Food and Drug Administration sets brand new limit on acetaminophen in prescribed medicines

Acetaminophen is a very common component in most prescription and over-the-counter pain medicines. Acetaminophen could be dangerous. The liver could be irreversibly damaged by an overdose. In an effort to reduce down on acetaminophen-related cases of liver harm, the FDA is requiring drug businesses to lower the amount of the substance in drugs dispensed by prescription . I wonder if people in pain will be applying for payday loans to boost the quantity of pain killers they now need. Article resource – FDA cuts acetaminophen dose in prescription pain-killers by half by MoneyBlogNewz.

Over the counter acetaminophen drugs escape ruling

It is well known that acetaminophen is an active ingredient in numerous painkillers. Tylenol with codeine, oxycodone, Vicodin and Percoset all have this used in them. Thursday the Food and Drug Administration announced it will limit the amount of acetaminophen in those and other prescription painkillers to 350 milligrams for each capsule or tablet. Currently, said painkillers can pack as much as 750 milligrams of acetaminophen. Less acetaminophen won't mean that the drugs are less effective according to the FDA. Pharmaceutical companies can have three years to comply with the FDA ruling. Over-the-counter medications such as Sudafed and Nyquil, which can deliver up to 500 milligrams of acetaminophen per dose, aren’t affected by the new action.

Avoiding an acetaminophen overdose

About 200 million prescriptions in 2008 had acetaminophen in them that doctors prescribed. Acetaminophen is linked to liver damage. Each and every year within the U.S., there are 800 cases linked back to this. As outlined by the Food and Drug Administration, the liver damage mostly is only severe when prescriptions are taken wrong. In a 24 hour period, typically more than prescribed has been taken. Another trap people get into is taking more than one over the counter acetaminophen drug at a time. When you have a bad cold, it is a very bad idea to take both Sudafed and Tylenol at the same time. Acetaminophen is the primary ingredient in both. Mixing powerful prescription drugs such as Vicodin with alcohol can also be dangerous.

Looking at an acetaminophen overdose

It is pretty bad to use a combination of acetaminophen drugs. In fact, half of the acetaminophen related cases within the United States of liver failure are because of this. Nausea, vomiting, sweating, diarrhea and loss of appetite are all symptoms that acetaminophen overdose has happened. Those symptoms might go away in 24 hours, but then liver damage sets in. Emergency treatment is essential in the event of an acetaminophen overdose. You need to administer medication early enough if you need to stop your liver from dying. The acetaminophen antidote is called acetylcysteine.

Articles cited

Washington Post

washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/13/AR2011011306675.html

Business Week

businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/healthday/648844.html

eMed TV

pain.emedtv.com/acetaminophen/acetaminophen-overdose.html

Tylenol Professional

tylenolprofessional.com/overdose-management.html