ChatGPT diet advice caused bromism, psychosis, hospitalization

Aug 2025

A Washington patient replaced table salt with sodium-bromide after ChatGPT said it was a healthier substitute. The patient developed bromism and psychosis, resulting in a hospital stay that doctors now cite as a warning about AI health guidance.

Incident Details

Perpetrator:AI Product

Severity:Facepalm

Blast Radius:Bromism, psychosis, and neurological symptoms leading to hospitalization.

Tech Stack

ChatGPTOpenAI GPT modelsConsumer mobile apps

References

Guardian: ChatGPT salt advice led to bromism case ↗Annals of Internal Medicine: Bromism after chloride substitution ↗