{"id":222021,"date":"2025-06-28T18:48:12","date_gmt":"2025-06-28T18:48:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/222021\/"},"modified":"2025-06-28T18:48:12","modified_gmt":"2025-06-28T18:48:12","slug":"experts-warning-about-regular-paracetamol-use","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/222021\/","title":{"rendered":"Expert&#8217;s warning about regular paracetamol use"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The drug is generally safe but taking even a few pills above the recommended daily dose could have extremely dangerous consequences<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/0_A-close-up-image-of-a-woman-in-a-kitchen-taking-medication.jpg\" alt=\"A close-up image of a woman in a kitchen taking medication\" loading=\"eager\"  \/>Paracetamol is s generally safe as long as the recommended dosage is followed(Image: Getty)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \">A critical alert has been sounded for those who frequently use paracetamol. The common pain reliever, used to ease headaches and muscle aches, is safe when taken within the advised limits.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \">Dipa Kamdar, a senior lecturer in pharmacy practice at Kingston University, has highlighted the &#8220;extremely dangerous&#8221; risks of exceeding the recommended dose of paracetamol, which can severely harm the liver.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \">While alcohol consumption is widely recognised as a cause of liver damage, Mrs Kamdar points out that certain &#8220;often overlooked&#8221; everyday habits could also precipitate grave health issues, including irreversible liver scarring or even liver failure.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \">In her article for The Conversation, she notes that an overdose of paracetamol can be life-threatening, just like consuming too much sugar, saturated fats, and smoking.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \">The specialist wrote: &#8220;Despite its remarkable resilience &#8211; and even its ability to regenerate &#8211; the liver is not indestructible.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \">She explains that liver disease can often go unnoticed initially, presenting only subtle symptoms such as persistent tiredness or feeling sick, reports <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.express.co.uk\/life-style\/health\/2073481\/paracetamol-liver-health-warning\" target=\"_self\" aria-label=\"\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\">the Express<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \">As the condition worsens, more pronounced indicators can appear. Jaundice, characterised by yellowing of the skin and eye whites, is one of the most distinctive signs.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/1751136492_564_0_A-close-up-image-of-a-woman-in-a-kitchen-taking-medication.jpg\" alt=\"A close-up image of a woman in a kitchen taking medication\" loading=\"lazy\"  \/>A close-up image of a woman in a kitchen taking medication(Image: Getty)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \">Paracetamol breaking down in the liver generates the harmful substance NAPQI, which is typically neutralised by the protective agent glutathione.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \">However, the liver can become overburdened if an individual consumes an excessive amount of paracetamol, leading to a surge of NAPQI in the body.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \">Mrs Kamdar explained that in the event of an overdose, glutathione reserves are exhausted, allowing NAPQI to build up and damage liver cells.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \">She warned that this could lead to acute liver failure, which can be life-threatening. The specialist highlighted that even minor overdoses, or mixing paracetamol with alcohol, can heighten the risk of severe harm.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \">Her advice is to always adhere to the recommended dosage and consult a doctor if you frequently require pain relief.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The drug is generally safe but taking even a few pills above the recommended daily dose could have&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":222022,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4315],"tags":[105,4326,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-222021","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-medication","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-medication","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114762488638233249","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/222021","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=222021"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/222021\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/222022"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=222021"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=222021"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=222021"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}