The Student Room Group

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60 of anything is likely to kill most people.

But herbal? They're mostly made of chalk and LIES!!!
Reply 2
Too much of anything is never a good idea, but I imagine it would take a substantial amount of herbal pills to do any real damage.
Reply 3
So no?
... only one way to find out for sure
Reply 5
Well, if you don't die then you certainly wouldn't be constipated for much longer.
Reply 6
Probably not. Herbal stuff is a waste of overdosing time.
Reply 7
Captain Nebula
60 of anything is likely to kill most people.

But herbal? They're mostly made of chalk and LIES!!!


Even tic-tacs? :eyeball:
Reply 8
Why waste time on herbal pills when you can go straight to the hardcore stuff??
Reply 9
some herbal remedies are actually more effective that other man made substances. just because its natural doesnt mean its not dangerous.
That's like asking, "can you overdose on sniffing lavender?".
Why would you want to overdose on valerian and hops etc?
Reply 12
ummm, having too much of anything can make you ill, and it might be dangerous to overdose on some of the other ingredients in the herbal sleeping tablets, you never know!
Reply 13
Probably not, but check what is in them.

Herbal doesn't equal harmless. A tablespoonful of clove oil is enough to do real damage to your kidneys, and two will (according to my NHS doc) most likely kill you. Rosemary oil is toxic in large doses, so is nutmeg oil. Virtually all oils from 'woody' herbs (eg. rosemary, thyme, lavender) will give you a horrible stomach upset if you take too much, and I suppose they could kill you if you didn't realize and get treatment for dehydration.

Finally, willow extract (usually in the form of salic acid, I think) is the active component of asperin, and as such, can kill you just as overdosing on painkillers do.

Non-lethal, but not pleasant, are St John's wort (treats depression, makes the pill stop working), meadowsweet (good for stomach ache, but also makes you miscarry) and overdoses of evening primrose oil (er .. it's a laxative, I needn't say why taking 60 might make you wish you'd not bothered).

Lavender, rosemary and evening primrose oil are common components of herbal sleeping pills. Some also contain various willow-derived compounds, and some (particularly the ones that are meant to be pain-relief as well) contain clove oil.
Reply 14
Ah, so OTC Nytol won't kill you no matter how much you ingest
Calpol's a better bet.
Reply 16
Anonymous
Ah, so OTC Nytol won't kill you no matter how much you ingest

Anything, including water, can kill you if you ingest enough of it. Whether ingesting that much is viable, however, is another matter. I also imagine it would be an incredibly unpleasent death.
Reply 17
Damn you, Nytol.
All I know is that it only takes 20 paracetamol to OD and die. (which doesn't seem like a lot but it will bugger your kidneys and renal failure = death)
Reply 19
rainbowbex
All I know is that it only takes 20 paracetamol to OD and die. (which doesn't seem like a lot but it will bugger your kidneys and renal failure = death)


Really?? I ought to invest in paracetamol