Food and medication
Alcohol and medication
Alcohol can add to a medicine’s side effects, such as drowsiness, dizziness, low blood pressure, low blood sugar, stomach bleeding or strain on the liver.
26 medicines on our checker are affected, and for 3 the advice is to avoid it. Tap a medicine for every food and drink that matters with it.
Avoid alcohol with these medicines
- Antibiotics
Completely avoid alcohol with metronidazole or tinidazole; continue avoiding 48 hours (metronidazole) or 72 hours (tinidazole) after stopping.
Where this comes from
“It's best to completely avoid alcohol while taking: metronidazole – an antibiotic sometimes used for dental or vaginal infections, skin infections, infected leg ulcers and pressure sores tinidazole – an antibiotic sometimes used to treat many of the same infections as metronidazole, as well as to help clear bacteria called Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) from the gut Continue to avoid alcohol for 48 hours after you stop taking metronidazole and 72 hours after you stop taking tinidazole.”
Information from the NHS website - MAOIs · phenelzine, nardil, tranylcypromine
The phenelzine label lists beer and wine to avoid and says not to combine it with alcohol.
- Mirtazapine
Alcohol increases drowsiness and impairs thinking and movement more than mirtazapine alone.
Where this comes from
“the impairment of cognitive and motor skills produced by mirtazapine were shown to be additive with those produced by alcohol.”
US FDA drug label
Take care alcohol with these medicines
- ACE inhibitors · ramipril, lisinopril, perindopril
Alcohol can add to dizziness and low blood pressure.
- Amitriptyline
Alcohol may make you feel sleepier while taking amitriptyline.
Where this comes from
“You can drink alcohol while taking amitriptyline, but it may make you feel sleepy. It might be best to stop drinking alcohol until you see how the medicine makes you feel.”
Information from the NHS website - Amlodipine · amlodipine, amlodipine besylate, Istin
Alcohol can lower blood pressure further and add to dizziness.
- Beta blockers · propranolol, metoprolol, atenolol
Alcohol adds to dizziness and low blood pressure.
- Clopidogrel · Grepid, Plavix
Too much alcohol can irritate your stomach and raise the risk of stomach ulcers while taking clopidogrel.
Where this comes from
“Drinking too much alcohol while you're taking clopidogrel can irritate your stomach. There's a risk that you could get a stomach ulcer.”
Information from the NHS website - DOACs · apixaban, eliquis, rivaroxaban
Alcohol raises bleeding risk on any anticoagulant. Stay within guidelines.
- Fexofenadine · Allevia, Almerg, Histallay
Alcohol can add to fexofenadine's drowsiness side effect, making you feel sleepy.
Where this comes from
“It's best not to drink alcohol while you're taking fexofenadine, as it can make you feel sleepy.”
Information from the NHS website - Folic acid
Alcohol can affect how well folic acid works, so it's best to avoid or limit it.
Where this comes from
“It's best to avoid or limit alcohol because it can affect how well folic acid works.”
Information from the NHS website - Gabapentin
Alcohol may make you feel sleepy or tired when taking gabapentin.
Where this comes from
“Yes, you can drink alcohol while taking gabapentin, but it may make you feel sleepy or tired.”
Information from the NHS website - GLP-1 agonists · semaglutide, ozempic, wegovy
Hits harder on a small appetite and adds hypo risk if you also take insulin or a sulfonylurea.
- Insulin
Alcohol may increase or decrease the blood glucose lowering effect of insulin and can cause low blood sugar.
Where this comes from
“Drugs That May Increase or Decrease the Blood Glucose Lowering Effect of ADMELOG Drugs: Alcohol, beta-blockers, clonidine, and lithium salts.”
US FDA drug label - Lithium · priadel, camcolit, lithium carbonate
Alcohol can dehydrate you and change lithium levels. Keep it light.
- Metformin · glucophage, sukkarto
Heavy drinking with metformin raises the risk of low blood sugar and, rarely, lactic acidosis. Keep it light and with food.
- Methotrexate · maxtrex, metoject
Methotrexate and alcohol both strain the liver. Ask your team what is safe for you; many are advised to keep it very low.
- Naproxen
Limit alcohol; it increases the risk of side effects such as stomach ulcers or bleeding.
Where this comes from
“try to limit how much alcohol you drink while taking it because alcohol can increase the risk of side effects such as stomach ulcers or bleeding”
Information from the NHS website - PPIs · omeprazole, lansoprazole, esomeprazole
Alcohol irritates the stomach and can bring back the symptoms the medicine treats.
- Spironolactone · aldactone, potassium-sparing diuretic
Alcohol can add to dizziness and low blood pressure.
- SSRIs · sertraline, fluoxetine, citalopram
Alcohol can add to drowsiness and make low mood worse.
- Statins · simvastatin, atorvastatin, lipitor
Heavy drinking adds strain on the liver alongside a statin. Stay within guidelines.
- Tamsulosin · Contiflo XL, Faramsil MR, Flomaxtra XL
Alcohol increases the blood pressure-lowering effect and can make you feel dizzy or light-headed.
Where this comes from
“Drinking alcohol can increase the blood pressure-lowering effect of tamsulosin, which can make you feel dizzy or light-headed.”
Information from the NHS website - Tetracycline antibiotics · doxycycline, lymecycline, tetracycline
Heavy drinking can make the antibiotic less effective.
- Warfarin · coumarin, vitamin k antagonist
Alcohol changes how warfarin works and raises bleeding risk. Stay within guidelines and avoid binges.
Fine alcohol with these medicines
- Corticosteroids · prednisolone, prednisone, dexamethasone
You can drink alcohol with steroid tablets. Keep within the usual guidelines: heavy drinking adds to stomach irritation.
Foods and drinks that count as alcohol
- Alcohol
- Beer
- Lager
- Stout
- Cider
- Wine
- Red wine
- White wine
- Rosé
- Prosecco
- Champagne
- Spirits
- Gin
- Vodka
- Whisky
- Rum
- Brandy
- Tequila
- Cocktails
- Alcopops
- Sherry
- Port
- Liqueurs
- Mulled wine
- Pimm’s
- Cooking with wine
- Low-alcohol beer
- Shandy
- Hard seltzer
- Sake
- Vermouth
- Aperol spritz
- Mead
- Liqueur chocolates
Common questions
- Which medicines does alcohol affect?
- 26 medicines on our checker: Antibiotics (avoid), MAOIs (avoid), Mirtazapine (avoid), ACE inhibitors (take care), Amitriptyline (take care), Amlodipine (take care), Beta blockers (take care), Clopidogrel (take care), DOACs (take care), Fexofenadine (take care), Folic acid (take care), Gabapentin (take care), GLP-1 agonists (take care), Insulin (take care), Lithium (take care), Metformin (take care), Methotrexate (take care), Naproxen (take care), PPIs (take care), Spironolactone (take care), SSRIs (take care), Statins (take care), Tamsulosin (take care), Tetracycline antibiotics (take care), Warfarin (take care), Corticosteroids (fine).
- Which foods count as alcohol?
- Alcohol, Beer, Lager, Stout, Cider, Wine, Red wine, White wine, Rosé, Prosecco, Champagne, Spirits, Gin, Vodka, Whisky, Rum, Brandy, Tequila, Cocktails, Alcopops, Sherry, Port, Liqueurs, Mulled wine, Pimm’s, Cooking with wine, Low-alcohol beer, Shandy, Hard seltzer, Sake, Vermouth, Aperol spritz, Mead, Liqueur chocolates.
General information from NHS medicine pages and drug labels, not medical advice. Always follow your prescriber, pharmacist or the leaflet with your medicine. How we check.