It's been easing headaches for generations, and now Australian scientists say the humble paracetamol tablet could also be used to prevent a range of diseases.
University of Sydney's professor Michael Davies has been studying whether paracetamol could be used as a protective treatment against disease linked to "free radicals" in the body - which include heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis and some cancers.
"Essentially we have been investigating a new use for an old drug," said Prof Davies who is from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Free Radical Chemistry and Biotechnology.
"... as an early preventative, the results have been very promising."
Prof Davies and fellow researchers have found paracetamol was able to prevent an enzyme (called myeloperoxidase) from producing hypochlorous acid, a free radical.
This highly reactive chemical is part of the body's natural defences against infection but it can cause tissue damage when produced in the wrong place, like the heart, or at excessive levels in the body.
Doctors test for levels of myeloperoxidase and hypochlorous acid as predictors of future heart disease in their patients.
Free radicals are molecules that have unpaired electrons, and their inherent instability drives them to steal electrons from other molecules nearby.
This can lead to disease, as electrons are pinched from other vital molecules in the body such as DNA or from the proteins necessary for tissue strength and chemical processing.
Prof Davies said the initial work was done in model cell cultures using doses of paracetamol in the range typically prescribed for pain relief, and human trials would follow.
The work could see paracetamol transition from a reactive treatment for a sore head to a pro-active and protective treatment.
"The idea would be for doctors to prescribe paracetamol to patients who are in high-risk categories, display early signs of developing or have high myeloperoxidase levels," Prof Davies said.
"... This is an affordable, available pharmaceutical with few side-effects at normal doses that has enormous potential benefit to those at risk of developing heart disease."
It was not without risk though, Prof Davies also said, in a warning that Australians should not move ahead of the science and start self-medicating with the painkiller.
Paracetamol can cause allergic reactions in some people, while excess use can cause damage to vital organs.
A paper published in the Medical Journal of Australia in 2007 noted that paracetamol had surpassed hepatitis, and alcohol, to become the nation's most common cause of liver failure.
Prof Davies' work is to be published in the journal Biochemical Pharmacology.
