Nurofen Plus Recall: Sabotage suspected

BBC News reports that in the matter of Nurofen Plus recall of stock, sabotage is suspected in some packets. "Four packs were found to contain Seroquel XL 50mg. The packs were bought in Victoria, Bromley and Beckenham in south London. Another tampered pack, containing a prescription medicine for epilepsy, was uncovered in Northern Ireland." Seroquel is an antipsychotic drug. "Most people who take one Seroquel will just experience sleepiness, but those on sedatives could feel stronger effects."

So there are dangers, hopefully small, if anyone mistakenly takes Seroquel or possibly an anti-epilepsy drug, and this prudent, well-publicised product recall will minimise those dangers. - But I would like to point out that Nurofen Plus is itself a dangerous drug, despite being an OTC (over-the-counter) medication. - It is a highly addictive painkiller, which should not be taken for more than 3 days because of this highly addictive quality. In overdose, it can also cause serious liver damage and death. It is a mistake to assume that painkillers are harmless drugs. They are not.

Warning: OTC painkillers can be addictive

The Telegraph reports that OTC painkillers can cause addiction within as little as three days. Many thousands of people have become addicted to them. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is requiring that from next year labels on packets will read: “Can cause addiction. For three days use only”.

The painkillers involved contain codeine, and include Nurofen Plus and Solpadeine Plus. They will no longer be able to claim that they are a remedy for coughs and colds, only that they relieve pain. Some addicts, incredibly, have been taking up to 70 pills a day, putting themselves at risk of seriously damaging their health with complications such as stomach bleeding, liver problems, gallstones and depression.

It is important with pharmaceutical drugs not to exceed the stated dose, and even then painkillers are not without risk of doing you harm, quite apart from the risk of addiction.

If you would prefer not to use drugs to help with your pain, or if, like me, you find painkillers do not help with pain anyway, a drug-free way of reducing many types of chronic pain is to cut down on salt and salty food. - Why not give this a try? - Unlike drugs, it is completely safe to cut down on salt, or even to avoid added salt altogether.

Death from overdosing on Nurofen Plus.

Death sparks call for restrictions on drug sales

Extract from the Telegraph:

"A coroner has called for tougher restrictions on the sale of over-the-counter drugs after the death of a woman who became addicted to Nurofen Plus.

Linda Docherty, 49, trawled supermarket pharmacies and High Street chemists so she could take up to 64 pain-killing tablets a day.

She finally confessed her addiction to her husband and the family’s GP after two years.

However, by then it was too late and she died of kidney failure four days later.

At an inquest in Bury, Greater Manchester, yesterday, the coroner Simon Nelson recorded a verdict that Mrs Docherty died "by reason of an addiction to over-the-counter medication".

He said he would be writing to the Royal Pharmaceutical Society to ask whether the current regulations concerning over-the-counter drugs were sufficiently rigorous. "I feel that the system has to be looked at again.""

Pharmaceutical drugs do tend to damage the kidneys - and the liver too, come to that.