What's Tylenol Doing to Our Minds?

[Gus]

"The active drug in Tylenol, acetaminophen, is one of the best medications
we have for helping people in pain. It's also one the most commonly
overdosed substances in the world and puts about 60,000 Americans in the
hospital every year. Several hundred people in the U.S. will die in 2013
from liver failure after acetaminophen overdose... Acetaminophen is also
more accepted in that we don't think of Tylenol as altering our mental
state. People can take it and still drive a car and go to work and remain
fully present beings. But the more it's studied, the more it seems we may be
overlooking subtle cognitive effects. In 2009, research showed that it
seemed to dull the pain of social rejection -- sort of like alcohol or
Xanax."

http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/04/whats-tylenol-doing-to-our-minds/275101/

http://tinyurl.com/brtahe3


"humans with rabbit heads wander an urban apartment muttering non
sequiturs..."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jSBVo59j9U

[John Dean]

"Gus" <Gus.O...@geemail.com> wrote in message
news:kkrhum$6op$1...@dont-email.me...

> "The active drug in Tylenol, acetaminophen, is one of the best medications
> we have for helping people in pain. It's also one the most commonly
> overdosed substances in the world and puts about 60,000 Americans in the
> hospital every year. Several hundred people in the U.S. will die in 2013
> from liver failure after acetaminophen overdose... Acetaminophen is also
> more accepted in that we don't think of Tylenol as altering our mental
> state. People can take it and still drive a car and go to work and remain
> fully present beings. But the more it's studied, the more it seems we may
> be overlooking subtle cognitive effects. In 2009, research showed that it
> seemed to dull the pain of social rejection -- sort of like alcohol or
> Xanax."
>
> http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/04/whats-tylenol-doing-to-our-minds/275101/
>
> http://tinyurl.com/brtahe3

Acetaminophen is most commonly known as Paracetamol in the UK. Because of
the toxicity problem with overdoses (accidental or deliberate) legislation
15 years ago provided a limit on the amount that could be sold at one time.
I was one of those who doubted this would have any effect but several
studies have shown that it did and does:

http://www.bmj.com/content/346/bmj.f403

--
John Dean

[Paul Madarasz]

On Fri, 19 Apr 2013 09:50:53 -0400, "Gus" <Gus.O...@geemail.com>
wrote, perhaps among other things:

Is there anything to dull the pain of social acceptance?