Connecticut families are being urged to lock up their medicine cabinets after three children in the state died in two months from apparent overdoses of diphenhydramine, the active ingredient in Benadryl. State officials issued the warning as a dangerous social media trend known as the Benadryl Challenge resurfaces online.
The tragedies struck even though Connecticut offers a wide range of medical and holistic programs to combat substance misuse. While services throughout the Constitution State are effective, they often don’t consider impressionable kids who unintentionally overdose because of an online dare.
The Connecticut Office of the Child Advocate confirmed the deaths and noted officials couldn’t yet confirm a direct link to the challenge. Even so, the agency wants parents and providers to know that adolescents may misuse these common OTC medications.
Tragedies in Connecticut
Social media and the internet in general have long had a connection with drug overdoses among young people. The Benadryl Challenge first appeared in 2020 and dares young people to swallow large amounts of diphenhydramine to bring on hallucinations and film the results. Dr. Gary Soffer, a Yale School of Medicine pediatrician, noted that kids might take up to 10x the recommended dose in anticipation of the psychedelic effects.
Doctors say the danger is severe. Dr. Krishnan Narasimhan of Stamford Hospital warned that too much diphenhydramine can cause severe agitation, extra heartbeats, cardiac complications, cardiac arrest and death.
But the larger picture often eludes children who impulsively take on the Benadryl Challenge. And safeguards are generally lacking. A family friend relayed that a 13-year-old girl in Waterbury received Benadryl delivered by DoorDash without an ID check.
Diphenhydramine
Diphenhydramine is an antihistamine sold under the brand name Benadryl and found in many over-the-counter allergy, sleep, and motion-sickness products. It crosses the blood-brain barrier, which is why it causes heavy drowsiness. In large doses it can impair breathing to the point of coma. Unlike prescription cough syrups, most diphenhydramine medications are legal, cheap, and easy to get. Thus, misuse can be hard for parents to spot.
Warning signs that a child may be misusing a medication can include unusual drowsiness or agitation, confusion, a racing heartbeat, missing pills or hidden empty packaging. This is substance misuse, not addiction in the traditional sense, but the same principle applies in that any drug, prescription or over-the-counter, can be dangerous when misused.
Connecticut Parents Can Respond
Child Advocate Christina Ghio urged parents to store all medications safely so they aren’t easily accessible to children. Officials also stressed talking with kids about what they see online and reminding them it’s always okay to call 911 if they see something unsafe.
Connecticut families can reach mental health support through connectingtocarect.org, by dialing 211, and through the state’s Urgent Crisis Centers, including The Village for Families and Children in Hartford and Wellmore Behavioral Health in Waterbury.
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