Does a Soft Drink Mixture Improve Tolerance of Activated Charcoal in the Adult Poisoned Patient Without Affecting Efficacy: A Randomized Crossover Trial

Activated charcoal (AC) is an established, effective means of gastrointestinal decontamination. Providers give it to patients who have ingested something that is thought to be potentially poisonous to prevent it from being absorbed. However, one limitation to its use is palatability of the AC for the patient, potentially limiting how much, if any, is taken.

Other studies have suggested that mixing AC with various substances improves the rating on various scales (taste, etc). An important question is whether mixing the AC with other substance effects the ability of the AC to bind to xenobiotic in the gut. This small study investigates whether mixed cola with charcoal affected its ability to prevent the absorption of acetaminophen. It also performs a survery to see if participants preferred the AC-cola mixture. The investigators hypothesize that the AC will be equally as effective with cola as without. The investigators also hypothesize that participants will prefer the AC-cola mixture.