Blowfish? Blowhard!

A tablet that contains little more than aspirin and caffeine exaggerates claims of FDA approval

By Ellen Thompson

December 9, 2011

Turns out that the hangover cure everyone's been raving about this past week, Blowfish, may be full of, well, hot air.

Brenna Haysom, president of Rally Labs LLC, which created the hangover drug, has been chatting up the media on the benefits of the cure, which consists of little more than aspirin, caffeine and an antacid. According to her, a two-tablet dose of Blowfish, which is made to be dissolved in an 8-ounce glass of water, has been approved for use by the Food and Drug Administration.

"It's the only over-the-counter drug that's specifically hangover related," Haysom told ABC News. "The [Food and Drug Administration] has specifically said our formula is effective for treating hangover symptoms."

Except for one thing. The FDA never approved the combination as a hangover cure. Technically, they've approved the individual drugs used to make Blowfish: 1,000 mg of aspirin and 120 mg of caffeine, as well as the antacid. But Blowfish itself?

"It doesn't have anything that's so special or new or unusual," Haysom admitted to The Daily News.

While the FDA-approved claims may have floated around on hot air, the separate ingredients are pretty grounded. The prostaglandin inhibitors in the aspirin tackle a headache and body pains, while caffeine fights fatigue and antacid quells nausea and indigestion. Plus, 8 ounces of water helps with the re-hydration process.

And says Haysom, the tablet can chase away a headache, nausea, fatigue, and indigestion in as little as 20 minutes. "The magic of the effervescent tablet is that it hits your system much faster than getting a cup of coffee, taking an antacid and taking some aspirin separately."

If you --and the FDA-- can stomach the exaggerated claims, you'll be able to find the product on the shelves early next year.