Caffeine as a diuretic, not the headline ingredient
Midol Complete combines acetaminophen, a pain reliever, with pyrilamine maleate, a diuretic antihistamine, and caffeine, which the drug label itself lists as a diuretic ingredient rather than a stimulant. Each gelcap carries 60 mg, and the standard two-gelcap dose comes to 120 mg, a little more than an 8 oz cup of drip coffee at USDA’s reference strength (95 mg).
The daily maximum adds up fast
The label allows up to six gelcaps in 24 hours, which comes to 360 mg of caffeine, close to the 400 mg daily figure the FDA cites for healthy adults, before counting any coffee, tea or soda taken the same day. Someone treating cramps with Midol across a full day, plus a normal morning coffee, can reach or pass that daily figure without realizing caffeine is part of the medicine.
Compared to other OTC caffeine
At 60 mg a gelcap, Midol’s caffeine sits below Excedrin (65 mg a caplet) and above Anacin (32 mg a tablet), all of which list caffeine for a different stated purpose on the label, whether as a pain reliever aid or, in Midol’s case, a diuretic.
Where it fits against a single dose
A two-gelcap dose, 120 mg, is under the 200 mg single dose EFSA assessed as safe for healthy adults. In pregnancy, where ACOG uses a 200 mg daily ceiling, one dose already uses most of the day’s allowance; check with a doctor before using any OTC medicine for menstrual symptoms during pregnancy.