Methyl Alcohol (Methanol)

Methanol can be deadly.

A guy seated next to me in the bus had consumed alcohol adulterated with methanol.

It is a metabolic poison and causes blindness. 

Another guy in the bus who had come to accompany his daughter from private tuition class was dead drunk.

This is typical Ceylon.

Methyl Alcohol (Methanol)

Methyl alcohol (methanol, wood alcohol) is used as a solvent and is a component of antifreeze fluids. Although only mildly toxic, methanol is oxidized to formaldehyde and formic acid, which can produce severe acidosis and are responsible for the clinical symptoms associated with its abuse. The oxidation and excretion of methyl alcohol are slow; toxic symptoms develop over 12 to 48 hours. Methanol toxicity involves the gastrointestinal and respiratory tracts, the visual system, and the CNS. Toxicity is manifested by nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, headache, and vertigo. Patients may also become restless, uncoordinated, weak, or delirious. More severe cases can manifest with visual loss, parkinsonism, convulsions, stupor, or coma. Death can also occur as a result of respiratory failure. Methanol-induced neuropathological abnormalities include neuronal degeneration, primarily in the parietal cortex.¹⁴

Treatment involves frequent measurements of blood methanol and correction of acid-base imbalance. Administration of ethyl alcohol may be used to retard the conversion of methanol into formaldehyde and formic acid. Folic acid may be used to accelerate the metabolism of formic acid to carbon dioxide. Peritoneal dialysis or hemodialysis is recommended for patients with methanol blood levels greater than 50 mg.