Warning About Using Paracetamol: Excessive Intake Puts A Person's Risk Of Having Liver Failure

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Aside from being inexpensive, paracetamols are the easiest over-the-counter medicines to purchase. Therefore, it's not a surprise if many people are using it on themselves without even consulting a physician. However, a new study suggests that "self-administering paracetamol" can put a person's liver function at risk.

Paracetamols are known as the common painkiller but it's rarely known to cause damage to the vital organs of the human body. A high number of dosage "is considered to be the leading cause of acute liver failure in the Western world," according to Daily Mail. Experts believe that the recent breakthrough could give way to the production of safer alternatives.

A research conducted at the University of Edinburgh shows the effect of paracetamol on a human's liver cells and a mouse's tissue. It shows that the over-the-counter medicine can damage the liver through crippling vital structural connection of the adjacent cells.

The disrupted cell wall connections, or also known as the tight junctions, disable the cells to function improperly, which may lead to death. "Paracetamol is the world's preferred pain remedy - it is cheap and considered safe and effective at a therapeutic dose," Dr. Leonard Nelson said. "However, drug-induced liver damage remains an important clinical problem and a challenge for developing safer drugs."

Nevertheless, the research shows a limited scope as it highlights the paracetamols to be safe when taking in proper, therapeutic doses. However, the dangers come in after taking it more than the prescribed dose, leaving users to monitor their consumption carefully.

Express reported that paracetamol has survived for 50 years its initial release om the market. Until then, it is considered as safe and effective for several treatments, however, it's best to seek advice from pharmacists to have proper instruction about its intake.