By Kris Ochs, Pharm.D. student Have you heard of this trend in teen drug abuse called “Pharming”? Pharming refers to the practice of abusing prescription medications and over-the-counter (OTC) cough and cold products. This includes taking a higher dose of one’s own medication than is prescribed, taking a drug that is prescribed for someone else, … more
By Erin Pallasch, PharmD and IPC Call Center Specialist Recently, I set out on a quest to determine which would be the scariest berry ingestion a parent might call the Illinois Poison Center about. There are many toxic berries out there, but the one I would be most concerned with would be the Chinaberry. The ingestion of only … more
A few years ago we published a case report of a fatal ingestion of the Yew plant in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). It was one of two deaths reported to the Illinois Poison Center (IPC) due to this plant in the 12 years that I have been associated with the Illinois … more
Jimson Weed, (scientific name Datura stramonium) is a toxic plant found all over Illinois. Some of its other common names include devil’s trumpet, thorn apple, Jamestown weed, stinkweed, and locoweed. This plant grows throughout Illinois, either wild or as part of a planned landscape. It has a beautiful flower that inspired Georgia O’Keeffe to paint … more
