The key difference between Midol and Tylenol is that the main ingredient in Midol can vary depending on the drug type, whereas the main ingredient in Tylenol is paracetamol.
Midol and Tylenol are two types of pain-relieving drugs. We use these two drugs to relieve different types of pain.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Midol
3. What is Tylenol
4. Side by Side Comparison – Midol vs Tylenol in Tabular Form
5. Summary
What is Midol?
Midol id a drug brand that is helpful in relieving the pain of menstrual cramping and other associated effects such as premenstrual syndrome and menstruation. There are various different formulations available for this drug type. In other words, Midol drugs have various compositions depending on the class of the drug. The distributor of this drug is Bayer.
Originally, this drug was sold in 1911 as a remedy for headache and toothache. At that time, this drug was considered a safe medication because it does not contain any narcotic components that were typical of drugs at that time period. This drug was also promoted as a cure for hiccups because of its ability to control spasms. Furthermore, it was used as a remedy for menstrual cramps and bloating. There are different classes of Midol drug as follows:
- Midol complete – this drug contains acetaminophen (about 500 mg), caffeine (about 60 mg) and pyrilamine maleate (about 15 mg). among these ingredients, acetaminophen is the pain reliever, caffeine is a stimulant and pyrilamine maleate is an antihistamine component.
- Extended relief Midol – this drug contains naproxen sodium (about 220 mg) as the NSAID, pain reliever and as a fever reducer.
- “Teen” formulation of Midol – this drug contains acetaminophen (about 500 mg) as the pain reliever, pamabrom (about 25 mg) as the diuretic component.
- Liquid gel formulation of Midol – this drug contains ibuprofen (about 200 mg) as the NSAID and pain reliever.
- “PM” formulation of Midol contains acetaminophen (about 500 mg) as the pain reliever and diphenhydramine citrate (about 38 mg) as the sedative antihistamine.
However, there are some concerns regarding the Midol drug formulations because these are NSAIDs that can increase the risk of bleeding, kidney damage. They can cause other negative effects on the cardiovascular system as well.
What is Tylenol?
Tylenol is a brand of drugs containing paracetamol as the major active ingredient. This drug class is useful for relieving pain, reducing fever, and relieving some symptoms of allergy reactions, cold, cough, headache and influenza. Paracetamol, the active ingredient of this drug, is an analgesic and antipyretic compound. The owner of this brand name is McNeil Consumer Healthcare (it is a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson). This is an over-the-counter analgesic drug.
Figure 01: Chemical Structure of Paracetamol
There can be formulations of Tylenol with other ingredients such as codeine, co-codamol, dextromethorphan, caffeine, and phenylephrine. More importantly, there are different approaches to advertising Tylenol. For example, the big focus is “getting back to normal”. Another common commercial focuses on “feel better, Tylenol”.
What is the Difference Between Midol and Tylenol?
Midol and Tylenol are types of pain-relieving drugs. The key difference between Midol and Tylenol is that the key ingredient in Midol can vary depending on the drug type, whereas the key ingredient in Tylenol is paracetamol.
The following infographic summarizes the differences between Midol and Tylenol in tabular form.
Summary – Midol vs Tylenol
Midol and Tylenol are drug brands that are available over the counter. The key difference between Midol and Tylenol is that the key ingredient in Midol can vary depending on the drug type, whereas the key ingredient in Tylenol is paracetamol.
Reference:
1. “Tylenol Oral: Uses, Side Effects, Interactions, Pictures, Warnings & Dosing”. Webmd, Available here.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Paracetamol-skeleta” By Benjah-bmm27 – Own work (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia