10 Types of Medication You Shouldn’t Mix With Alcohol
If you are using certain medications while drinking alcohol, this can affect your body in several ways as there have been various cases of death due to people swallowing medication and then forgetting and drinking alcohol. Consuming alcohol with some medications can also mean that the medication may not work properly.
This has become a significant challenge in the healthcare sector because typically any medication given to humans to treat something is a poison, so when mixed with certain chemicals like alcohol, it can harm and even kill.
Below are 10 medications that should not be mixed with alcohol
Antibiotics
Medications used to treat bacterial infections such as cough, tuberculosis, stomach ulcers, etc., known as Antibiotics.
Examples include flagyl, isoniazid, griseofulvin. Using these medications with alcohol can be fatal.
Also, some malaria drugs like Quinine and Artemether Lumefantrine (combination drug) are dangerous when combined with alcohol.
Antidiabetic Drugs
Medications like metformin tabs are used to lower high blood sugar levels. Using these medications with alcohol can cause a condition known as lactic acidosis, which can be fatal.
Antihistamines
Medications used to treat colds and allergies, known as Antihistamines, such as promethazine, chlorpheniramine maleate (commonly known as piriton). Combining these medications with alcohol increases drowsiness and fatigue.
Antipsychotic Medications
Drugs used to treat mental illnesses like chlorpromazine can cause excessive drowsiness when combined with alcohol, leading to respiratory failure and potentially death.
Drugs for Treating Stomach Ulcers
Combining metronidazole with alcohol can cause a Disulfiram-like reaction, leading to symptoms like rapid heartbeat, nausea, vomiting, low blood pressure, stomach pain, headache, fainting, and sometimes death.
Sleeping Pills
Medications like valium can cause increased drowsiness, decreased heart rate, decreased breathing, loss of consciousness, and death when combined with alcohol.
Heart Medications
Some heart medications like methyldopa, hydralazine, isosorbide mononitrate, and dinitrate can cause dizziness, fainting upon standing when combined with alcohol. Alcohol also reduces the effectiveness of blood pressure medications like propranolol.
Anticoagulants
Alcohol interferes with the function of anticoagulants like warfarin, leading to blood clotting and potentially fatal blockages in blood vessels.
Strong Painkillers
Drugs like morphine, pethidine, and codeine can lead to overdose when combined with alcohol, even if the correct dose is taken.
Antidepressants
Alcohol interferes with the function of antidepressants like amitriptyline, leading to increased levels of these drugs in the blood, causing extreme lethargy.
Conclusion
Mentioning these medications doesn’t mean that all medications not listed here are safe to take with alcohol.
Some medications are still being researched for their effects when combined with alcohol.
It’s advisable to avoid alcohol entirely when on any medication or when dealing with conditions like diabetes, hypertension, HIV/AIDS, epilepsy, etc.”
