Keeping activated charcoal in the medicine cabinet may lead to faster and more efficient treatment of children who have swallowed poison at home.

Their study found that activated charcoal, which soaks up poisons in the stomach, is more effective and easier to use than ipecac, a syrup that induces vomiting. Although activated charcoal is the preferred method for treating patients who swallow poison in hospitals, it is used less frequently at home due to concerns that it is too difficult to administer.

But according to a report on 115 children treated with activated charcoal at home after ingesting poison, none of the parents had any major problems administering the charcoal. What's more, children who took charcoal at home got quicker treatment than those cared for in a hospital emergency room -- within 38 minutes versus 73 minutes, on average.

Studies indicate that the charcoal is most effective if given within 1 hour after ingesting poison.

Administration of activated charcoal at home has the potential to reduce the time between toxin ingestion and activated charcoal administration and therefore to increase the efficacy of activated charcoal.

Home use also led to lower costs by reducing the number of patients who would have otherwise been treated in the emergency department.

Pediatrics online December 2001;108:e100

Dr. Mercola's Comments:

If you have any young children at home it would seem wise to purchase some activated charcoal just in case the unthinkable happens and your child accidentally swallows something they shouldn't. Obviously being proactive is even better. Keep potentially dangerous substances securely locked away, or better still, intentionally remove any possible poisons from the home. Activated charcoal does not really work as a drug, but merely as a "magnet" for anything that is in the gut prior to being absorbed in the bloodstream.