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Paracetamol 'too easily available'4 August 2006 Recommendations on the amount of paracetamol that should be sold in one go are being contravened, with some outlets selling more than government legislation allows, according to a new study. The 1998 UK legislation on paracetamol was introduced in a bid to curb the 200-plus deaths per year due to paracetamol poisoning. The legislation restricts the number of 500mg paracetamol tablets in a pack to 32 in pharmacies and 16 in other shops such as supermarkets and petrol stations. But although drugs watchdog the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) also recommends that only one packet should be sold to a person at any one time, a survey published in the Postgraduate Medical Journal showed that many outlets and pharmacies are contravening these recommendations. The researchers at Guy's and St Thomas' Poisons Unit in London questioned 107 people who had suffered from paracetamol poisoning. Of these, 77 people had swallowed more than 16 tablets. Over half of the individuals had deliberately set out to buy paracetamol for an overdose, and 16 had managed to buy more than one packet at a time. The researchers also visited pharmacies in South London to find out how much paracetamol they could buy. In four of the eight pharmacies they visited, they were able to buy at least 48 tablets in one go. The researchers point out that although the study is small and limited to a small area of London, it shows that the current legislation may not be achieving its aim of limiting the amount of paracetamol that people are able to buy in one go. This could lead to misuse and overdose of the drug. More information
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