Poisoning

This page covers the following topics: alcohol poisoning, nitrous oxide poisoning, knockout drops, first aid in various poisoning situations, warning signs of chemicals, carbon monoxide poisoning, poisonous mushrooms, the use of activated charcoal and adder bites.

Contact the Poison Information Centre if you suspect poisoning!

Call the toll-free number 0800 147 111. Poison Information Centre is available around the clock every day of the year.

Poison Information Center

Most of the poisoning cases in Finland are caused by medications and intoxicants

• At home, poisoning cases are most commonly caused by medications, intoxicants, toxic plants, chemicals and mushrooms.
• A poisoning is typically caused by the mixed use of medications, alcohol or narcotics.
• There are also cases of carbon monoxide poisonings in Finland.
• The severity of poisoning symptoms and the rate at which they appear depend on the poison and its quantity as well as how the poison entered the body.
• Injected or inhaled poisons act quickly. Inhaling poisonous gases in an enclosed space can cause rapid death.
• The effects of oral poisoning usually develop slowly, but even then the initial symptoms can be serious.

Source: Kotitapaturma.fi

Every year, hundreds of people under the age of 25 are admitted to hospital for treatment for accidental poisoning.

Alcohol poisoning

• If you drink a lot of alcohol quickly, you can get alcohol poisoning.
• For most people, a blood alcohol content of over 0.3% is life-threatening.
• The consequences of alcohol poisoning include memory loss, confusion, impaired coordination, decreased consciousness, delirium or delirium tremens and coma.
• In severe cases of poisoning, the central nervous system eventually shuts down to the point of unconsciousness, and the person can no longer be properly revived.

Alcohol is usually the cause of fatal poisonings.

The most common cause of deaths related to narcotics is buprenorphine, which belongs to the opioid family.

Nitrous oxide poisoning

Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency (Tukes) and Poison Information Centre of HUS warn against the recreational use of nitrous oxide, which has become more popular especially among young people.

• Unlike e.g. alcohol or cannabis, nitrous oxide is an odourless and flavourless substance when it is used.
• Recurring and long-term use of nitrous oxide can cause serious neurological symptoms and, in worst cases, even permanent damage, such as impaired mobility.
• It is forbidden to sell nitrous oxide for recreational use.

Knockout drops pose a serious danger

Knockout drops are a generic term for medications and narcotics that are used to drug the victim without their knowledge.

Knockout drops might be added to an alcoholic drink at a bar, for example.

They cause, among other things, confusion, nausea and memory loss.

If your friend becomes unusually confused all of a sudden during a night out at the bar, and you suspect that they have been drugged with knockout drops, act quickly!

• Don’t leave you friend alone under any circumstances.
• Inform the restaurant staff about the situation and help your friend safely out of the bar.
• Go to the emergency department together for a medical examination and drug tests. Knockout drops are not necessarily visible in laboratory tests, and some drugs disappear from the body within 24 hours.
• Help your friend with reporting the crime. Drugging is an assault offence.

Source: Victim Support Finland (RIKU)

First aid for different types of poisoning

If a toxic substance has been ingested

– Rinse the mouth. Do not induce vomiting.
– Find out what substance has been ingested and how much of it.
– Contact the Poison Information Centre for risk assessment and further instructions.
– In some cases, the Poison Information Centre may advice you to administer activated carbon to prevent absorption. Watch a video on how to administer activated carbon (in Finnish).

If a toxic substance has been inhaled

– Move the exposed person into the fresh air and put them in a resting, preferably reclining, position. Be careful not to expose yourself to the toxic substance.
– Find out what substance has been inhaled. Contact the Poison Information Centre for risk assessment and further instructions.
– If initial mild symptoms do not subside at rest, or if the person exposed develops a persistent cough, difficulty breathing or other symptoms, seek medical attention.

If a toxic substance has come into contact with skin

– Remove any contaminated clothing and rinse the skin with water.
– If the toxic substance is corrosive, rinse for at least 30 to 60 minutes.
-If there is severe pain, burns or the skin becomes inflamed, seek medical attention.

If a toxic substance has gotten into your eye

– Rinse the eyes with water for about 15 minutes. If the toxic substance is corrosive, rinse for at least 30 minutes.
– It is important to start rinsing as soon as possible, otherwise the eyes may be damaged.
– If there is severe pain, swelling, sensitivity to the light or watering of the eyes, seek medical attention.

Source: Poison Information Centre

Do you recognise the hazard pictograms for chemicals? Find out more about the different hazard pictograms on the website of the Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency (Tukes)!

Hazard pictograms for chemicals

What to do if your friend passes out?

• Don’t abandon your friend.
• If you can’t wake them up, call 112.
• If you manage to wake them up for a moment, put them in the recovery position to prevent them from choking on their own vomit.
• If you notice anything suspicious in your friend’s condition, such as breathing difficulties, call 112.

Carbon monoxide poisoning

• Carbon monoxide (CO) is produced by incomplete combustion. Carbon monoxide cannot be detected in the air because it is a colourless, odourless and flavourless gas.
• Carbon monoxide passes easily from the air into the bloodstream via the lungs. In the bloodstream, carbon monoxide binds more readily to haemoglobin in red blood cells than it does to oxygen, forming carboxyhaemoglobin. Because it cannot bind oxygen, the body can easily develop severe oxygen deficiency.

Causes of carbon monoxide poisoning

• The most common cause of carbon monoxide poisoning is a petrol-powered car idling in an enclosed space or a heater running quietly on fuel or gas.
• Wood heating that is done in an inept way can also pose a risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
• Heavy smoking and high traffic emissions may lead to mild symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning.
• The most common causes of fatal carbon monoxide poisoning are apartment fires and suicide.

Source: Terveyskirjasto.fi (in Finnish)

Also remember that carbon monoxide cannot be detected in the air because it is a colourless, odourless and flavourless gas!

Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning

• You should suspect carbon monoxide poisoning if the following symptoms occur in connection with exposure to exhaust or combustion gases: headache, dizziness, vomiting, ringing in the ears, vision problems, weakness, restlessness.
• Carbon monoxide poisoning causes quickened breathing and rising heart rate.
• The skin and mucous membranes may become redder than usual.
• Symptoms of severe poisoning include impaired consciousness or unconsciousness, convulsions, breathing difficulties and a weak pulse.

Source: Terveyskirjasto.fi

First aid for carbon monoxide poisoning

• Move the person who is exposed into fresh air immediately!
• If carbon monoxide poisoning is suspected and the exposed person has clear symptoms, they must be taken to hospital immediately by ambulance. The patient should be given 100% oxygen to breathe in the ambulance.

How to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning?

• Avoid idling your car in enclosed spaces.
• Close the damper of a fireplace only once the coals have turned black.
• Make sure that the smoke flues of a flat are checked and swept regularly.
• Use gas- or fuel-powered heaters only in spaces that are well-ventilated.
• Have your heating equipment serviced regularly.

Source: Terveyskirjasto.fi

Did you know that there are approximately 50 poisonous mushroom species growing in Finland?

The most poisonous mushrooms in Finland, which can cause life-threatening poisoning

1. Destroying angel (Amanita virosa)

2. Death cap (Amanita phalloides)

3. Funeral bell (Galerina marginata)

4. Deadly webcap (Cortinarius rubellus)

5. False morel (Gyromitra esculenta)

Do you know how activated carbon works, when it should be taken and when it should not be taken?

Check out this video on how to use activated carbon in case of poisoning.

The use of activated charcoal as first aid for poisoning

Immigrants and tourists are particularly at risk of serious mushroom poisoning, as they may mistake poisonous Finnish species for non-poisonous ones that grow in their home countries.

Be careful and only pick edible mushrooms that you can identify confidently and know how to prepare correctly!

Adder – the only venomous snake living in the wild in Finland

• There are two species of snakes living in the wild in Finland: the grass snake and the adder.
• The bite of a non-venomous grass snake is not dangerous.
• Adder is a venomous snake that uses its venom for hunting and defending itself. Usually adders flee from humans, but if they feel threatened, they may bite.
• The bite caused by two venomous fangs typically appears as two small puncture marks located three to ten millimetres apart. The bite may also look different or be almost imperceptible.
• The venom of an adder contains substances that damage tissue, causing pain and swelling in the area of the bite. Later on, the patient may also experience vomiting, diarrhoea, headaches and even disturbances of consciousness.
• Severe symptoms, such as swelling of the larynx and shortness of breath, that appear quickly, are signs of an allergic reaction to an adder bite. 
• Late symptoms may include sensation disorders of the limbs, local blisters, skin discolouration lasting one to two months or kidney damage.

Source: Terveyskirjasto (in Finnish)

An adder bite causes local symptoms in about three out of four people and more serious symptoms in one out of four people.

Do this in case of an adder bite

First aid for an adder bite

Elevate the site of the bite, if possible. Remove any jewellery and tight clothing because the area of the bite can swell up.

Try to keep the bite site as still as possible, for example, with the help of a splint or by carrying the person away from the place where the bite occurred. If you are alone, stay still. Moving enables the venom to spread into the circulation faster.

Call the emergency number 112 and follow the instructions given by the emergency response centre.

Avoid touching the site of the bite. Under no circumstances should you try to suck out the poison, cut the bite or apply a tight bandage or other pressure to it.

Don’t take any anti-inflammatory medications: when taken in combination with an adder bite, they can impair kidney function. It is okay to take some paracetamol.

How to treat an adder bite

An adder bite must always be assessed by a doctor. As soon as you notice the bite, visit the emergency department or call the emergency number 112.

The treatment given in healthcare always depends on the symptoms you have. Depending on the severity of the poisoning, an antivenom may be used.

Do ‘adder tablets’ cure a bite?

The so-called adder tablets that you can get from the pharmacy do not cure bites.

The active ingredient in the adder tablets is hydrocortisone, with each tablet containing 50 milligrams of it. The adder tablets are meant for first aid treatment of reactions caused by snake bites or bee or wasp stings. Hydrocortisone does suppress the body’s reactions to snake bites or insect stings, but the tablets do not need to be routinely taken immediately after the bite.

The most important thing is to go to the emergency department for an immediate check-up or to call the emergency number 112.

An adder bite can be life-threatening.

Small children, people who are pregnant, people with underlying illnesses and the elderly are at a higher risk of serious poisoning.

P.S. Also check out the ’Poisonings of pets’ section. You will find out, for example, what to do if an adder bites a pet or if a wasp stings a dog or a cat.