Acetaminophen overdoses
Acetaminophen overdoses
Imagine you opened today’s newspaper to find that a death had been linked to stevia use. The mainstream sirens would blare the news: Killer herbal sweetener! Now imagine if stevia was linked to 100 deaths over the course of a year. Congressmen would turn purple with rage that such a dangerous herb had ever been allowed on the market.
Of course, there are no known reports of stevia causing death. But the same can’t be said of acetaminophen, the ubiquitous, over-the-counter painkiller that’s the active ingredient in Tylenol and hundreds of other products. According to the FDA, acetaminophen overdoses in the U.S. number more than 14,000 per year. About 100 of those cases result in death due to liver failure. Every year.
Safe to say, many of these overdoses could be avoided if the public was more aware of the potential dangers of this common drug. And people also need to know that heavy alcohol intake can sharply increase acetaminophen overdose risk. Just think of all the times heavy drinkers have tossed back a few acetaminophen tablets at the end of an evening in hopes of avoiding a hangover. If they’re also taking, say, a cold medication that contains acetaminophen, they could be in for much more than a hangover.
And if they add a few cups of coffee – all the worse.
A new laboratory study from the University of Washington shows that caffeine intake increases the formation of a toxic metabolite of acetaminophen. Granted, the UW results show that it would take quite a bit of coffee to prompt this reaction, but if someone is already on the verge of acetaminophen overdose, a few cups might lead to a tragic end.
The researchers note that some migraine and arthritis treatments combine caffeine with acetaminophen, adding to the risk. Epileptic patients who take certain anticonvulsive drugs are also at increased risk.
You can find more information about acetaminophen dangers (along with the heartbreaking story of a young man who lost his life after treating a sprained wrist with acetaminophen), in the e-Alert “Safety Squandered” (2/23/06), at this link: http://www.hsionline.com/ealerts/ea200602/ea20060223.html
Sources:
“Caffeine Plus Acetaminophen Toxic for Some” Steven Reinberg, The Washington Post, 9/26/07, washingtonpost.com
