Expert: Drink More Water If You Have Consumed Ethylene Glycol

UNSPLASH ILLUSTRATION/engin akyurt

JAKARTA - Professor of the Faculty of Pharmacy, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Zulies Ikawati, advised the public to drink more water if they have already consumed drugs containing Ethylene Glycol (EG).

“I think drinking a lot of water speeds up the elimination of waste. The water will then pour out and also dilute it so that the dangerous levels will be reduced while still being monitored for symptoms," she said during the "IDI Answering" discussion as reported by ANTARA, Tuesday, October 25.

Zulies explained that Ethylene Glycol (EG) and Dithylene Glycol (DEG) are clear, colorless, and odorless liquids commonly used in the machinery industry. These compounds are often used as antifreeze agents for use in radiators and are toxic or toxic compounds.

The use of EG and DEG in medicine, she continued, cannot be completely avoided because EG and DEG can be one of the ingredients to form solvents in syrup drugs. In pharmaceutical regulations, the use of EG and DEG in solvents is only allowed with levels below 0.1 percent.

“Common and acceptable solvents include propylene glycol, glycerin, and polyethylene glycol. However, these materials cannot be 100 percent pure, so in their manufacture, they contain contaminants with the permissible threshold,” she said.

According to her, EG and DEG compounds do not directly attack human kidneys, but metabolic processes that convert EG and DEG into toxic compounds of oxalic acid that contribute to acute kidney failure.

"When it (oxalic acid) binds to calcium to form calcium oxalate it will clog and damage the work of the kidneys," she said.

However, the process of formation of oxalic acid is different in every human being because it depends on the production of enzymes in the body and metabolic rate.

When the production of enzymes and their activities are many, it will facilitate the formation of metabolites. However, if the enzyme production is low and the metabolic rate is low, then the EG and DEG metabolites are not formed and are safer from the potential for acute kidney failure.

She also appealed to the public not to panic and always follow the latest information from the Ministry of Health and the Food and Drug Administration regarding the development of drugs containing EG and DEG above the threshold.

"For the time being, we will just follow what the government tells us to do, if not, then we will be detained because there are many alternatives," she said.