Abuse of Cough Medicine

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Abuse of Cough Medicine Ingredient Sending Kids to Hospitals

Over 12,500 Americans were treated in hospital emergency departments after taking dextromethorphan (DXM), an ingredient in many over-the-counter cough medicines, experts from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) reported Thursday.

Nearly half (5,581) of cases were attributed to nonmedical use, and of those cases, 48 percent occurred in patients between 12 and 20 years of age, the SAMHSA report found. This group of people had more than double the rate of DXM-related hospital visits as people in other age groups (7.1 vs. 2.6 visits per 100,000 people, respectively).

"This report shows that there can be severe, even life-threatening consequences associated with the misuse of some over-the-counter medicines," SAMHSA Acting Deputy Administrator Dr. Eric Broderick said in a statement.

According to the agency, DXM is considered safe at recommended doses, but in large amounts it can produce a hallucinatory high similar to psychotropic drugs. Adverse effects include blurred vision, poor coordination, abdominal pain and rapid heartbeat.

In May 2005, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a warning on DXM abuse following the death of five teenagers who may have consumed pure DXM in powdered, capsule form.

http://www.forbes.com/forbeslife/health/fe...cout536038.html (http://www.forbes.com/forbeslife/health/feeds/hscout/2006/11/10/hscout536038.html)

[FDR]

6,000 non-medical users? The DV should have more members.

[IllusionalFate]

How can this be happening? I thought DXM was a relatively safe drug. The only reason I can see why this would happen is if people are taking 2+ grams, and I doubt that kids are taking THAT much, they probably just drink a bottle of Robitussin most of the time.

Anyone have an idea why DXM is doing this to so many people?

[Bevo]

I really think that dxm is fading out. It hurts more people than it helps, and don't give me any of that emo bullshit, it's you're decision. I'm high on dxm right now, and I hate it. I asked my friends on irc for help and they backed me up. We really need to move on people. My grandfather died in the hospital from sugar dibetes and I'm the only grandson in the family. My Mother walked into his room, the first thing she seen was a tatooo of the us navy.....she covered it up. they didn't pay anything on his funeral. he was the guy that went out in front of the battleships that made sure that there were no mines to find, he really was brave.

I couldn't have done his job... no way man.

But you know where I was? I was high on dxm. Fucked up to death. isn't that great huh? I should be really depressed but I'm not, because I'm going to make something out of myself. I will. And I need you guys as support...this dxm shit is evil man. it's not the drug of choice. it's the drug of death. It took Poss away from me and it's almost taken me from me. I'm not going to tell you all not to do it but I highly reccommend that we turn ourselves around and think about the well being of our oved ones and all that.......

I mean ........I fell like I'm dying right now??? what good of a drug is that?

[Xvall]

How can this be happening? I thought DXM was a relatively safe drug.

It is. You need to keep in mind that the only thing the report says is that some 5,581 people went to hospital emergency departments after consuming dextromethorphan for non-medical use. This doesn't even imply that they "fucked up big time" or were required to do so for the sake of their own lives, necessarily. From many of the trip reports I've read (both here and elsewhere) I would imagine that a good number of these were the result of conscerned parents bringing their kids in after finding them fucked up to ensure that they weren't killing themselves, and not the result of near-fatal overdoses.

This article says ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about the physical state of any of the patients in question.

[Kaiserin]

Originally posted by IllusionalFate@Nov 12 2006, 02:48 AM
How can this be happening? I thought DXM was a relatively safe drug. The only reason I can see why this would happen is if people are taking 2+ grams, and I doubt that kids are taking THAT much, they probably just drink a bottle of Robitussin most of the time.

Anyone have an idea why DXM is doing this to so many people?
Well, poss died on 1500mg.

DXM is relatively safe if you use it in moderation at sane doses when you do decide to do it. Going on binges, taking doses over a gram, and mixing it with contradicting drugs is what is going to likely cause the problems.

Bevo, it sounds like you need to move on. I'll be the first person to say that DXM can cause adverse effects. I think that many members of the dv use the drug way too much. On the other hand, there's nothing inherently bad about the drug. If you keep your use in check everything will be okay. Sober up a few months, pick up some new hobbies...

[krepta]

bevo, i'm really sorry for your troubles. calling dxm evil is just like calling the devil evil and blaming him for your sins. i don't think the rest of us need to move on because you're having a hard time keeping your shit together. good luck straightening things out. personally, i am managing my dxm very well and making active decisions in life. many others are too. there's not much of a bandwagon here of people ready to blame the drug for personal failures.

good luck sorting it out, i know it can be hard. i think the first step is takin responsibility, but there's a whole school of thought that says the first step is blaming the drug. take your pick i guess. best wishes.

[Bevo]

god damn man see this is why I don't like to do this because everyone thinks I'm blaming dxm......it's just like any other addictive drug, I can't fucking help it, I really need to let it go and I need some support

[rabit]

Maybe DXM is the pawn. what I mean is in that report DXM was used statistically but otc's in general were referenced as dangerous. That tells me that if one otc is gonna get regulated they all are.

[libel]

One must take concurrent anti-depressant, alcohol, diphenhydramine and other anti histamine use into consideration.

[r0b0c0p]

No, what people need to take into account is the fact that dumbshit kids trip balls infront of their parents and when they see their kid all bug-eyed, zombie walking around with a piece of toast in his hand trying to figure out what the fuck it is, thier parents take him to the hospital and it's recorded as an overdose/abuse of cough medicine.

[r0b0c0p]

Originally posted by Bevo@Nov 12 2006, 05:41 AM
I really think that dxm is fading out. It hurts more people than it helps, and don't give me any of that emo bullshit, it's you're decision. I'm high on dxm right now, and I hate it. I asked my friends on irc for help and they backed me up. We really need to move on people. My grandfather died in the hospital from sugar dibetes and I'm the only grandson in the family. My Mother walked into his room, the first thing she seen was a tatooo of the us navy.....she covered it up. they didn't pay anything on his funeral. he was the guy that went out in front of the battleships that made sure that there were no mines to find, he really was brave.

I couldn't have done his job... no way man.

But you know where I was? I was high on dxm. Fucked up to death. isn't that great huh? I should be really depressed but I'm not, because I'm going to make something out of myself. I will. And I need you guys as support...this dxm shit is evil man. it's not the drug of choice. it's the drug of death. It took Poss away from me and it's almost taken me from me. I'm not going to tell you all not to do it but I highly reccommend that we turn ourselves around and think about the well being of our oved ones and all that.......

I mean ........I fell like I'm dying right now??? what good of a drug is that?
Sounds like you're own fucking problem. Not everyone hates DXM, and not everyone is tripping balls when important family issues are at hand. Sounds like you've still got a lot of battles to fight, and DXM is your scapegoat.

And though most of what William White wrote is bullshit, he did make one good distinction. I forgot exactly what he said but he made the correllation that DXM, like other dissociatives, are more on the dark, death side of perspective, whereas psychoactives like mushrooms and acid are more on the enlightened side of perspective.

[Jolb]

Originally posted by Bevo@Nov 12 2006, 04:41 AM
I really think that dxm is fading out. It hurts more people than it helps, and don't give me any of that emo bullshit, it's you're decision. I'm high on dxm right now, and I hate it. I asked my friends on irc for help and they backed me up. We really need to move on people. My grandfather died in the hospital from sugar dibetes and I'm the only grandson in the family. My Mother walked into his room, the first thing she seen was a tatooo of the us navy.....she covered it up. they didn't pay anything on his funeral. he was the guy that went out in front of the battleships that made sure that there were no mines to find, he really was brave.

I couldn't have done his job... no way man.

But you know where I was? I was high on dxm. Fucked up to death. isn't that great huh? I should be really depressed but I'm not, because I'm going to make something out of myself. I will. And I need you guys as support...this dxm shit is evil man. it's not the drug of choice. it's the drug of death. It took Poss away from me and it's almost taken me from me. I'm not going to tell you all not to do it but I highly reccommend that we turn ourselves around and think about the well being of our oved ones and all that.......

I mean ........I fell like I'm dying right now??? what good of a drug is that?
Lol, fuck you.

Instead of blaming yourself and your own stupidity, you call DXM "evil."

You know what you need to do? Take responsibility on YOURSELF. I use DXM every few months... and I have the self control and the fucking intellect to take responsibility for my own actions. I don't blame DXM for my actions.

You're the one giving "that emo bullshit." You're pathetic.

[SLove]

Originally posted by IllusionalFate@Nov 12 2006, 02:48 AM
How can this be happening? I thought DXM was a relatively safe drug. The only reason I can see why this would happen is if people are taking 2+ grams, and I doubt that kids are taking THAT much, they probably just drink a bottle of Robitussin most of the time.

Anyone have an idea why DXM is doing this to so many people?
One reason would be, as mentioned by locolotophagi, concurrent drug use. And using DXM preparations that contain other drugs.

My brother was hospitalized, and nearly died, getting high on a DXM preparation that also contained diph and CPM. I've also known kids who've used DXM and shock me with their ignorance. "Dude...dex is awesome...but once I drank a bottle and I just got sick...I dunno how that happened." I don't know the statistics to make a solid statement, but I'm guessing these things are to blame for a large number of hospitalizations.

I think a big problem with drug use is that some people do not bother to educate themselves about the substances they are using.

[Unnamed]

Abuse of Cough Medicine Ingredient Sending Kids to Hospitals

Those poor kids! But hey...wait a minute.

Nearly half (5,581) of cases were attributed to nonmedical use, and of those cases, 48 percent occurred in patients between 12 and 20 years of age, the SAMHSA report found.

So more then half of the original number were from people using it in a medical accepted way(and we thought some people here were dumb, or is this just another one of those studies like how many pot smokers were involved in car accidents, regardless if it was active at the time?) , and 48% of the "abusers" are children? What about the other 52%?

I knew it wasn't a kid's only drug.

[UnartisticInc]

Originally posted by FDR@Nov 11 2006, 05:59 PM
6,000 non-medical users? The DV should have more members.
You yourself are the 69**th member

[Allen J]

Can someone link me to a thread on Poss's death or tell me what happened? I'm new here and didn't know him but am just curious. I didn't know people died on 1500mg, or at least I thought that was the VERY low end for a lethal dose (actually, I thought lethal dose started more around 2000 (though, this all depends on weight))

Can someone please link me?

[Homosexual Dirk Diggler]

wow this bevo guy is pretty gay

DXM is not physically addictive, quit your crying, and if you have such a damn problem with the drug stop doing it and quit telling us that you dont like it, we dont care, we acutally enjoy the drug, we know how to use it and also live life at the same time (hard concept for you isint it?)


*EDIT*

ive noticed most of these IRC operaters are total fuckbags, whats with that?

[Homosexual Dirk Diggler]

Can someone link me to a thread on Poss's death or tell me what happened? I'm new here and didn't know him but am just curious. I didn't know people died on 1500mg, or at least I thought that was the VERY low end for a lethal dose (actually, I thought lethal dose started more around 2000 (though, this all depends on weight))

Can someone please link me?

no acutally what people should also mention is, 20 mg/kg thing applys to people of good health, people in bad shape have different rules of corse

[Senses3]

why does everyone have to bash bevo for saying he can't do dxm anymore? what is it inside you people that makes you think you have to flame people? it's probably from the same place in your brain that makes bevo drink so much cough syrup. so his vice is cough syrup and yours is ruining a thread. good job.

this is a harm reduction forum not a forum where your negative opinions matter, go away.

[rabit]

Originally posted by Senses3@Nov 27 2006, 12:05 PM
why does everyone have to bash bevo for saying he can't do dxm anymore? what is it inside you people that makes you think you have to flame people? it's probably from the same place in your brain that makes bevo drink so much cough syrup. so his vice is cough syrup and yours is ruining a thread. good job.

this is a harm reduction forum not a forum where your negative opinions matter, go away.
Is this why there is a penis growing out of the head of your avatar ?

[Senses3]

part of the reason, yes.

[Homosexual Dirk Diggler]

are you kiddin? did you even read what he said, he totally flipped out and is practically yellin at us for doing DXM, because the kid was too retarded to do DXM and live his life at the same time, hes calling the substance evil, and overall being a douche bag, if he would have just said "im done with DXM'' that woulda been fine, but he didint, he decided to take his anger out on us, so fuck em