Before taking this medicine

You should not use this medication if you have ever had an allergic reaction to Activated Charcoal.
If possible, before you receive Activated Charcoal, tell your doctor if you are allergic to any drugs, or if you have:

If you have any of these conditions, you may need a dose adjustment or special tests to safely take this medication.
It is not known whether Activated Charcoal is harmful to an unborn baby. Before you take Activated Charcoal, tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant during treatment.
It is not known whether charcoal passes into breast milk or if it could harm a nursing baby. Do not use this medication without telling your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby.

In a poisoning or overdose situation, it may not be possible to tell your caregivers that you are pregnant or breast-feeding before you are treated with Activated Charcoal. However, make sure any doctor caring for your pregnancy or your baby knows that you have received the medication.
Do not give this medication to a child younger than 1 year old without the advice of a doctor.

Uses & Effectiveness?

Possibly Effective for

• Poisoning. Activated charcoal is useful for trapping chemicals to stop some types of poisoning when used as part of standard treatment. Activated charcoal should be given within 1 hour after a poison has been ingested. It does not seem to be beneficial if given for 2 or more hours after some types of poisoning. And activated charcoal doesn't seem to help stop all types of poisoning.

Insufficient Evidence for

• Lowering cholesterol levels. So far, research studies don't agree about the effectiveness of taking activated charcoal by mouth to lower cholesterol levels in the blood.
• Diarrhea caused by the cancer drug irinotecan. Irinotecan is a cancer drug known to cause diarrhea. Early research shows that taking activated charcoal during treatment with irinotecan decreases diarrhea, including severe diarrhea, in children taking this drug.
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• Decreasing gas (flatulence). Some studies show that activated charcoal is effective in reducing intestinal gas, but other studies don't agree. It's too early to come to a conclusion on this.
• Indigestion. Some early research shows that taking certain combination products containing activated charcoal and simethicone, with or without magnesium oxide, can reduce pain, bloating, and feelings of fullness in people with indigestion. It's unclear if taking activated charcoal by itself will help.
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• Treating reduced bile flow (cholestasis) during pregnancy. Taking activated charcoal by mouth seems to help treat cholestasis in pregnancy, according to some early research reports.
• Lowering phophate levels in people on dialysis. Early research shows that taking activated charcoal daily for 24 weeks might reduce phosphate levels in people on hemodialysis who have high phosphate levels.
• Preventing hangover. Activated charcoal is included in some hangover remedies, but some experts are skeptical about how well it might work. Activated charcoal doesn't seem to trap alcohol well.
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• Toxic effects from the antiseizure drug phenytoin. Some early research shows that activated charcoal can help remove phenytoin from the body, bringing the phenytoin levels back to a normal range.
• Wound healing. Studies on the use of activated charcoal for wound healing are mixed. Some early research shows that using bandages with activated charcoal helps wound healing in people with venous leg ulcers. But other research shows that activated charcoal does not help treat bed sores or venous leg ulcers.

• Syrup of ipecac interacts with ACTIVATED CHARCOAL

• Medications taken by mouth (Oral drugs) interacts with ACTIVATED CHARCOAL