Sports Cream (with funny name) Cause of Teen Death

We all know the saying…too much of a good thing can get you fat, sick, or even addicted. But when was the last time you heard that too much Bengay can get you killed?

By Jess

Seventeen year-old Arielle Newman, a track star at Notre Dame Academy on Staten Island, died April 3rd from then unknown causes. Last Friday, a medical examiner announced that Newman’s death was due to an over-absorption of methyl salicylate, a chemical found in anti-inflammatory muscle creams.

“In addition to spreading the muscle cream on her legs between track meets, Newman was using adhesive pads containing the anti-inflammatory, plus an unspecified third product containing the chemical” said a spokeswoman for Newman’s medical examiner. The spokeswoman went on to say that the teen’s death was caused by absorption over time, not a single instance.

While deaths from high levels of methyl salicylate are rare, they do happen. One of the main ways Newman could have allowed high levels of the chemical to soak into her skin was her use of the sports creams immediately after exercise, heat and vigorous activity allowing for a stronger absorption.

I guess the lesson here is to go easy on the chemical fix, and soothe those aching muscles manually. Either that, or don’t workout so strenuously that your muscles hurt in the first place.

Thanks to Bengay, lazy people all over the world just got another reason not to move.