Hen Cooked in NyQuil? Assist Children Steer Away from Social Media ‘Drugs Challenges’

MONDAY, Sept. 19, 2022 (HealthDay Information) — Misusing over-the-counter medications can have harmful penalties, however latest social media tendencies encouraging this might be downright lethal for gullible teenagers, the U.S. Meals and Drug Administration warned Thursday.

One regarding development has been a problem that inspired folks to cook dinner rooster in NyQuil or different over-the-counter cough and chilly medicines. It’s not appetizing, in fact, and it may be very unsafe, the FDA warned.

Boiling the medicine could make it extra concentrated and alter its properties. Even when the individual cooking the rooster wasn’t planning to eat the poultry, respiratory within the vapors from the cooked medication might trigger excessive ranges of medication to enter the individual’s physique and may also set off lung injury, the company stated.

“Put merely: Somebody might take a dangerously excessive quantity of the cough and chilly medication with out even realizing it,” the FDA stated in its warning.

The FDA additionally famous an earlier TikTok problem that inspired folks to take giant doses of diphenhydramine, an allergy medicine generally bought below the identify Benadryl. The suggestion was that it might induce hallucinations.

As an alternative, teenagers making an attempt the problem ended up within the emergency room and a few even died, the FDA stated.

These social media video challenges are sometimes geared toward adolescents, so dad and mom may help defend their youngsters by locking up any medicines — over-the-counter or prescription — to forestall an unintended overdose.

Dad and mom can even discuss with their youngsters concerning the risks of misusing medication and the way social media tendencies can result in actual, generally irreversible, injury. It will likely be essential to let youngsters know that not simply prescribed drugs, but in addition over-the-counter medicines, could cause overdoses.

Dad and mom who imagine their teen has taken an excessive amount of medicine and is hallucinating, can’t be woke up, has had or is having a seizure, has hassle respiratory, has collapsed or is exhibiting different indicators of drug misuse, ought to name 911. They’ll additionally contact poison management at 1-800-222-1222.

Report any opposed occasions involving medicines to the FDA’s MedWatch Safety Information and Adverse Event Reporting Program. Opposed occasions will also be reported on-line or by mail. To mail or fax it, name 1-800-332-1088 to request a reporting kind despatched to you within the mail, then full and return to the handle on the shape or submit it by fax to 1-800-FDA-0178.

The U.S. Nationwide Heart for Well being Statistics has extra on drug overdose and teens.

SOURCE: U.S. Meals and Drug Administration, information launch, Sept. 15, 2022