• Health Experiment by a 60-year-old Man: A 60-year-old with a college nutrition background decided to eliminate all chlorine from his diet by removing table salt (sodium chloride) and using sodium bromide obtained online.
• Hospital Visit and Diagnosis: Three months later, he showed up at the emergency room with paranoia, refusing hospital water and on a restrictive vegetarian diet. Lab tests revealed multiple micronutrient deficiencies and "bromism" due to excess bromine in his body.
• History of Bromism: A century ago, bromism caused a significant number of psychiatric admissions as bromine-containing salts were used as sedatives. Bromide can build up in the body and cause various problems.
• Hospital Treatment: After an escape attempt, he was given an involuntary psychiatric hold and an anti-psychosis drug. He was given large amounts of fluids and electrolytes for "aggressive saline diuresis" to remove bromide. His bromide level was extremely high.
• How it Began: When his psychosis was under control, he told doctors he started with reading about table salt problems, then used ChatGPT which led him to believe in using sodium bromide. Doctors couldn't access his ChatGPT logs but found the current free model gives better responses and clarifies context. In this case, the man "did his own research" without proper guidance and ended up in a bad situation. The story is a cautionary tale in the information age. (DOI: 10.7326/aimcc.2024.1260)