{"id":12081,"date":"2020-06-19T10:00:13","date_gmt":"2020-06-19T14:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.singlecare.com\/blog\/?p=12081"},"modified":"2020-11-12T09:46:06","modified_gmt":"2020-11-12T14:46:06","slug":"blood-thinners-and-alcohol","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.singlecare.com\/blog\/blood-thinners-and-alcohol\/","title":{"rendered":"Is it safe to drink alcohol while taking blood thinners?"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you are taking an anticoagulant, otherwise known as a blood thinner\u2014for stroke prevention, <\/span>atrial fibrillation<\/span><\/a>, deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, or one of the numerous other medical conditions that, by nature, can cause <\/span>blood clots<\/span><\/a>\u2014you are probably aware of the fact that these medications increase your risk of bleeding. What else thins your blood and increases your risk of bleeding? Drinking alcohol.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Put the two together and the bleeding risk increases even more, says Dr. Holly Alvarado, Pharm.D., a clinical pharmacist at <\/span>Duke Health<\/span><\/a> who previously worked as an anticoagulation pharmacy specialist in a cardiology clinic.<\/span><\/p>\n

Can I drink alcohol while taking blood thinners?<\/b><\/h2>\n

\u201cIn general, I would say that [drinking while taking anticoagulants] is a bad idea,\u201d Dr. Alvarado says. \u201cI would recommend that people abstain.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

To make matters even worse, the metabolic changes that occur in the liver while drinking can significantly alter the effectiveness of the blood thinners, says John Beckner, R.Ph., senior director of strategic initiatives for the <\/span>National Community Pharmacists Association<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt can make the medication less effective, or it could increase that particular mechanism of action and have the opposite effect (e.g., even heavier bleeding),\u201d Beckner says, adding that the result depends on the individual.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Alcohol<\/p>\n

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Can I mix <\/b>any<\/i><\/b> blood thinners and alcohol?<\/b><\/h2>\n

Okay, but can you switch medications to make it safer to imbibe? After all, there are numerous blood thinners on the market.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Unfortunately, no\u2014it doesn\u2019t matter <\/span>which<\/span><\/i> anticoagulant you take. The warning applies to the entire class of drugs, including:<\/span><\/p>\n