Benadryl can cause both mild and severe side effects, depending on the person. BetterHelp can connect you to an addiction and mental health counselor. Even without combining Benadryl with alcohol, you shouldn’t drive or operate machinery. Benadryl can depress the central nervous system, affecting a person’s ability to stay alert. Combining Benadryl with alcohol is also more likely to induce a state of unconsciousness in these people. This can be dangerous due to the risk of falls and other related injuries.
- Your heart rate may drop (heart problems), your breathing may slow down, you may lose consciousness, and in rare instances, your CNS depression could put you in a coma.
- This neurotransmitter is essential to processing information and remembering new things.
- Remember, combining these drugs doesn’t necessarily mean taking them at the same time.
- In addition to regular outpatient programs offering weekly therapy, we also provide more intensive forms of treatment.
- You may have even done this before grabbing a beer or glass of wine to close out the evening.
Claritin tablets, liquid-filled capsules, and syrup are taken once daily. The orally disintegrating tablets are used either once daily or twice daily. Both Benadryl and Claritin are over-the-counter medications. You may wonder how Benadryl compares to other medications prescribed for similar uses. Below are comparisons between Benadryl and several medications.
Taking Benadryl with food
For instance, some can interfere with how well a drug works, while others can cause increased side effects. A 2013 meta-analysis of clinical studies found that melatonin slightly decreases the time it takes to fall asleep and increases total sleep time. These effects don’t decrease with continued use of the product. Weight gain can happen in some people who take diphenhydramine, the drug that Benadryl contains.
It’s possible for drugs to interact with supplements such as vitamins and herbs. It is intended for general informational purposes and is not meant to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. If you think you may have a medical emergency, immediately call your physician or dial 911. This is not to say, however, that it is okay to go on a bender while taking Claritin, Zyrtec, Xyzal, or Allegra—Dr. Corry recommends avoiding alcohol altogether while taking any medication.
- However, mixing over the counter or prescription drugs with alcohol is often a recipe for disaster.
- You certainly don’t want to combine them if you need to be awake and alert.
- This is the reason why you get a stuffy nose, itchy skin, and other reactions when you come in contact with a product you are allergic to.
- However, Benadryl isn’t usually a first choice for these conditions because of its risk of side effects such as sleepiness.
- In fact, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration suggests that Benadryl may have a greater effect on a driver’s ability to stay alert than alcohol.
This means your body’s response to the drug may decrease over time. Because of this, they do not have enough water to use reliving the adverse effects of alcohol on their bodies. Although it seems safe, using any medicine unnecessarily will cause undesirable side effects and damage. So If it is really necessary, you should only consider using Benadryl for the treatment of your allergy.
It may also interact negatively with sleeping pills and other medications. Therefore, as a safety measure, you should only use Benadryl to treat your allergy symptoms. Therefore, taking Benadryl with these medicines when consuming very small amounts of alcohol may still increase the risk of unwanted side effects. When you take Benadryl, the medication blocks the brain’s ability to process acetylcholine. This neurotransmitter is essential to processing information and remembering new things.
Now, if you want to completely avoid alcohol while Benadryl is still in your system, we have to look more closely at the metabolism of the drug. If you’re starting to lose control over your drinking habits or can’t cope without a drink, then you have an alcohol problem. Health experts recommend completely refraining from alcohol when using Benadryl. The effect of Benadryl on the ability of a driver to stay alert is greater than that of alcohol.6 Mixing the two can be dangerous not only to you but also to those around you. Benadryl dries up the nasal passages, which helps reduce congestion.
What is the lethal dose of Benadryl and alcohol in combination?
Benadryl and alcohol are both caused your central nervous system to slow down. This impact is doubled, when you take them at the same time. It can also cause drowsiness and sedation and you have trouble to perform physical and mental tasks that require alertness. If you can’t concentrate, it is very possible that you may face dangerous conditions. Histamine creates an immune response to allergens in your body. So this compound is the cause of reactions such as a stuffy nose, itchy skin.
If you take Zoloft, talk with your doctor before taking Benadryl. If you take Xanax, talk with your doctor before taking Benadryl. Benadryl can help people with occasional sleeplessness to fall asleep. However, this effect may decrease or wear off with continued use of the product. According to a 2008 clinical guideline, these products are not recommended to treat ongoing or long-term insomnia. These products are usually taken once daily, just before bedtime or at bedtime.
If so, you could benefit from our research-based and outpatient programs for alcohol use disorder here at Renaissance Recovery. Cough syrup and laxatives may have some of the highest alcohol concentrations. To learn more about possible side effects of Benadryl, see this article. If you’d like to find out how Benadryl compares with Claritin and Zyrtec, see this article.
Hydroxyzine dosage, forms, and strengths
Moreover, you shouldn’t use NyQuil as a sleep aid or for long-term treatment of symptoms. If you take more than the recommended dose, you may experience withdrawal symptoms. Mixing NyQuil and alcohol is dangerous and can have serious consequences.
There were no specific reports of herbs interacting with Benadryl. However, it’s still important to check with your doctor or pharmacist before taking any of these products during Benadryl treatment. She also offers an alternative for those who don’t want to give up the opportunity to have a drink—nasal corticosteroids, such as Flonase or Nasonex.
Benadryl for sunburn
You should be fine if you take two Benadryl before going out and accidentally mix it with a beer. However, some individuals might believe using it as a sleep aid is smart. The appropriate functioning of acetylcholine is essential for memory and https://sober-home.org/ learning. So, inhibiting its action can temporarily compromise these functions. In fact, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration suggests that Benadryl may have a greater effect on a driver’s ability to stay alert than alcohol does.
In our latest question and answer, the pharmacist discusses why the combined use of alcohol and Benadryl (diphenhydramine) should be avoided. Alcohol is also known to inhibit learning and memory temporarily. So, combining alcohol and Benadryl may again have a more noticeable effect on learning and memory. Some people are more prone than others to losing consciousness when sedated.
One of the main reasons why combining alcohol and Benadryl frequently results in personal damage is the possibility of losing consciousness. Unfortunately, there are other health risks you can encounter. eco sober house price You already know that drinking alcohol and driving is dangerous. Add Benadryl to the mix, and the behavior becomes even riskier. Diphenhydramine (Benadryl) addiction withdrawal is a real threat.
Benadryl for allergies
“Most of these have a reduced, if not completely absent, side effect of sleepiness,” Dr. Corry says. Fortunately, Benadryl clears from your system in four to six hours, says Dr. Mantione. So, presuming the allergic reaction is kept at bay, you won’t be teetotaling indefinitely. Based on the above information, if you are looking to completely avoid alcohol while Benadryl is in your system, you need to wait 24 to 48 hours.
