America's Poison Centers has issued a health advisory warning of a sharp rise in diphenhydramine abuse among teenagers, with cases involving the antihistamine ingredient found in Benadryl and Zzzquil climbing 32% between 2024 and 2025. Data from the organization, which represents 53 poison centers nationwide, points to recreational misuse driven by social media challenges as the primary cause.
A Trend Accelerating Into 2026
The numbers tell a straightforward story of escalation. Diphenhydramine-only exposure cases among teens aged 13 to 19 rose from 10,068 to 13,284 between 2024 and 2025 — far outpacing the 5.1% rise in total substance exposures recorded for the same age group over the same period. The first five months of 2026 logged 6,179 diphenhydramine-only cases in teens, more than double the comparable period in the prior year.
Intentional abuse is becoming a larger share of those cases. Thirteen percent of 2026 exposures were linked to deliberate misuse, compared with 7.3% in 2020 — a shift that America's Poison Centers attributes to social media trends and challenges encouraging unsafe medication use rather than accidental overdosing.
Health Risks and Industry Response
Diphenhydramine taken improperly or in large amounts can produce effects ranging from drowsiness and agitation to hallucinations, seizures, dangerous heart rhythms, and loss of consciousness. The advisory from America's Poison Centers characterizes these outcomes as serious and potentially life-threatening.
Kenvue, which manufactures Benadryl, called the social media trend "extremely dangerous" and said it should be stopped immediately. The company said it is working directly with social media platforms to have harmful posts removed and has launched efforts to educate the public on safe use and storage of diphenhydramine-containing products.
Mary Leonard, Senior Vice President of Communications and Public Affairs at the Consumer Healthcare Products Association, described the report as "deeply concerning" and drew a clear line between intentional misuse and the legitimate, directed use of diphenhydramine — a medication millions of Americans rely on for allergies, cold symptoms, motion sickness, and occasional sleeplessness.
What Parents and Caregivers Should Know
America's Poison Centers advises storing all medications up high and out of reach of teens, following label dosing instructions carefully, and speaking directly with teenagers about the health risks of medication misuse. Anyone who suspects a case of misuse should contact their local Poison Control Center immediately.
The advisory also calls on adults to monitor social media for challenges that promote unsafe drug use — a prevention step that now sits alongside the more traditional guidance of secure medicine storage.