Medicines

Are you allowed to drink coffee and take medication?

Many people cannot imagine breakfast without a cup of coffee. However, morning is also the time used to take medication. It is therefore difficult to escape the question of whether we are actually dealing with a secure connection. So it's worth finding out how to combine coffee and medicines in a way that's safe for your health.

Minerals

Coffee is one of those drinks that bind not only magnesium but also calcium and potassium in the digestive tract. This is why their absorption is extremely difficult. So if we take supplements containing these elements, combining them with coffee is not recommended. What's more, people who drink a lot of coffee usually have problems with their deficiency. So if you reach for products rich in magnesium or potassium, they should not be drunk with coffee either. Coffee is also discouraged for people whose problem is anaemia.

Drugs for hyperacidity

Coffee can also be quite a dangerous beverage for those who are struggling with hyperacidity or peptic ulcer disease. The compounds contained in it contribute to the increase in hydrochloric acid production. The pH of the stomach also changes quickly, making it more acidic. So if we are in the process of treating these conditions, giving up coffee seems to be the only sensible solution.

Fever and pain relievers

Caffeine is known for increasing not only the effect of acetylsalicylic acid, but also other active ingredients in popular pain management drugs. So if it is combined with these substances, it works harder than usual. It is also worth remembering that caffeine is a part of some drugs that reduce fever and have an analgesic effect. It is therefore good to be aware that in this case, too, we are dealing with a synergistic effect, which may prove to be extremely dangerous. The side-effects of such a combination are quickly becoming apparent. Insomnia, nervousness, palpitations, headaches and irritability appear.

Antidepressants and neuroleptics

Also, some antidepressants are less effective when combined with coffee. At the same time, the results of scientific research seem particularly alarming, as the impact of some of them may be reduced by as much as sixty per cent. The tannins contained in coffee also lead to a deterioration in the absorption of alkaloids. This in turn makes some neuroleptics also work worse.

Coffee and theophylline

Drugs that include theophylline and similar drugs are used, among other things, when treating bronchial asthma. However, if you take them regularly, you should not reach for more than one cup of coffee a day. Caffeine inhibits the metabolism of these preparations and increases the concentration of this substance in the body.

Ephedrine

Ephedrine was until a certain point one of the agents used to treat bronchial asthma. It is now being abandoned, but we can still find it in both drugs and slimming medication. Unfortunately, both she and caffeine are stimulating substances, so it is not surprising that there is no question of combining them. The most serious side effect of such action turns out to be heart problems.

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