A warning on OTC pain killers (Daily Dose Newsletter)

[Guest guest]

Daily Dose

****************************************************

January 14, 2006

****************************************************

The OTHER killer painkillers, Part 1

With Vioxx in the news (and in your Daily Doses) right and left for

its deadly effects, I guess it really shouldn't come as any surprise

that the risks of other common painkillers are coming under

scrutiny.

Such is the case with acetaminophen, known best by the brand name

Tylenol. In the last weeks of last year, this ubiquitous over-the-

counter medicine - the nation's leading pain reliever, in fact - was

found by recent research to be the nation's leading cause of acute

liver failure as well.

According to a recent Associated Press article, research conducted

by scientists from two leading American medical facilities (the

University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and the University

of Washington Medical Center) concludes that NEARLY HALF of all

cases of acute liver failures in 662 patients from 22 liver

transplant centers over a 6-year span were caused by acetaminophen

poisoning.

What's even more disturbing is the upward trend in the incidence of

acetaminophen poisoning this research revealed. In 1998, only 28% of

the study's liver poisonings could be blamed on acetaminophen

- by 2003, that number had ballooned to 51%. More than 7 out of ten

of these victims died as a result. Also remarkable is the fact that

48% of these cases were from UNINTENTIONAL OVERDOSES, while only 44%

were from suicide attempts (OTC painkillers are common approaches to

self-offing)...

That's right: Significantly more people in the study were killed by

accidental overuse of acetaminophen than intentional over-ingestion!

If this trend holds true nationwide, the number of acetaminophen-

related deaths could add up to quite a scary number indeed. In fact,

the FDA itself estimated 2 years ago that 56,000 emergency hospital

visits per year are due to acetaminophen poisoning.

The study's architects also point out (and I concur) that if taken

correctly and not abused, acetaminophen and other OTC drugs are

safe.

The problem, they say, is the typical American tendency to overdo

things - the idea that if 8 tablets of Tylenol a day are good for

pain relief, then 12 or 16 must be even better. According to at

least one of the principal authors of the study, even doubling the

dose in this manner can kill. Keep reading...

****************************************************

To start receiving your own copy of the Daily Dose, visit:

http://www.realhealthnews.com/dailydose/freecopy.html Or forward

this e-mail to a friend so they can sign-up to receive their own

copy of the Daily Dose.

****************************************************

Are YOU double dosing - knowingly or not?

Come on, be honest. When you get a headache or low-grade fever, do

you pop 3 or 4 Tylenol (or Motrin, Advil, aspirin, or whatever) when

the label calls for only 1 or 2? Do you think that you'll get better

or faster relief by taking just a little bit more? So many folks

do...

Then, after a day of double dosing, do you drown yourself with

acetaminophen-laced NyQuil Cold-n-Flu or similar liquid at bedtime?

Or do you think you're being good by taking only the label-

recommended dose of Excedrin or Tylenol for that headache - but on

top of the daily mega-milligram blast of arthritis-strength

acetaminophen you're taking for joint pain?

All these things can cause major liver toxicity, and land you in the

hospital or the morgue.

My advice: Take no more acetaminophen (or any other OTC painkiller,

for that matter) per day than what is advised by the label on the

bottle - and take it only when you're in need of pain relief, not

just for general painlessness. ( " Perks me up, relaxes me and,

besides, it's good for my arteries. " People will believe almost

anything they are told - except the truth. With the advent of TV, my

rule has become: " Believe only half of what you hear and nothing you

see.)

Oh, and make sure to factor into your calculations the

acetaminophen, acetylsalicylic acid, ibuprofen or other common pain

medicine that any prescription meds you may be taking might contain -

some, like narcotics Vicodin and Percoset, contain as much as 750mg

of this painkiller per pill.

For more on hazardous doses of common daily OTC painkillers, be sure

to tune in to the next Daily Dose...

Acceding to aceta-minimalism,

s II, MD

****************************************************

ENJOY A LONG LIFE TO THE FULLEST

You can enjoy a long life to the fullest-without the needless

dieting and harmful overexertion.

Would you prefer a breakfast of bran flakes and soy- milk over a

nice, hot plate of good ol' bacon and eggs? Do you like going to the

doctor? Have you ever seen a jogger smile (I haven't)? If you

answered " no " to these questions, you're a prime candidate for

conversion from the " junk medicine " dogma we've all had crammed down

our throats for the last 30 years or more.

Visit below to learn how to avoid the unhealthy " conventional

wisdom " that's harming us-and how to stay feeling young, vigorous

and pain-free while all those gullible fanatics suffer.

http://www1.youreletters.com/t/329074/11069748/782561/0/

****************************************************

To start receiving your own copy of the Daily Dose, visit:

http://www.realhealthnews.com/dailydose/freecopy.html Or forward

this e-mail to a friend so they can sign-up to receive their own

copy of the Daily Dose.

****************************************************

Daily Dose readers can now tap into the minds of other health-

conscious readers at the new HSI health forum:

http://www.healthiertalk.com

Copyright ©1997-2005 by www.realhealthnews.com, L.L.C. The Daily

Dose may not be posted on commercial sites without written

permission.

****************************************************

Before you hit reply to send us a question or request, please visit

here: http://www.realhealthnews.com/questions.shtml

****************************************************

If you'd like to participate in the Dr. s' Real Health

Breakthroughs Forum, search past e-letters and products or you're a

Dr. s' Real Health Breakthroughs subscriber and would like to

search past articles, visit http://www.realhealthnews.com

****************************************************

To learn more about Dr. s' Real Health Breakthroughs, call

(203) 699-4420 or visit

http://www1.youreletters.com/t/329074/11069748/333/0/

****************************************************

[Guest guest]

Patty - thanks for the tylenol info - makes me feel like it's

actually a good thing that I developed an allergy to it. So cool

how something so horrible (like the fact I couldn't take it anymore)

could actually turn out to actually protect me in the long run.

Cherie

>

> Daily Dose

>

> ****************************************************

> January 14, 2006

> ****************************************************

>

> The OTHER killer painkillers, Part 1

>

> With Vioxx in the news (and in your Daily Doses) right and left

for

> its deadly effects, I guess it really shouldn't come as any

surprise

> that the risks of other common painkillers are coming under

> scrutiny.

>

> Such is the case with acetaminophen, known best by the brand name

> Tylenol. In the last weeks of last year, this ubiquitous over-the-

> counter medicine - the nation's leading pain reliever, in fact -

was

> found by recent research to be the nation's leading cause of acute

> liver failure as well.

>

> According to a recent Associated Press article, research conducted

> by scientists from two leading American medical facilities (the

> University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and the University

> of Washington Medical Center) concludes that NEARLY HALF of all

> cases of acute liver failures in 662 patients from 22 liver

> transplant centers over a 6-year span were caused by acetaminophen

> poisoning.

>

> What's even more disturbing is the upward trend in the incidence

of

> acetaminophen poisoning this research revealed. In 1998, only 28%

of

> the study's liver poisonings could be blamed on acetaminophen

>

> - by 2003, that number had ballooned to 51%. More than 7 out of

ten

> of these victims died as a result. Also remarkable is the fact

that

> 48% of these cases were from UNINTENTIONAL OVERDOSES, while only

44%

> were from suicide attempts (OTC painkillers are common approaches

to

> self-offing)...

>

> That's right: Significantly more people in the study were killed

by

> accidental overuse of acetaminophen than intentional over-

ingestion!

> If this trend holds true nationwide, the number of acetaminophen-

> related deaths could add up to quite a scary number indeed. In

fact,

> the FDA itself estimated 2 years ago that 56,000 emergency

hospital

> visits per year are due to acetaminophen poisoning.

>

> The study's architects also point out (and I concur) that if taken

> correctly and not abused, acetaminophen and other OTC drugs are

> safe.

>

> The problem, they say, is the typical American tendency to overdo

> things - the idea that if 8 tablets of Tylenol a day are good for

> pain relief, then 12 or 16 must be even better. According to at

> least one of the principal authors of the study, even doubling the

> dose in this manner can kill. Keep reading...

>

> ****************************************************

> To start receiving your own copy of the Daily Dose, visit:

> http://www.realhealthnews.com/dailydose/freecopy.html Or forward

> this e-mail to a friend so they can sign-up to receive their own

> copy of the Daily Dose.

> ****************************************************

>

> Are YOU double dosing - knowingly or not?

>

> Come on, be honest. When you get a headache or low-grade fever, do

> you pop 3 or 4 Tylenol (or Motrin, Advil, aspirin, or whatever)

when

> the label calls for only 1 or 2? Do you think that you'll get

better

> or faster relief by taking just a little bit more? So many folks

> do...

>

> Then, after a day of double dosing, do you drown yourself with

> acetaminophen-laced NyQuil Cold-n-Flu or similar liquid at

bedtime?

> Or do you think you're being good by taking only the label-

> recommended dose of Excedrin or Tylenol for that headache - but on

> top of the daily mega-milligram blast of arthritis-strength

> acetaminophen you're taking for joint pain?

>

> All these things can cause major liver toxicity, and land you in

the

> hospital or the morgue.

>

> My advice: Take no more acetaminophen (or any other OTC

painkiller,

> for that matter) per day than what is advised by the label on the

> bottle - and take it only when you're in need of pain relief, not

> just for general painlessness. ( " Perks me up, relaxes me and,

> besides, it's good for my arteries. " People will believe almost

> anything they are told - except the truth. With the advent of TV,

my

> rule has become: " Believe only half of what you hear and nothing

you

> see.)

>

> Oh, and make sure to factor into your calculations the

> acetaminophen, acetylsalicylic acid, ibuprofen or other common

pain

> medicine that any prescription meds you may be taking might

contain -

> some, like narcotics Vicodin and Percoset, contain as much as

750mg

> of this painkiller per pill.

>

> For more on hazardous doses of common daily OTC painkillers, be

sure

> to tune in to the next Daily Dose...

>

> Acceding to aceta-minimalism,

>

> s II, MD

>

> ****************************************************

>

> ENJOY A LONG LIFE TO THE FULLEST

>

>

> You can enjoy a long life to the fullest-without the needless

> dieting and harmful overexertion.

>

> Would you prefer a breakfast of bran flakes and soy- milk over a

> nice, hot plate of good ol' bacon and eggs? Do you like going to

the

> doctor? Have you ever seen a jogger smile (I haven't)? If you

> answered " no " to these questions, you're a prime candidate for

> conversion from the " junk medicine " dogma we've all had crammed

down

> our throats for the last 30 years or more.

>

> Visit below to learn how to avoid the unhealthy " conventional

> wisdom " that's harming us-and how to stay feeling young, vigorous

> and pain-free while all those gullible fanatics suffer.

>

> http://www1.youreletters.com/t/329074/11069748/782561/0/

>

> ****************************************************

> To start receiving your own copy of the Daily Dose, visit:

> http://www.realhealthnews.com/dailydose/freecopy.html Or forward

> this e-mail to a friend so they can sign-up to receive their own

> copy of the Daily Dose.

> ****************************************************

>

> Daily Dose readers can now tap into the minds of other health-

> conscious readers at the new HSI health forum:

> http://www.healthiertalk.com

>

> Copyright ©1997-2005 by www.realhealthnews.com, L.L.C. The Daily

> Dose may not be posted on commercial sites without written

> permission.

>

> ****************************************************

> Before you hit reply to send us a question or request, please

visit

> here: http://www.realhealthnews.com/questions.shtml

>

> ****************************************************

> If you'd like to participate in the Dr. s' Real Health

> Breakthroughs Forum, search past e-letters and products or you're

a

> Dr. s' Real Health Breakthroughs subscriber and would like

to

> search past articles, visit http://www.realhealthnews.com

>

> ****************************************************

> To learn more about Dr. s' Real Health Breakthroughs, call

> (203) 699-4420 or visit

> http://www1.youreletters.com/t/329074/11069748/333/0/

>

> ****************************************************

>

[Guest guest]

Tylenol is dangerous when you take it all the time, not the

occasional usage. If you take 8 tablets a day all the time, you are

likely to be in deep trouble. If you take 2 tablets once a week,

they do consider it very safe.

Lynda

At 01:21 PM 1/14/2006, you wrote:

>Oh Patty thank you for this. You are so sweet to post this type of research

>because we all thought that Tylenol was perfectly safe. I guess Tylenol 3

>would be bad for us too...I take this drug only once in a while.

>

>Sending love to all...........Lea

>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~```

> A warning on OTC pain killers (Daily Dose

>Newsletter)

>

>

> > Daily Dose

> >

> > ****************************************************

> > January 14, 2006

> > ****************************************************

> >

> > The OTHER killer painkillers, Part 1

> >

> > With Vioxx in the news (and in your Daily Doses) right and left for

> > its deadly effects, I guess it really shouldn't come as any surprise

> > that the risks of other common painkillers are coming under

> > scrutiny.

> >

> > Such is the case with acetaminophen, known best by the brand name

> > Tylenol. In the last weeks of last year, this ubiquitous over-the-

> > counter medicine - the nation's leading pain reliever, in fact - was

> > found by recent research to be the nation's leading cause of acute

> > liver failure as well.

> >

> > According to a recent Associated Press article, research conducted

> > by scientists from two leading American medical facilities (the

> > University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and the University

> > of Washington Medical Center) concludes that NEARLY HALF of all

> > cases of acute liver failures in 662 patients from 22 liver

> > transplant centers over a 6-year span were caused by acetaminophen

> > poisoning.

> >

> > What's even more disturbing is the upward trend in the incidence of

> > acetaminophen poisoning this research revealed. In 1998, only 28% of

> > the study's liver poisonings could be blamed on acetaminophen

> >

> > - by 2003, that number had ballooned to 51%. More than 7 out of ten

> > of these victims died as a result. Also remarkable is the fact that

> > 48% of these cases were from UNINTENTIONAL OVERDOSES, while only 44%

> > were from suicide attempts (OTC painkillers are common approaches to

> > self-offing)...

> >

> > That's right: Significantly more people in the study were killed by

> > accidental overuse of acetaminophen than intentional over-ingestion!

> > If this trend holds true nationwide, the number of acetaminophen-

> > related deaths could add up to quite a scary number indeed. In fact,

> > the FDA itself estimated 2 years ago that 56,000 emergency hospital

> > visits per year are due to acetaminophen poisoning.

> >

> > The study's architects also point out (and I concur) that if taken

> > correctly and not abused, acetaminophen and other OTC drugs are

> > safe.

> >

> > The problem, they say, is the typical American tendency to overdo

> > things - the idea that if 8 tablets of Tylenol a day are good for

> > pain relief, then 12 or 16 must be even better. According to at

> > least one of the principal authors of the study, even doubling the

> > dose in this manner can kill. Keep reading...

> >

> > ****************************************************

> > To start receiving your own copy of the Daily Dose, visit:

> >

>

<http://www.realhealthnews.com/dailydose/freecopy.html>http://www.realhealthnews\

..com/dailydose/freecopy.html

> Or forward

> > this e-mail to a friend so they can sign-up to receive their own

> > copy of the Daily Dose.

> > ****************************************************

> >

> > Are YOU double dosing - knowingly or not?

> >

> > Come on, be honest. When you get a headache or low-grade fever, do

> > you pop 3 or 4 Tylenol (or Motrin, Advil, aspirin, or whatever) when

> > the label calls for only 1 or 2? Do you think that you'll get better

> > or faster relief by taking just a little bit more? So many folks

> > do...

> >

> > Then, after a day of double dosing, do you drown yourself with

> > acetaminophen-laced NyQuil Cold-n-Flu or similar liquid at bedtime?

> > Or do you think you're being good by taking only the label-

> > recommended dose of Excedrin or Tylenol for that headache - but on

> > top of the daily mega-milligram blast of arthritis-strength

> > acetaminophen you're taking for joint pain?

> >

> > All these things can cause major liver toxicity, and land you in the

> > hospital or the morgue.

> >

> > My advice: Take no more acetaminophen (or any other OTC painkiller,

> > for that matter) per day than what is advised by the label on the

> > bottle - and take it only when you're in need of pain relief, not

> > just for general painlessness. ( " Perks me up, relaxes me and,

> > besides, it's good for my arteries. " People will believe almost

> > anything they are told - except the truth. With the advent of TV, my

> > rule has become: " Believe only half of what you hear and nothing you

> > see.)

> >

> > Oh, and make sure to factor into your calculations the

> > acetaminophen, acetylsalicylic acid, ibuprofen or other common pain

> > medicine that any prescription meds you may be taking might contain -

> > some, like narcotics Vicodin and Percoset, contain as much as 750mg

> > of this painkiller per pill.

> >

> > For more on hazardous doses of common daily OTC painkillers, be sure

> > to tune in to the next Daily Dose...

> >

> > Acceding to aceta-minimalism,

> >

> > s II, MD

> >

> > ****************************************************

> >

> > ENJOY A LONG LIFE TO THE FULLEST

> >

> >

> > You can enjoy a long life to the fullest-without the needless

> > dieting and harmful overexertion.

> >

> > Would you prefer a breakfast of bran flakes and soy- milk over a

> > nice, hot plate of good ol' bacon and eggs? Do you like going to the

> > doctor? Have you ever seen a jogger smile (I haven't)? If you

> > answered " no " to these questions, you're a prime candidate for

> > conversion from the " junk medicine " dogma we've all had crammed down

> > our throats for the last 30 years or more.

> >

> > Visit below to learn how to avoid the unhealthy " conventional

> > wisdom " that's harming us-and how to stay feeling young, vigorous

> > and pain-free while all those gullible fanatics suffer.

> >

> >

>

<http://www1.youreletters.com/t/329074/11069748/782561/0/>http://www1.yourelette\

rs.com/t/329074/11069748/782561/0/

> >

> > ****************************************************

> > To start receiving your own copy of the Daily Dose, visit:

> >

>

<http://www.realhealthnews.com/dailydose/freecopy.html>http://www.realhealthnews\

..com/dailydose/freecopy.html

> Or forward

> > this e-mail to a friend so they can sign-up to receive their own

> > copy of the Daily Dose.

> > ****************************************************

> >

> > Daily Dose readers can now tap into the minds of other health-

> > conscious readers at the new HSI health forum:

> > <http://www.healthiertalk.com>http://www.healthiertalk.com

> >

> > Copyright ©1997-2005 by www.realhealthnews.com, L.L.C. The Daily

> > Dose may not be posted on commercial sites without written

> > permission.

> >

> > ****************************************************

> > Before you hit reply to send us a question or request, please visit

> > here:

>

<http://www.realhealthnews.com/questions.shtml>http://www.realhealthnews.com/que\

stions.shtml

> >

> > ****************************************************

> > If you'd like to participate in the Dr. s' Real Health

> > Breakthroughs Forum, search past e-letters and products or you're a

> > Dr. s' Real Health Breakthroughs subscriber and would like to

> > search past articles, visit

> <http://www.realhealthnews.com>http://www.realhealthnews.com

> >

> > ****************************************************

> > To learn more about Dr. s' Real Health Breakthroughs, call

> > (203) 699-4420 or visit

> >

>

<http://www1.youreletters.com/t/329074/11069748/333/0/>http://www1.youreletters.\

com/t/329074/11069748/333/0/

> >

> > ****************************************************

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> > Opinions expressed are NOT meant to take the place of advice given by

> > licensed health care professionals. Consult your physician or licensed

> > health care professional before commencing any medical treatment.

> >

> > " Do not let either the medical authorities or the politicians mislead you.

> > Find out what the facts are, and make your own decisions about how to live

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> > two-time Nobel Prize Winner (1954, Chemistry; 1963, Peace)

> >

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