New danger from old cold medicine

In case parents don't have enough to worry about already, there's a new danger out there, according to the Nebraska State Patrol.

Add "Cordicidin HPB Cough and Cold" to the list of legal, over-the-counter drugs that can be abused, according to the patrol's Troop B Headquarters in Norfolk.

Used by cold sufferers who have high blood pressure, the small red tablets contain 30 milligrams of destromethorphan -- a cough medicine that's safe when used as directed.

When taken in numbers greater than directed on package labels, however, destromethorphan can lead to hallucinations, loss of motor control and "out-of-body" sensations, according to authorities.

Continued abuse can lead to increased body temperature, nausea, abdominal pain, vomiting, irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, headache, numbing of fingers and toes, loss of consciousness, slurred speech, blurred vision, paranoia, excessive sweating, redness of face, dry and itchy skin, hypothermia, high fever, seizure, brain damage and possibly even death.

The small red pills are known on the street by names like Triple C, DXM, Candy, Skittles, Red Devils, DM, Drex, Robo, Rojo, Velvet and Vitamin D. The act of abusing destromethorphan is often called "dexing," "robotripping" or "robodosing."

Norfolk troopers report receiving calls from school officials about the misuse of the medicine, and that several area pharmacies had already taken steps to move the medicine behind their counters as a precaution.

But it remains a legal drug, and parents need to be aware of its potential for abuse.

"We encourage parents to talk to their children about the dangers of ingesting such medicines and take steps to stop this potential abuse," Lt. Randy Morehead, Troop B investigative services lieutenant said.

Talking to our children -- that's good advice for a whole range of dangers facing students these days.