Effects Of Paracetamol On Personality

The hepatotoxic effects of paracetamol were already known. However, there was previously no record that the drug also caused personality changes. Now a study by the University of Ohio has looked at it.

One study confirms that acetaminophen has an impact on the personality of the people who take this drug. These are quite unexpected and previously unknown effects. In particular , acetaminophen can lead to a decrease in compassion for others.

This drug is also known as acetaminophen. It  is a very widely used medicine because of its analgesic and antipyretic properties. For this reason, it is often used to treat mild or moderate pain and febrile conditions.

Like other drugs, acetaminophen can cause a number of undesirable side effects. However, these are already known and to be expected at the start of treatment. So far, we only knew about the hepatotoxic side effects when taken in high doses.

Studies confirming the effects of acetaminophen on personality

So far, acetaminophen has been shown to be useful in treating both physical and psychological pain. But the latest research from Ohio State University (USA) goes one step further.

Because they examined paracetamol and discovered a new, previously unknown side effect in the course of their work . This is how these researchers found that paracetamol can reduce positive emotions.

Two studies were carried out with students from the same university.

The first study

The first study included 82 participants. Half of them took an acute dose of 1 gram of paracetamol. The other group got a placebo. Then you waited about an hour before showing them a series of selected photos. These were designed to evoke emotional responses. There were three types of photographs:

• Very uncomfortable pictures : for example of malnourished children.
• Neutral photos: no clear emotional component.
• And very beautiful and pleasant pictures.

After looking at each photo, the participants in the study were asked to rate how pleasant or uncomfortable they found the picture on a scale from -5 to +5. Then they were asked to rate their emotional reaction to the photos on a scale from 0 to 10.

The experiment showed that the group who had taken the 1-gram dose of paracetamol rated the photos less extremely than the group who had been given the placebo. The same result came about with regard to the emotional reactions.

The second study

After the results obtained from the first study, the researchers conducted a second study. In this, a group of 85 people were shown the same photos. Even now, the participants should rate them according to the same criteria as in the first study. But this time the researchers added another component. Because they wanted to get confirmation that paracetamol only affects emotions and not judgment in general.

For this purpose, in addition to the tests mentioned above, the participants were asked to rate how much blue they saw in each photo. As in the first study , the assessments and emotional reactions of those who took paracetamol differed from those who received placebo. They reacted to both the unpleasant and the pleasant images much less strongly than the other group.

However, the ratings for the amount of blue were similar in both groups. So they saw the same amount of blue in the pictures, regardless of whether the participants had previously taken paracetamol or not. The results suggest that paracetamol only affects the emotional assessments. And has no influence on judgment in general.

In summary, about the effects of paracetamol on personality:

At this time , researchers don’t know whether other pain relievers, such as ibuprofen and aspirin, have the same effects. But there are already plans to conduct investigations.

Paracetamol, unlike many other pain relievers, is not a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID). That means it doesn’t control inflammation in the body. However, it is not yet known whether this fact is relevant to the possible emotional impact of the drugs.

In the study that was carried out, an attempt was made to examine the influence of paracetamol on people’s sensitivity. So on the sensitivity that causes some people to react differently to positive and negative events in life.

The aim was to confirm that paracetamol has an impact on people’s personality. However, further investigations have to be carried out in order to really confirm this result or, if necessary, to reject it.