Inpatient Alcoholic Gets Hammered After Drinking Hand Sanitizer In Australian Hospital

According to a letter published in the Sydney Journal of Medicine, an 45-year-old Australian man in treatment for alcoholism was found to be dangerously drunk after ingesting six 375 milliliter bottles of hand sanitizer from his hospital bathroom. (That's as much liquid as three wine bottles!) His blood alcohol level was 0.271 percent, half way to the often-lethal 0.5 percent. The primary ingredient in most hand sanitizers is isopropyl alcohol, which is not generally considered safe for human consumption. It can still get you drunk—but not without making you sick. And the non-alcoholic additives of hand sanitizers (like fragrances) can be even more dangerous.

Doctors called this case the worst any of them had seen, but it's hardly the first time someone has tried to get drunk off hand sanitizer. Doctors have been reporting alarming incidents for years, often in hospitals. And YouTube is full of videos of teens daring each other to take shots of Germ-X. These cases have led physicians to call for safer hand sanitizer dispenser designs—especially the installation of non-removable canisters in public restrooms, which would make it harder for alcohol-starved to gulp it straight from the bottle.

Comments

[SlurmsMcKenzie]

09:00 PM on 06/21/2011

Years ago at a seven-eleven, I saw a guy refused beer because it was after hours. He bought a bottle of robotusin or some other cough syrup, slammed it and left the empty on the counter, got in his car and drove off.

[BKearney]

06:53 PM on 06/21/2011

A good friend of mine who ia a pediatrician tells me that he often has worried parents bringing in their kids who seem drunk. They all have very clean hands though. Something to think about if your're trying not to drink or if you're morman.

[Daisytoo]

01:26 PM on 06/21/2011

This "amusing" story is not amusing. Addiction is a terrible, deathly condition - a devastating disease.

Back in 1985, when Gorbachev instituted his anti-alcohol campaign and raised the price of alcohol in the USSR to prohibitive levels, some alcoholics were, tragically, drinking shoe polish.

[anonymous777]

11:46 AM on 06/21/2011

Does anyone else remember when Meredith at hand sanitizer on The Office?

[Jess Barnett]

10:39 AM on 06/21/2011

Sad but true.

[ontariogirl]

09:04 AM on 06/21/2011

The hands in the picture are scarey looking.

[knifebeard]

03:47 PM on 06/21/2011

That was the first thing I thought when I saw this article.

[GibbsSlap]

04:32 PM on 06/21/2011

Of course it was the first thing you saw, it was supposed to be the first thing you saw. The hands do look frightening. This is a sad and scary story.

[NikitaAhn]

04:55 AM on 06/21/2011

The level of addiction that would drive someone to drink three bottles of hand sanitizer is a sad thing. I hope this man gets sober and gets his life back, because he's clearly very sick. It's not funny, it's someone's life.

[Fuddgate]

01:11 AM on 06/21/2011

The Rite Aid hand sanitizer I'm looking at says 62% Ethyl alcohol. For external use only.

mmmmm.........Mouthwash! I'm guessing that stuff gives you a gruesome hangover. Desperate alcoholics would drink that for sure.

[knifebeard]

03:49 PM on 06/21/2011

An old friend made it impossible for me to have mouthwash in the house. If he found it while he was in the restroom, it was gone.

[am44smith]

12:33 AM on 06/21/2011

Woow! He has Amy Winehouse beaten by a mile!

It's time for him to go to rehab, and I say go, go, go!

[cameron d]

12:03 AM on 06/21/2011

When you want a drink you really want a drink.

[regjack]

11:58 PM on 06/20/2011

I tell you, people have gone from sniffing to drinking anything these days!

[Grada3784]

11:14 AM on 06/21/2011

Rgese days?

This sort of thing goes way back to Sterno drinkers and Listerine drinkers.

[Emy Freeland]

11:40 PM on 06/20/2011

Yeah, this guy sounds like he is sooo ready for rehab. Did a quick look up and did the english conversion but that much is like 12 fl oz of hand sanitizer per container. This guy would probably drink aftershave and glass cleaner if given the opportunity.

[cardiaccare]

10:23 PM on 06/20/2011

Must have been really thirsty.

[Daniel Brackins]

09:27 PM on 06/20/2011

wow this is crazy!

[Danny de Gracia II]

09:28 PM on 06/20/2011

Next thing you know they'll make edible hand sanitizer with flavors in them like pina colada or limeade

[Mr Crabs]

11:03 PM on 06/20/2011

They make scented ones already that smell remarkably close.

[spytheweb]

06:50 PM on 06/20/2011

He wanted his colon cleansed.