possessed by paracetamol

[@fishsticks6969]

After some research i found out that Paracetamol slows down the generation of Prostaglandins only in the brain, while Aspirin stops the generation of Prostaglandins throughout the body, this can cause other body organs to stop functioning properly.

[@abhipatel8890]

YO I AM DOING A ASSIGMENT ON IT TOO. Brother hook me up with some information. If you have any reserach can you email me it. I would love it if you could help me out. email is: [e-mail]

[@anotsosexysaxman5914]

Emdad Ahmed that's a theory not actually accepted tho

[@juanclugo4817]

oh great video, thanks!

[@oreogalaxy528]

awesome george!

[@Jiftoo]

1:04 I can't stop laughing

[@rodr439iguez]

👀

[@WordUnheard]

Damn science, you're interesting!

[@asooking]

awesome lesson

[@A1sinceday1-88]

This help me calm down. I have a tooth ache/awaiting surgery. This was mentally relaxing cause I know the drugs are coming.