Even the most common over-the-counter medications can become dangerous when they\u2019re not used correctly.<\/p>\n
Health officials in Connecticut are investigating after three children died over the past two months from apparent overdoses involving diphenhydramine, the active ingredient in Benadryl. The cases are a sobering reminder that medications many families keep within easy reach can pose serious risks if children receive too much.<\/p>\n
Medical experts stress that diphenhydramine is safe and effective when used exactly as directed. But taking too much \u2014 whether accidentally or intentionally \u2014 can quickly become life-threatening.<\/p>\n
The warning extends far beyond Connecticut.<\/p>\n
According to the Texas Poison Center Network, specialists managed more than 238,000 cases in 2024. Nearly half of all human exposure calls involved children younger than 6 years old, underscoring how frequently young children come into contact with medications and other potentially harmful substances.<\/p>\n
Store over-the-counter medicines like prescription drugs<\/p>\n
Toxicologists recommend treating over-the-counter medications with the same level of caution as prescription drugs.<\/p>\n
That means:<\/p>\n
Store medicines high up and locked away. <\/p>\n
Keep medications in their original packaging so dosing instructions remain easy to read. <\/p>\n
Never leave medicines in purses, backpacks or places where children can easily access them. <\/p>\n
Watch for hidden sources of diphenhydramine<\/p>\n
One of the biggest risks is that many parents don\u2019t realize diphenhydramine is found in more than just Benadryl.<\/p>\n
The ingredient is also included in some:<\/p>\n
Cold and flu medications <\/p>\n
Nighttime sleep aids <\/p>\n
Multi-symptom allergy and cold products <\/p>\n
Giving more than one medication containing diphenhydramine can unintentionally result in a dangerous double dose.<\/p>\n
Experts recommend checking the \u201cActive Ingredients\u201d section on every medication label before giving children any medicine.<\/p>\n
Signs of a diphenhydramine overdose<\/p>\n
Symptoms can develop quickly and vary depending on how much was taken.<\/p>\n
Early warning signs may include:<\/p>\n
Extreme drowsiness <\/p>\n
Confusion <\/p>\n
Dilated (large) pupils <\/p>\n
More serious overdoses can cause:<\/p>\n
Rapid heart rate <\/p>\n
Hallucinations <\/p>\n
Seizures <\/p>\n
Trouble breathing <\/p>\n
Irregular heart rhythms <\/p>\n
Anyone who suspects a child has taken too much medication should seek immediate medical guidance.<\/p>\n
Social media challenges pose another concern<\/p>\n
Toxicologists say they\u2019re also seeing more cases involving older children and teenagers influenced by misinformation or dangerous social media trends.<\/p>\n
Dr. Alex Harding, Director of Medical Toxicology at Baylor College of Medicine, says parents should encourage their children to question health advice they see online and make sure information comes from credible, science-based sources.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody has kind of the same voice when it comes to social media,\u201d Harding said. \u201cSomebody can publish something that is completely unfounded in actual scientific literature and get the same amount of following as somebody with credentials. Encouraging them to evaluate the source of the information and make sure they\u2019re not taking things at face value is very important.\u201d<\/p>\n
Experts also recommend making sure children know they can ask a trusted adult, healthcare provider or pharmacist before trying anything they see online.<\/p>\n
Save this number before you need it<\/p>\n
Poison experts say one of the simplest steps families can take is saving the national Poison Help number in their phones.<\/p>\n
The Poison Center is available 24 hours a day to provide immediate guidance if someone may have been exposed to a potentially dangerous medication or substance.<\/p>\n
Poison Help: 1-800-222-1222<\/p>\n
Acting quickly can help determine the safest next steps and, in some cases, prevent a medical emergency.<\/p>\n
Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Even the most common over-the-counter medications can become dangerous when they\u2019re not used correctly. Health officials in Connecticut…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":539755,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[229282,103,61,60,371,229278,229279,229283,229280,229281],"class_list":["post-539754","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-medication","tag-child-overdose-prevention","tag-health","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-medication","tag-over-the-counter-medication-risks","tag-parenting-medication-safety","tag-poison-help-number","tag-social-media-medication-trends","tag-texas-poison-center"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/539754","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=539754"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/539754\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/539755"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=539754"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=539754"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=539754"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}