ChatGPT Induced Psychiatric Symptoms: A Case Study
A man intentionally poisoned himself with bromide after following advice from ChatGPT, resulting in a rare psychiatric disorder not commonly seen for decades, according to a recently published case study in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
The man presented to an emergency room experiencing auditory and visual hallucinations, and a paranoid belief that his neighbor was attempting to poison him.After being treated for dehydration with intravenous fluids and electrolytes, and a brief attempt to leave the hospital, he revealed the cause of his condition: a self-imposed, severely restrictive diet.
For three months, the patient had been replacing table salt (sodium chloride) in his food with sodium bromide, a controlled substance typically used as an anticonvulsant for dogs. He obtained the sodium bromide online.
The patient explained that he had turned to ChatGPT after researching the negative health effects of sodium chloride. Finding limited details on simply reducing sodium intake, he decided to experiment with eliminating chloride from his diet altogether.
“After reading about the negative effects that sodium chloride, or table salt, has on one’s health, he was surprised that he could only find literature related to reducing sodium from one’s diet,” the case study details. “Inspired by his history of studying nutrition in college, he decided to conduct a personal experiment to eliminate chloride from his diet. For 3 months, he had replaced sodium chloride with sodium bromide obtained from the internet after consultation with ChatGPT, in which he had read that chloride can be swapped with bromide, though likely for other purposes, such as cleaning.”
The resulting condition, bromism, is characterized by neurological symptoms like hallucinations, psychosis, and cognitive impairment. it was once common due to the widespread use of bromide-containing medications in the late 19th and early 20th centuries,but has become exceedingly rare.