New restrictions on a commonly used painkiller

VOICE ONE: The United States government might order new restrictions on a commonly used painkiller. Taking too much acetaminophen can cause liver damage and even death.

Recently, a group of experts advised the Food and Drug Administration that the drug needs more controls and better directions for use. Acetaminophen, also called paracetamol, is found in Tylenol, Excedrin and other products that do not require a doctor's order or prescription. These products are used for pain, high body temperature, colds and sleeplessness.

Their easy availability is part of the problem. People can accidentally take too much acetaminophen if they take several medicines that all contain it.

VOICE TWO: The group proposed reducing the largest non-prescription dose of acetaminophen from one thousand milligrams. The experts said that is too much. They said adults should not take more than six hundred fifty milligrams at a time. They also said people should take less than four thousand milligrams of acetaminophen in a single day.

Acetaminophen overdose is a leading cause of liver damage in the United States. Researchers say it resulted in fifty-six thousand hospital emergency room visits a year during the nineteen nineties. There were almost four hundred sixty deaths a year from liver failure.

The group was especially concerned about prescription drugs that combine acetaminophen with stronger painkillers. The experts proposed banning combination drugs like Percocet and Vicodin. Still, the experts were divided in their votes. The Food and Drug Administration is not required to follow the advice of its committees, but generally does.

VOICE ONE: Acetaminophen is used as a pain and fever reducer for adults and children. It does not cause stomach problems or bleeding like aspirin, ibuprofen and some other drugs can.

But experts say taking even small amounts over the suggested dose can cause liver damage. Some people suffer harm from smaller amounts than others. Mixing alcoholic drinks with acetaminophen is especially bad for the liver.

People should ask a health expert about drug combinations that could be harmful. And they should make sure they know what is in the medicines they take and how much of each one is safe to take.