7 ms·
It’s a half right sort of thing. Overdose is acutely toxic to the liver. Dosage guidelines are safe unless you’ have impaired liver function (been drinking?), o
by andreareina 4y ago
It’s a half right sort of thing. Overdose is acutely toxic to the liver. Dosage guidelines are safe unless you’ have impaired liver function (been drinking?), or you’re taking another drug that also has paracetamol (e.g. combo paracetamol/ibuprofen, painkillers for period cramps, etc). I’ve seen opiates compounded with paracetamol and I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s mostly to (try to) limit abuse.
Then again this is in contrast to NSAIDs like ibuprofen that can result in gastric bleeding even at the recommended dose.
I prefer paracetamol/acetaminophen for most uses but I’m pretty careful about how much and what else I’m taking.
- cm2187 4y agoI think it is disingenuous to call it toxic. You can even drink toxic doses of water, or ingest toxic doses of salt. Water and salt aren't toxic or dangerous.
- andreareina 4y agoComparing it to water or salt is such a low bar as to be meaningless. Acetaminophen toxicity starts at less than twice the recommended dose, which isn’t hard to achieve if someone doesn’t read the guidelines (we generally expect otc medicines to be safe) or if they’re mixing drugs. And that’s for a healthy liver that’s not further burdened with alcohol or other hepatotoxic medicines.
- namibj 4y agoIf you forgot if you drank the glass of water, no harm. Same with salt. If you forgot if you took your Paracetamol pill, accidentally taking another one would leave you with permanent liver damage. It's like looking into the sun: normally, you flinch/blink away and are safe. But if you stare, and suppress or your reflex isn't working, you'll catch a life-long blind spot burned into your retina. The therapeutic margin is just insanely small for anything OTC.