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My suspicion is that paracetamol / acetaminophen and ibuprofen are so incredibly not-good for you, and this anaesthesiologist knows this, that he covering his a

My suspicion is that paracetamol / acetaminophen and ibuprofen are so incredibly not-good for you, and this anaesthesiologist knows this, that he covering his ass by minimising how much he doles out.

btian 9y ago
Huh? You don't need a prescription to get paracetamol, acetaminophen, and ibuprofen
- TheSpiceIsLife 9y ago
  I mean to say: the medical profession probably needs to be cautious with regard to how it goes about advising people to take paracetamol or ibuprofen. We know they aren't good for you, and I know I've seen at least a few people pop them like candy.
  - DoreenMichele 9y ago
    In the army, 600 mg pills of Motrin (ibuprofen) are called Ranger candy. Because they get eaten "like candy" by Special Forces units.
- snotrockets 9y ago
  Both of them (Acetaminophen is the US name for Paracetamol) are highly dangerous, even in small dosages. Paracetamol poisoning can kill within a day, and the lethal dosage is equivalent to about 20 pills. Ibuprofen is proven to cause heart attacks & stroke. Your suggestion is the perfect example of why over the counter drugs as so dangerous: a Dr or a pharmacist is aware of the dangers, that we (being the public) may not know about, and should not dispense those without taking them into account. The problem is you can't make over the counter drugs illegal in the US, not only because of the medical-industrial complex lobbying, but also because of the cost of getting a Rx. Had the US had a public health system…
  - sannee 9y ago
    > the lethal dosage is equivalent to about 20 pills. It's really hard to accidentally eat 20 pills, especially when the usual does is about 4 per day...
    - snotrockets 9y ago
      Recommended dosage, which most people take more of – take two every couple of hours, and you're going to need a new liver. And when you're in pain, it's easy to loose count. Which is why in some countries, the maximum amount allowed over the counter is 16ct or so (sometimes a bit more when bought from a pharmacist who can make sure the buyer is aware of the dangers). It is irresponsible to sell a 1,000 ct bottle of pills, yet the grocery store near my house does, over the counter even.
      - pkaye 9y ago
        What if they buy the 16ct packs over multiple days and overdose on them?
        snotrockets 9y ago
        the idea is to reduce risk, not eliminate it. thinking is, if you need 1000ct of any drug, you should probably see a health professional first; if you're going through the effort (and extra cost) of buying 63 packs of it, then there's probably nothing that could be done to stop you from whatever you are trying to do.
      - kelnos 9y ago
        I just looked at my ibuprofen bottle and it says to take one 200mg tablet every 4-6 hours. That's 800-1200mg per day, which is not something to worry about. Certainly if you ignore that and take a higher dose or take it more frequently you can have problems, but assuming you don't have existing liver issues and aren't drunk all the time, you need to take like 5x (or more) the recommended dose to run into any trouble. If you're that stupid, you deserve what's coming to you.

My suspicion is that paracetamol / acetaminophen and ibuprofen are so incredibly not-good for you, and this anaesthesiologist knows this, that he covering his ass by minimising how much he doles out.

btian 9y ago

Huh? You don't need a prescription to get paracetamol, acetaminophen, and ibuprofen

TheSpiceIsLife 9y ago
I mean to say: the medical profession probably needs to be cautious with regard to how it goes about advising people to take paracetamol or ibuprofen. We know they aren't good for you, and I know I've seen at least a few people pop them like candy.
- DoreenMichele 9y ago
  In the army, 600 mg pills of Motrin (ibuprofen) are called Ranger candy. Because they get eaten "like candy" by Special Forces units.
snotrockets 9y ago
Both of them (Acetaminophen is the US name for Paracetamol) are highly dangerous, even in small dosages. Paracetamol poisoning can kill within a day, and the lethal dosage is equivalent to about 20 pills. Ibuprofen is proven to cause heart attacks & stroke. Your suggestion is the perfect example of why over the counter drugs as so dangerous: a Dr or a pharmacist is aware of the dangers, that we (being the public) may not know about, and should not dispense those without taking them into account. The problem is you can't make over the counter drugs illegal in the US, not only because of the medical-industrial complex lobbying, but also because of the cost of getting a Rx. Had the US had a public health system…
- sannee 9y ago
  > the lethal dosage is equivalent to about 20 pills. It's really hard to accidentally eat 20 pills, especially when the usual does is about 4 per day...
  - snotrockets 9y ago
    Recommended dosage, which most people take more of – take two every couple of hours, and you're going to need a new liver. And when you're in pain, it's easy to loose count. Which is why in some countries, the maximum amount allowed over the counter is 16ct or so (sometimes a bit more when bought from a pharmacist who can make sure the buyer is aware of the dangers). It is irresponsible to sell a 1,000 ct bottle of pills, yet the grocery store near my house does, over the counter even.
    - pkaye 9y ago
      What if they buy the 16ct packs over multiple days and overdose on them?
      - snotrockets 9y ago
        the idea is to reduce risk, not eliminate it. thinking is, if you need 1000ct of any drug, you should probably see a health professional first; if you're going through the effort (and extra cost) of buying 63 packs of it, then there's probably nothing that could be done to stop you from whatever you are trying to do.
    - kelnos 9y ago
      I just looked at my ibuprofen bottle and it says to take one 200mg tablet every 4-6 hours. That's 800-1200mg per day, which is not something to worry about. Certainly if you ignore that and take a higher dose or take it more frequently you can have problems, but assuming you don't have existing liver issues and aren't drunk all the time, you need to take like 5x (or more) the recommended dose to run into any trouble. If you're that stupid, you deserve what's coming to you.