As many as 70% of adults in the U.S. use prescription medications.
Many of those people will also be upping their alcohol intake over the holidays.
Before you pop that champagne or take a sip of that spiked eggnog, health professionals are urging people to be mindful of their medications.
A 2019 study found Wisconsin leads the U.S. with a 24 percent rate of binge drinking.
Alcohol in excessive amounts can cause health problems on its own, but when mixed with medicine the results can be even worse.
“It can actually make the medications less effective, you can actually make some of the side effects associated with those drugs worse,” said Matthew Wateski, an Aspirus Pharmacy Resident. “You can also experience new side effects that may not be a part of either the alcohol or the drugs themselves, and they can actually make you feel sick over time.”
Wateski explains medications treating certain conditions come with different risks.
For people treating high blood pressure, alcohol can lead to adverse effects.
“You can experience symptoms like dizziness, headache, lightheadedness, and then you will also sometimes see increased heart rate,” said Wateski
For people with diabetes that use medications to control their blood sugar, alcohol can raise lactic acid levels, something many of those medications warn you against.
“When you take these two together, you can actually cause a very dangerous increase in lactic acid. Things that you might experience with that are nausea, vomiting, fainting, lightheadedness,” said Wateski.
Wateski says alcohol should also be avoided with anti-depressants, some sleep aids, and antibiotics.
Even over the counters meds mixed with alcohol can lead to dangerous side effects.
“Moderation is a key in this point and just making sure that everybody is aware of what's going on, especially at home with alcohol because of the side effects that can happen,” said Wateski.
Wateski recommends talking with your medical provider or pharmacist about the effects of alcohol with any medication you take.
