Oops: Partier Alert! This morning, Fox & Friends Weekend anchor Clayton Morris inaptly introduced New York City mixologist/bartender Pamela Wiznitzer as one who would “separate fact from fiction” as to hangover cures.* After discussing the merits of Sprite, “hair of the dog,” bananas, etc., Wiznitzer confidently declared, “I’m gonna tell you one thing: Aspirin is not what you should be taking if you’re drinking….But, ibuprofen and Tylenol are very safe!” As co-hosts Clayton and guest co-host Mike Jerrick remained mute, co-anchor Anna Kooiman muttered, “Okay.”
No, it is not “okay.” According to the Mayo Clinic, “[I]f you sometimes drink alcohol to excess, acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) can cause severe liver damage even in doses previously thought to be safe.” Off air, Wiznitzer was rebutted by one Tweeter, who said, “[T]ake Tylenol instead of Aspirin”.. this is backwards. Tylenol and Alcohol cause liver damage.” Acknowledging her ill advice to the Tweeter (and to @ClaytonMorris), Wiznitzer conceded, “Indeed you are right….Never mix the two.”
Medical advice from a mixologist/bartender? Seriously?! Unfortunately, F&FW producers and the co-anchors fell down on the job today. But, Clayton, perchance, had an even greater responsibility to alert wrongly informed viewers of the dangers of Tylenol (especially, if he read his guest’s recantation before the end of the show).
Alisyn Camerota has “left the building.” Now, it is time to take up the slack, F&FW! Until then, caveat emptor, viewers!
*Fox & Friends Weekend – 10/13/13 (@ 8:53 a.m. ET).
Tags: alisyn camerota, Anna Kooiman, Clayton Morris, Fox & Friends, Fox & Friends Weekend, Fox and Friends, Fox and Friends Weekend, Mayo Clinic, Mike Jerrick, Pamela Wiznitzer
Carpe Diem 
October 14, 2013 at 10:22 am
This segment was about hangover remedies and what to do after you have been drinking (aka, the next morning when you are no longer imbibing and the alcohol has processed causing acetaldehyde which is causing your overall achy state of being).
Case and point: never mix alcohol and drugs of any sort. It’s not smart to take any of those pills, even Advil, if you are still consuming alcohol. We discussed how to handle that headache te next day and for me, always, I use Advil. Tylenol is not safe to use if simultaneously drinkin because is can cause liver damage or failure. But the next day, after a full nights sleep and some food and water in your system, Tylenol can be used to help the headache.
I hope this clears up some miscommunication. In 3 minutes it can be tough to get out full statements on each topic we covered and yes, I should have disclosed that these medication options were to only be used post drinking.
And for the record – I never refer to myself as a “Master Mixologist.” Clayton wanted to use that term and after years in this industry, in the midst of completing an MA, and doing lots of research on these topics, I hope you wouldn’t use such a condescending tone about my profession. We all mess up sometimes and in this case it was my lack of clarification on this one topic. I am glad that you brought up this issue because it is important to not mislead viewers into thinking Tylenol can be mixed with alcohol.
October 14, 2013 at 12:04 pm
If you are so smart, Pamela, you would know that the correct phase is “case in point” and not “case and point.”
October 14, 2013 at 12:55 pm
Pamela, I appreciate your response to my post re your segment on F&FW. As to your profession, I was not demeaning it or you: Rather, I do respect you and your vocation. However, I was shocked and appalled that F&FW would allow a non-medical professional to be an unvetted authority on the use of a medication that could cause horrific health consequences or even death to their unsuspecting viewers.
As to your apparent assumption that Tylenol is safe after the alcohol has been metabolized, the NIH reported, “The damage caused by alcohol-acetaminophen interaction is more likely to occur when acetaminophen is taken after, rather than before, the alcohol has been metabolized.”*
Other than my aforementioned major beef, I thought that your segment was a good one. However, I do believe that you, Clayton, and F&FW should alert the misinformed audience of the dangers of using Tylenol as a hangover cure.
*Link: http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/aa35.htm
December 7, 2013 at 3:21 pm
[…] two months late, Clayton Morris’ “master mixologist” gets it right: Alcohol and Tylenol don’t mix. Today, Fox & Friends Weekend co-host […]
January 4, 2015 at 1:52 am
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