Do you take any medications that interact with alcohol? If you automatically answered “no” you might be surprised by the results of a new study from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
The study revealed that almost 42 percent of people in the United States who drink have also used at least one prescription medication that interacts with alcohol.
Alcohol-interactive drugs include many used to treat allergies, anxiety, depression, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, infections, seizures, sleep problems, and numerous other conditions.
You can find an extensive list of medications that potentially interact with alcohol on the National Institutes of Health website.
The potential results of mixing medications with alcohol can vary widely from nausea, headaches and loss of coordination to internal bleeding, heart problems, difficulty breathing and even death.
Aaron White, a neuroscientist in the division of epidemiology and prevention research at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism offered several examples:
• Blood pressure – Because alcohol can increase blood pressure, it can counteract the work of a medication intended to lower blood pressure.
• Dehydration – Alcohol also acts as a diuretic. So combining alcohol with a diuretic medication can result in dehydration.
• Neurological issues – Mixing alcohol with a sedative such as sleeping pills or narcotic pain medications may affect how the brain controls reflexes like breathing and heart rate.
Rosalind A. Breslow, an epidemiologist in the division of epidemiology and prevention at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism explained that the risks of a dangerous interaction become greater as we age.
Older people are more likely to have serious health problems and therefore tend to take more medications. This increases the odds that a senior may take at least one medication that will interact with alcohol.
Age can also affect how serious the interaction between alcohol and medications might be. Breslow said, “There is some evidence that, as we age, our ability to metabolize alcohol decreases so alcohol might remain in our systems longer to interact with medications.
“Furthermore, the metabolism of several medications that interact with alcohol slows as we get older, creating a larger window for potential alcohol/medication interactions. For instance, diazepam -- known as Valium -- hangs around in the body about three times longer in a 60-year-old than a 20-year-old, thereby creating a much longer window for potential interactions with alcohol."
Breslow’s team used data from the 1999-2010 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. That study collected information from 26, 657 adults about their alcohol consumption over the last year, and their prescription medication use over the last month, at the time of the study.
The research revealed that almost 42 percent of people who drank alcohol in the United States also used alcohol-interactive medications. Among seniors aged 65 and older, the number rose to almost 78 percent.
The study did not show the exact number of people from the study who took their medications and drank alcohol within a limited time on a given day. But the research team concluded that if someone took a prescription drug regularly and drank regularly, chances were good that they were taking both substances close together.
Although many medications are labeled to show potential alcohol interactions, Breslow’s team recommends additional education to make sure people, especially the elderly, be made aware of the serious risks of combining medications with alcohol.
If you have questions about any medication you are taking and the risk of interactions with alcohol, talk to your health care provider or pharmacist.
Be sure to ask if there is a specific time-frame to pay attention to, such as not taking medications within a certain period of time before or after drinking.
You may also want to ask whether it is safe to take your specific medications in the morning and consume alcohol in the evening.
The full results of the study are scheduled for online publication in the February 2015 issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.
Sources:
Science Daily. Exploring the use of alcohol-interactive prescription medication among US drinkers. Web. January 21, 2015.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/01/150117104312.htm
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Harmful Interactions: Mixing Alcohol With Medications. Web. January 21, 2015.
http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/Medicine/medicine.htm
Reviewed January 27, 2015
by Michele Blacksberg RN
Edited by Jody Smith