Caps on bottles of the popular pain reliever Tylenol that are sold in the United States will soon come with warnings alerting consumers to the potential for liver failure and even death, the Associated Press reported Thursday.
The warning will state that Tylenol’s active ingredient is acetaminophen, the nation’s leading cause of sudden liver failure. The new cap is designed to alert consumers who may not read similar warnings that already appear in small print on the product’s label, the AP said.
In addition to Tylenol, acetaminophen is contained in more than 600 over-the-counter products used by nearly one in four American adults every week. Those other products include such popular brands as Nyquil cold formula, Excedrin pain tablets and Sudafed sinus pills, the AP reported.
Tylenol’s maker, Johnson & Johnson, said the warning will appear on the cap of each new bottle of Extra Strength Tylenol sold in the United States starting in October, and on most other Tylenol bottles in coming months, the news service said.
Overdoses from acetaminophen send an estimated 55,000 to 80,000 people to U.S. emergency rooms every year and kill at least 500 people, according to the federal health officials.
Women’s Health.gov Health HIghlights Aug 30, 2013