Poison Center issued warning

A statewide alert has been issued about teens abusing over–the–counter cough medicines, but there is only anecdotal evidence area teens are using the legal drugs to get high.

The Iowa Statewide Poison Control Center recently issued a safety warning to parents, school officials and communities about a rising trend in teenage drug abuse in which dextromethorphan — the active ingredient in non–prescription cough suppressants, also called DM — is used in excessive doses.

"The ease with which pharmaceutical compounds and recipes have been made available over the Internet has added a new dimension to the problem of teenage substance abuse," the poison center said. "Teens, anxious to avoid being caught with detectable drugs like alcohol or marijuana, falsely believe using these agents is safer."

Ingesting large amounts of the drug causes hallucinations and other effects similar to those caused by illegal narcotics, and can also be potentially life–threatening.

Though the abuse of DM–containing drugs is not new, the poison center issued the warning because of new capsule forms of the drug that enable users to avoid consuming large volumes of liquid cough medicine, such as Robitussin.

An investigator for the Southeast Iowa Drug Task Force said there is some anecdotal information that local teens are getting high this way, but no statistics are available to support that contention.

Because medicines containing the drug — such as Robitussin DM and Coricidin cough and cold formula — are legal to possess and use, no arrests have been made related to its use as an intoxicant.

The task force also had received no information about anyone who has been treated at Great River Medical Center for an overdose or other symptoms of DM abuse.

Burlington High School nurse Julie Griffin said she was aware of just one student at the school who was being treated for over–the–counter medicine abuse.

"There's probably a lot of it," she said, "but I just don't know about it."

Matt Shivers, pharmacy manager at the Angular Street Hy–Vee in Burlington, said he is aware of the issue, but does not believe it to be a big problem. The dextromethorphan–containing drugs have not been disappearing off store shelves at an unusually fast rate, indicating either high theft or over–use rates.

"This time of year we sell a lot of it," he said.

Unlike pseudoephedrine, the drug found in the over–the–counter decongestant Sudafed, which is an ingredient in methamphetamine and the sale of which is controlled at retail and drug stores, there are no controls on sales of drugs like Robitussin DM.

According to the poison center, cough medicines containing DM, when taken in large doses, can cause drowsiness, slurred speech, coma, increased heart rate, hallucinations, confusion and rapid, uncontrolled movements of the eyes.

A large amount of the drug in either form could be fatal.

An additional risk associated with abuse of Coricidin is that overdoses of acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, can cause liver damage.

By CRAIG T. NEISES
[email protected]

READ : http://www.thehawkeye.com/daily/stories/ln12_0204.html

[Toolie]

What the hell? Dextromethorphan is not known as "DM". And Robitussin DM is not what one would safely want to take for recreational DXM usage.

I hope they put a restriction on Robitussin DM and not touch Max Cough. Maybe their total ignorance can pay off for us.

Using DM *is* perfectly safe (as safe as using Max).

[PeoplesMind]

DM = medical terminology for dextromethorphan, whereas DX is the medical term for DXO, ect.

peace,
Nitin

[ranticalion]

Funny, I thought it was the Chlorpheniramine Maleate in Coricidin Cough and Cold that caused the additional risks, not APAP, a chemical which isn't in it.

I think this could lead people to believe that CCC is safe, because it has no acetominophen in it.

[Toolie]

Originally posted by Devorius@Feb 4 2004, 09:58 PM
Using DM *is* perfectly safe (as safe as using Max).

Maybe.. but definately not desirable if you're the normal kind who doesn't like an upset gastrointestinal system.

Originally posted by tripp420@Feb 5 2004, 09:53 AM
Funny, I thought it was the Chlorpheniramine Maleate in Coricidin Cough and Cold that caused the additional risks, not APAP, a chemical which isn't in it.

not only that, but we always take drugs for the side-effects. Why does every source besides ones slanted towards pro-legalisation, ect. only post things like uncontrollable eye movement and slurred speech. I guess my robo-fetish has always been partially for the nausea that came with robomax and partially by the rush that comes when you know you've got a roboitch. Why do we have to fight a war with one arm tied behind our back while our enemies can just make shit up/slant it as they feel necesary. I knew more about DXM from self-discovery in the first five minutes of reading up on it on Erowid (calling my friend and telling him Coricidin was dangerous and not to take it, then reading the FAQ) than people required by job occupation to research topics such as this.