To think paracetamol overdose is just too easy sometimes

[Soubriquet]

Asked Dh to pick me up some decongestants today as I have a terrible head cold

He gave me some paracetamol before he went out in the mean time

He brought home some sudafed and luckily handed me the box instead of the pills themselves with a drink

Just as I was about to open the box, I quickly spotted one of the added ingredients was paracetamol which meant I couldn't take the pills until now which is 4 hours after my initial dose of paracetamol

Dh didn't notice it at all

Now I know common sense would say to read the box carefully to make sure you know exactly what was in it but hands up honestly who does that? I do because I'm paranoid but I know many who don't.

So AIBU to think that paracetamol overdose is too easy sometimes with it being added to a lot of medications

Sometimes yes. But as I said earlier, from working in a toxicology department overdosing on paracetamol is not as easy as most people seem to think.

Thanks Bill

Correct if I'm wrong here then, but a healthy-ish adult without other complications would need to take (based on the 75mg/kg figure) 8 to 16 tablets in one go, or, several boxes over the course of several days.

I struggle to believe that many people would take that much medication without at least thinking "hang on a minute, I'm taking a fuck-tonne of these I wonder how many I should actually be taking"

Hence I'm asking the medical profession do such people actually show up regularly at A and E? And out of the ones that did show up, who had the least tablets?

I once had terrible toothache and took lots of painkillers - I thought I'd risk it just to try and get over the pain. It wasn't a huge amount more than necessary.

I threw up a lot and felt very sick. So certainly for me it didn't take much to make me ill and I don't think I'd have died because my body got rid of it all.

Alcohol is a factor. Someone who drinks on a regular basis (and it doesn't have to be large amounts) may well have reduced liver function without being aware of it. That is why current advice is to have alcohol free days.
When I was a nurse I saw hundreds of paracetamol ODs, including one lady who was told she had irreversible liver damage and was given a year or so to live. Unfortunately she had taken the overdose as a gesture to get back at her boyfriend and didn't really want to die at all. Thats always stayed with me and as a result I always stick to the correct dose.
As for milder cases of flu of course you can get a milder case. I had flu when my kids were little and I had to take paracetamol, drink fluids and get the hell on with looking after them because there was no one else around. Much as I would have loved to lay in bed and been looked after myself it wasn't an option.

I think people need to be cautious when saying "how much would kill you?" type questions. There are likely to be vulnerable, mentally unwell people on here and this sorts of discussions are dangerous and triggering.

If you're really poorly with flu or dreadful toothache it would be pretty easy to take 8 a day over a week or so and an extra dose if you're not taking careful note ( I write my doses down with the times.) If you do that plus take Lemsips or Night Nurse because you haven't read the label you can see how people get into trouble.

I always read everything!

Dame, by the end of the week you'd be on your fourth box of tablets. Surely that would flag as "wow that's quite a few empty boxes" even without the lemsip etc.?

Have you ever had proper flu where it lasts for 2 weeks and you live for every time you can take your next lot of tablets? Yes it's a lot but you can soon whip through them.

Dame, I'm not saying you can't get through them I'm suggesting nor many people get through that many without considering how many they can take.

In your example, to know when you can have your next dose, you'd have to have read the dosage.

You'd also more than likely have to have made multiple trips to the shops (or sent somebody else to the shop, so a second pair of eyes) and in all that time nobody everybody remains oblivious to the dosage being exceeded?

It's not hard to stock pile if that's what you want. I could start at Boots then go to a local chemist, wilkos, waitrose, Tesco,Asda all within 10 mins.

It's written very clearly on the box. Here is a picture of Lemsip. It's written TWICE just on the front.

This is slightly off topic, but I don't want to start another thread.

How dangerous can a codeine addiction be? If someone was taking 6 tablets a day for over a year and counting what is most likely to happen to the body?

Might be a silly question.

Its on the front of the Sudafed boxes, its on the back, its in the leaflet. Its more than likely on your paracetmol box too.

The only way you'd miss it really is if you purposely never read anything about the pills you were about to take. YABVU

there is a Sudafed decongestant without paracetmol if you want to take both.

Which is pretty much what I told dh, WeAll, after he had taken a combination of cold and flu tablets and paracetamol, that added up to more than twice the recommended dose of paracetamol, over 28 hours.

He thought I was being stupid to worry and stupid to ring NHS Direct about it - I don't think I was, even though hindsight proved him right. He had taken less than the lethal dose over 28 hours rather than 24 - but that was more by luck than judgement.

I'd like to think he listened to what I said at the time, and will read the ingredients of any medications he takes, in the future. Given that he has a history of not listening, I am not 100% sure, though...

Not silly, U2. But it's hard to say, because there isn't just one strength of codeine. 6x8mg tablets (over the counter strength) = 48mg. However, you could be talking about 6x60mg tablets, which would be 360mg...huge difference.

The main side effects are respiratory depression, sedation, dizziness, constipation, shortness of breath, nausea and vomiting. However, it can cause bradycardia (slow heart rate), seizures, confusion and shallow breathing, as well as addiction.

It's metabolised by the liver, so high doses will strain the liver, particularly if you are also straining it in other ways, such as having a high alcohol intake.

But as I say, '6 tablets per day' for one person could be 48mg, which could be less than '1 tablet per day' for someone who takes a 60mg tablet.

Paracetamol is dangerous and should be treated with respect.

Bill with all due respect, it's utterly dangerous to be stating so emphatically that it's very difficult to OD on paracetamol. It varies enormously from patient to patient. An underweight patient can overdose on even just 4g per day. A normal weight patient on not a great deal more. It's a really bad idea to convey professional knowledge that overdosing on paracetamol hardly ever happens by accident. That's just not true.

I am medical and have worked on a liver unit. I have seen a frightening number of accidental paracetamol overdoses, some survive, some are transplanted and some die. It is an agonising and horrific way to die and so very sad, whether accidental or not.

Please, treat paracetamol with respect. Read the labels. Don't ever take more than the recommended dose. If you accidentally do, contact medical services, even if you feel fine and its 24 hours later. You would feel fine then, less so at 48 and 72 hours, by which time it's too late and you're beyond help.

The lack of knowledge on this thread is terrifying. Paracetamol is great pain relief and it's very safe in the correct doses. Just be careful.

u2
Depends. Does the doc know the person is on them?
Is there a reason?
Like i said i've been on high strength para/codeine for 10 years and i'm fine ( i have health problems so a reason to be on them)

lougle i take coedine that's 30mg. I can have 8 in a day, so if they are 60 then should only be taking 4 a day.

I always read the label, sorry. If it's a medicine I haven't taken before I read the information leaflet inside too. I take a lot of other medications regularly so like to double check side effects and interactions.

As a coder in the NHS, I agree with Bill. Very hard to overdose, I code intentional ods all the time. I also have personal experience of this.

This is not medical advice!!

Kali no, the dr doesn't know she is on them.

It's a family member, she gets them OTC and rotates the chemist so not to get caught.

She says she takes 6 a day but could be more. When she is 'due' to take one she feels sick, gets body aches and panics like crazy. I have tried to get her to see her GP for help but she refuses.

She is also obese, no other health concerns that we know about.

Thank you Lougle as well.

U2 are you in the uk?

This thread should be pulled. It is not hard to OD. The opinions stated on here are dangerous.

Dignity I agree.