Why you shouldn't take alcohol when on medication

Apr 13, 2016

It overwhelms the liver leading to a condition referred to as hepatoxicity

Sometimes when doctors prescribe certain drugs, they caution patients to avoid certain foods or drinks such as alcohol or milk.

Explaining why avoiding alcohol when taking certain drugs, Chris Mwanje, a nutritionist, says that alcohol taken with medicines such as paracetamol (panadol), ARVs or drugs for treating TB, it overwhelms the liver leading to a condition referred to as hepatoxicity.

This condition is responsible for liver diseases such as liver cirrhosis. 

He adds that ethanol (the chemical name for alcohol) when taken with drugs like cetrizine and metronidazole (flagyl) has effects such as high blood pressure, nausea, vomiting and body weakness. 

When taken with Aspirin, a common painkiller, Mwanje says the combination increases stomach irritations, causing ulceration. 

When alcohol is combined with the central nervous system depressants drugs such as diazepam (valium) it causes excessive drowsiness and affects co-ordination.

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