Re: OMG...NO vicodin or percocet???? Originally Posted by Plagueis 
Do some people just not read the labels of medications, especially where it's noted to "not exceed X amount of pills" per day? Everyone who takes any kind of medication should know about what can happen if she takes too much of it. ANY medication, even OTC ones, can harm people if they take too much of it.
It is not only that people are exceeding recommended doses on one particular type of med. Part of the problem is that acetaminophen is in everything. Think about the patient who takes a couple vicodin for chronic back pain. Later in the day she has a headache and pops a couple Excederin for it. That night, she feels a sore throat and thinks she has a cold coming on so she takes some Nyquil. Maybe she still thinks she will have trouble sleeping so she might pop a Tylenol PM.
Many people have no idea that these other meds contain the same drug, and that they may be easily exceeding their dosage. I don't know if banning anything is the answer, but some public service announcements could help. People used to think it was ok to give babies aspirin, and that practice has decreased dramatically. Maybe some of that kind of focused education could help with this issue.
I knew of a teenage girl who wanted to get her parent's attention by attempting suicide, but she did not want to take anything that would really harm her. She took a bunch of Tylenol thinking "it is just Tylenol, it is harmless". Her liver was shot and she died from it. Very very sad case.
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