Why does Visine give diarrhea? But its use as a poison isn't new. An urban legend termed the "Visine prank" suggests that tetrahydrozoline causes violent diarrhea if taken orally, popularized in the 2005 comedy Wedding Crashers, where one of the main characters puts eye drops in a rival's drink. Click to see full answer.
Full Answer
Will a few drops of Visine cause diarrhea?
05/01/2022 · Answer. However, the usage of this plant as a poison is not new. When tetrahydrozoline is taken orally, according to an urban legend known as the "Visine prank," it produces severe diarrhoea. This urban legend was popularised in the 2005 film Wedding Crashers, in which one of the main characters slips eye drops in a rival's drink.
Can Visine really be used as a laxative?
30/04/2020 · Why does Visine give diarrhea? But its use as a poison isn't new. An urban legend termed the " Visine prank" suggests that tetrahydrozoline causes violent diarrhea if taken orally, popularized in the 2005 comedy Wedding Crashers, where one of the main characters puts eye drops in a rival's drink.
What happened to the woman who put Visine in her husband’s drink?
26/10/2021 · Can Visine really give you diarrhea? According to ABC, there is an urban legend that Visine consumption causes diarrhea. But the US National Institute of Health says that the poisoning is much more serious, able to cause health problems such as coma, tremors and seizures.
What happens if you give a child Visine eye drops?
25/09/2016 · Can visine really give people diarrhea? 1 doctor answer • 2 doctors weighed in. What happens if consumed, how fast would you get diarrhea from visine eye drops? 1 doctor answer • 2 doctors weighed in. My nephew has had diarrhea for a while. Possible causes? 1 doctor answer • 5 doctors weighed in. Can a liquid diet cause diarrhea ? 1 doctor answer • 2 doctors weighed …
What are the symptoms of tetrahydrozoline?
Consuming tetrahydrozoline has several unpleasant symptoms, none of which typically include diarrhea. It’s easy to see that ingesting it is in fact poisoning. The symptoms include, but are not limited to: 1 Difficulty or halting of breathing 2 Blurred vision 3 High blood pressure followed by a sudden drop in blood pressure 4 Headaches 5 Seizures 6 In severe cases, falling into a coma.
What happened to Visine in South Carolina?
In 2018, a woman in South Carolina was charged with murdering her husband. She put a large amount of Visine into his drink. It is unclear what her intentions were, but her actions led to her husband’s death. Smaller doses aren’t deadly but they still have an intensely negative effect on the victim.
How to get rid of diarrhea from eating fruit?
Taking Epsom salt with water is also a quick remedy for constipation, although the taste is awful. Simply mix two to six teaspoons of Epsom salt with water and drink. 3. Pear, Prune, or Mango Juice. Most fruits will cause a light form of diarrhea when eaten in excess.
Is it legal to put something in someone's drink without their knowledge?
A Word on Pranks. Putting anything in a person’s drink without their knowledge is both dangerous and legally punishable. There are some other popular pranks that make it seem like drugging someone is funny. The pranksters might be out for revenge or looking to publically humiliate the victim.
Can Vicine cause an allergic reaction?
Even if the drug used is harmless (unlike Vicine), it may induce an allergic reaction in the victim. Or the drug might react badly with other medication that a person is taking. There is simply no way to predict how the victim’s body will react if you put something in their drink.
Can you drink Senna tea while pregnant?
You may buy it in tablet form, but drinking it in the form of a tea will also clear up constipation in no time. But senna should never be used during pregnancy or lactation, as it has been linked with birth abnormalities. 2.
Why do people use visine?
Some consume Visine to try to treat their own digestive problems. Others use it the way that was shown in the movie. They prank people, hoping to induce a laxative effect. But using Visine in this manner in effect poisons the victim. You can also poison yourself should you attempt to use it to treat constipation.
What are the side effects of Visine eye drops?
The active ingredient in Visine eye drops is Tetrahydrozoline HCl 0.05%. Swallowing this substance can result in a number of nasty effects, including: 1 Lowering body temperature to dangerous levels 2 Making breathing difficult, or even halting it entirely 3 Blurring vision 4 Causing nausea and vomiting 5 Elevating and then dropping blood pressure 6 Causing seizures or tremors 7 Sending the ingester into a coma
Why did a high school student put eye drops in a water bottle?
In October 2003, an unnamed Southern California high school student put eye drops in teacher’s water bottle in an attempt to give his instructor severe diarrhea. Others in the class who saw the act removed the adulterated beverage before the intended victim could drink it.
Does tetrahydrozoline cause diarrhea?
One thing tetrahydrozoline has not been known to do is to cause sudden onset bouts of severe diarrhea. Although this belief has been around for decades, and everyone knows someone who knows someone who really did administer a Visine mickey to a deserving miscreant and thereby caused him an immediate serious case of the trots, ...
Does visine cause diarrhea?
Yet if Visine doesn’t cause diarrhea , it has done things far more terrible. Drinking it can (and has) caused severe depression of the central nervous system. In 1996, a two-year-old child who ingested at most 2 to 3 mL of Visine eye drops became dangerously lethargic and unresponsive to every stimulus except deep pain.
Why was Shayne Carpenter arrested?
In March 2013, a 27-year-old mechanic named Shayne Carpenter was arrested in Grass Valley, California, for putting eye drops in his girlfriend’s drink after an argument with her, causing her to feel ill.
What happens if you swallow Visine?
Swallowing this substance can result in a number of nasty effects, including: Lowering body temperature to dangerous levels. Making breathing difficult, or even halting it entirely. Pfizer’s cautions to users of Visine include: “If swallowed, get medical help or contact a Poison Control Center right away.”.
How much did Anzalone pay for her arrest?
Gentissi experienced vomiting and bleeding from his rectum, and Anzalone eventually agreed to a plea bargain with prosecutors under which she was ordered to pay $10,000 in hospital bills, serve three years’ probation, and obey an order of protection.
Can visine cause diarrhea?
Almost everyone has heard the rumors circulating that Visine, when put in someone’s drink can cause them to have explosive diarrhea. Bartenders often claim that this is their secret for getting back at customers who have been obnoxious or have caused them problems of some sort.
Can you put eye drops in a drink?
Doing so could result in dire consequences such as severe medical complications or even death. In conclusion, if you are ever tempted to use eye drops in a person’s drink as an effort to get revenge, the best advice is to think twice before doing so.
What to do if you feel you have been poisoned?
If you feel that there will be no other option, you can call the authorities and alert them. You can go to the person who is about to be poisoned and tell him or her. There are a number of things which can be done. One of the things you cannot do is sit back quietly and allow harm to be done to someone else.
Is visine poisonous?
Documented Proof That Visine Is Poisonous When Ingested. While eye drops have not been proven to cause diarrhea, they certainly have been proven to do things which are much more detrimental. In 1996 there was a case of a two-year-old child who swallowed about 2 to 3 mL of eye drops.
What is the active ingredient in Visine eye drops?
The active ingredient in Visine eye drops is Tetrahydrozoline HCl 0.05%. Swallowing this substance can result in a number of nasty effects, including: Lowering body temperature to dangerous levels. Making breathing difficult, or even halting it entirely. Blurring vision.
Can you poison yourself with polonium 210?
A small capsule of Polonium-210 is in a low cost product that can be purchased on Amazon. It’s enough to kill someone with if dropped into someone’s drink. But there’s a good chance you might instead poison yourself trying to open the polonium-210 capsule unless your are very careful.
What is the half life of polonium 210?
Polonium-210 is an alpha emitter, it quickly decays to polonium-209, an alpha and beta emitter with a half-life of 125 years. [Polonium has few applications, and those are related to its radioactivity: heaters in space probes, antistatic devices, and sources of neutrons and alpha particles.
Why are eye drops called buckets?
Otherwise, they’d be called “other orifice drops.”. They are also called drops and not buckets because you are only supposed to use limited amounts.
Can you eat contact lens drops?
It’s a different story if eye drops go down your mouth. Your eyes may be bigger than your stomach, but these body parts are just not the same. That’s why you don’t typically eat your contact lens.
Can eye drops cause death?
There it can get the drop on you and slow your heart rate and lower your blood pressure to dangerous levels. It can also lead to a drop in body temperature, a coma, and, of course, death. Eye drops go in your eyes. Not your mouth.
Is it safe to put eye drops in children's mouth?
So if you’ve got children or very small actors around, make sure that you keep eye drops safe and secure. You don’t want them putting even a few milliliters of the stuff into their mouths.
What happened to Lana Sue Clayton?
On Thursday, Lana Sue Clayton was sentenced to 25-years in prison for voluntary manslaughter. The former Veterans Affairs nurse and South Carolina resident had pleaded guilty of putting Visine eye drops in her husband’s drink. No, she didn’t just have bad aim. She admitted to doing this deliberately and surreptitiously.
How old was Steven Clayton when he was convicted?
Here’s an ABC News segment on the case: As Ryan Miller reported for the Greenville News, the 53-year-old Clayton pled guilty to “voluntary manslaughter and tampering with a food or drug after she admitted to giving her husband Steven Clayton drinks laced with Visine.”.
Can you use eye drops over the counter?
In general, be careful about using such eye drops, even if they go where they are supposed to go. While they are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for over-the-counter use, avoid using such medications unless you really need them. All medications can have side effects.

Quotes
Significance
- The Visine slipped into the drink pay back carries additional appeal because it seems to offer an effective yet harmless form of retaliation that could be easily and furtively administered even by the wimpiest of revenge seekers. Also, the mental image of an enemy sent hotfooting for the toilet is a hugely satisfying one, especially in a society that views fecal output as something to be ash…
Toxicity
- The active ingredient in Visine eye drops is Tetrahydrozoline HCl 0.05%. Swallowing this substance can result in a number of nasty effects, including:
Safety
- Pfizers cautions to users of Visine include: If swallowed, get medical help or contact a Poison Control Center right away. In view of the above list, that advice should not be taken lightly.
Adverse effects
- Yet if Visine doesnt cause diarrhea, it has done things far more terrible. Drinking it can (and has) caused severe depression of the central nervous system. In 1996, a two-year-old child who ingested at most 2 to 3 mL of Visine eye drops became dangerously lethargic and unresponsive to every stimulus except deep pain. Thanks to prompt medical attention the child recovered, but …
Crime
- In June 2014, a 22-year-old woman named Samantha Elizabeth Unger was arrested in Thurmont, Maryland, and charged with aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of children. According to police, Unger confessed to poisoning her 3-year-old son by putting Visine in his water bottle and juice bottle (the boy was hospitalized several times but survived) and also caus…
Prevention
- Medical literature reports other cases of small children brought to the brink of crisis by ingestion of tiny amounts of over-the-counter eye drops. The danger is real, and parents are well advised to keep eye drops away from children.
Risks
- Yet it is not only toddlers who risk central nervous system shutdown or other dire results if they swallow Visine, as demonstrated by the following examples:
In popular culture
- Sightings: In an episode of televisions CSI (Revenge Is Best Served Cold, original air date 26 September 2002), a drink spiked in this fashion caused a death when the eye drops initiated a fatal reaction with chocolate the victim had eaten.