Parents are being reminded to store medications safely amid a surge in children suffering from seizures caused by over-the-counter pills.
US researchers said the number suffering the medical emergencies after swallowing medications or illegal substances had doubled overall over the 15 years to 2023.
Among those aged six to 19 years, it had risen two-fold, while among those under six years old, it had risen by 45 percent.
Common hay fever and nasal congestion drug Benadryl was the most common medication that children had overdosed on before having seizures. Antidepressant Wellbutrin was the third most common.
Dr Christopher Holstege, a toxicologist at the University of Virginia who led the research, said: ‘It’s a stark reminder to parents and caregivers to store medications safely so that children cannot get hold of them.
Pictured above is Jacob Stevens, 13, from Ohio, who died after taking 12 to 14 Benadryl tablets at once and suffering from a seizure. He is pictured in the hospital before doctors turned off his ventilator
‘The increase in seizures in children exposed to these drugs is extremely worrying and must be addressed.’
He added: ‘In the US, we also need to have a serious discussion on whether products like diphenhydramine should be sold in containers with such large quantities of pills.’
The study used data from the US National Poison Data System on seizures recorded in children from 2009 to 2023.
It also found that tramadol, sold under the brand name Ultram and an opioid for pain in adults, was the second most common drug children had overdosed on before having seizures.
And the fourth most common was Spice or K2, which is the name given to illegal synthetic cannabinoid substances.
Benadryl is an antihistamine that can bind to receptors in the brain and stimulate the nervous system. Excessive stimulation from exceptionally high doses can lead to seizures, doctors say.
Overall, the study found that the number of children hospitalized for seizures from over-the-counter drugs rose by about five percent every year.
In 2009, there were 1,418 cases among those under 20 years old. But by 2023, this had risen to 2,749 cases.
The results of the study were presented at the European Emergency Medicine Congress taking place in the Bella Center in Copenhagen, Denmark.
It comes following several deaths among children taking part in the viral craze called the ‘Benadryl Challenge’ — which involved taking up to 14 pills at once to get high and have hallucinations.
Chloe Marie Phillips, from Oklahoma, died aged 15 after consuming an unknown number of Benadryl tablets for the challenge
She is pictured above in a photo from Facebook. Her great aunt posted a now deleted message urging others not to try the challenge
The manufacturer says children over 12 years old should not take more than four pills every four to six hours.
Among those to die after trying the challenge was 13-year-old Jacob Howard Stevens from Greenfield, Ohio, who took 12 to 14 Benadryl pills at once in April 2023.
The teen was at home with friends and was filmed attempting the challenge, before he suddenly started to have seizures.
He was rushed to the hospital, where scans showed there was no activity in his brain.
His parents were told he would never open his eyes again, smile, walk or talk. After six days in the hospital, his ventilator was turned off.
His grandmother Dianna Stevens said in tears: ‘I’m going to do anything I can to make sure another child doesn’t go through it.’
Justin Stevens, his father, described the day his son’s ventilator was switched off as the ‘worst day of his life’.
In another case from September 2020, 15-year-old Chloe Marie Phillips from Oklahoma died after overdosing on the drug. It is unclear how many pills she took.
Her great aunt, Janette Sissy Leasure, said online at the time in a now-deleted post: ‘This needs to stop taking our kids or putting them in the hospital.
‘Don’t let it take anymore kids… I don’t want to see any families go through what we are going through right now.’
