Alcohol is the third-leading preventable cause of death in the U.S., with 95,000 people dying each year from alcohol-related causes. These factors include what your insurance plan covers and which pharmacy you use. While taking Lipitor, you should not eat large amounts of grapefruit or drink more than 1.2 liters of grapefruit juice per day. This list does not contain all types of drugs that may interact with Lipitor. Your doctor or pharmacist can tell you more about these interactions and any others that may occur when taking Lipitor. Taking a medication with certain vaccines, foods, and other things can affect how the medication works.

Common questions about Lipitor and interactions

1. While light to moderate alcohol intake isn’t usually harmful, heavy alcohol use can cause severe effects.
2. While combining Lipitor and alcohol is potentially harmful to the liver, there is no solid research to confirm a higher risk of problems in those who take this medication and drink alcohol.
3. During the COVID-19 pandemic, national alcohol sales have increased 54%.
4. Certain health conditions or other factors could raise your risk of harm if you take Lipitor.

At this point, some patients may benefit from a liver transplant if they meet certain criteria. To see a side-by-side comparison of these medications, check out this article. And talk with your doctor to learn more about Lipitor and pravastatin. If you become pregnant while taking Lipitor, stop taking the drug and call your doctor right away. Your doctor can prescribe a cholesterol medication that’s safe to use during pregnancy. If you are able to become pregnant, you should use birth control while taking Lipitor.

What is Lipitor?

Although results related to levels of alcohol consumption and stroke events are less clear, some conclusions can be drawn. Approximately 1 to 2 drinks per day may have no effect on or lead to a slight reduction in stroke events; however, greater daily alcohol levels increase the risk for all stroke events and incident stroke types. In terms of stroke subtypes, compared with nondrinkers, current alcohol drinkers have an increased risk (~14 percent) for hemorrhagic stroke (Ronksley et al. 2011). Drinking in moderation is not likely to be a problem while taking Lipitor.

Does my health history affect whether I should take Lipitor?

It can be helpful to have an honest conversation with your doctor about your alcohol use if you are considering taking statins to manage your cholesterol levels. Several years ago, the FDA recommended regular enzyme testing for statin patients. Prescription drugs all come with side effects, or the risk of side effects.

The following information includes only the average doses of this medicine. If your dose is different, do not change it unless your doctor tells you to do so. Robynn Lowe is a board certified Family Nurse Practitioner with over 15 years in the medical field. Robynn received her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Florida Atlantic University and has been practicing in rural family medicine since. Robynn is married to her college sweetheart, Raymond and they have three awesome children. When Robynn isn’t with patients you can find her shopping, coaching her kids sports teams, or spending time on the water.

They also had lower levels of circulating inflammatory markers, such as C-terminal proendothelin-1 and pentraxin-3 (Cosmi et al. 2015). Drinking heavily, on the other hand, can be tied to high cholesterol levels and poor outcomes. Heavy alcohol use may also be linked to high blood pressure and obesity, which are risk factors for heart disease. You may have heard that drinking a glass the twelve steps alcoholics anonymous or two of red wine each day can help reduce your risk of heart disease. But before you raise a glass and toast to your heart, know that the news about alcohol isn’t entirely positive. According to one study, the maximum potential benefit for heart health occurs at low alcohol intake levels of 0.5–1 standard drinks per day for females and 1–2 standard drinks per day for males (13).

They could occur with foods, supplements, vaccines, or even lab tests. Note that the information below does not include all other possible interactions with Lipitor. Learn more about certain drug interactions that can occur with Lipitor.

As of 2017, there were approximately 50 case reports of liver injury in people taking statins that led to death or the need for liver transplantation. They stabilize and reduce the size of the coronary artery plaques that can lead to heart attacks, the leading cause of death in the U.S. before cancer. People using statins have reported a few other side effects, but more research is necessary to understand their prevalence and severity. Statins disrupt insulin-signaling pathways and can affect the function of beta cells in the pancreas, which create and release insulin. People taking statins may still be able to consume some alcohol, but not more than 14 units per week. Statins work by reducing how much cholesterol the liver produces and increasing its clearance from the blood.

For example, they may suggest taking an over-the-counter pain medication, such as Tylenol (acetaminophen) or Advil (ibuprofen). In more severe cases, your doctor may recommend that you take a different medication instead of Lipitor to treat your condition. If you have weight gain or hair loss during cbt for alcoholism and drug addiction your treatment with Lipitor, talk with your doctor or pharmacist. They may be able to recommend ways to manage your weight gain or hair loss. If you’re having side effects from taking Lipitor, talk with your doctor. Sometimes people have a nightcap to help them fall asleep, Bogunovic says.

If your muscle pain is mild, your doctor may recommend decreasing your Lipitor dose to see if the side effect lessens. In addition, eye-related side effects may be a symptom of another side effect that Lipitor causes. One side effect of liver problems is yellowing of the eyes or skin. But the inactive ingredients in Lipitor and atorvastatin may be different.

This may raise your risk of side effects from your birth control pills. Lipitor (atorvastatin) is a prescription drug used to treat high cholesterol and to lower certain risks. The drug can interact with certain foods, other medications, and some supplements. Alcohol is also well-known for causing liver problems, such as liver inflammation, scarring, and cirrhosis of the liver. Alcohol-related liver disease can be severe and irreversible, which can lead to an array of problems.

For instance, take the claims that alcohol may increase your “good” cholesterol, more officially known as high-density lipoprotein (HDL). Much of the alcohol that flows into your system after tipping back a glass finds its way to your liver for a digestive after-party. Alcohol is broken down in your liver and reconstructed as cholesterol and triglycerides. No, there aren’t any known interactions between Lipitor and lisinopril (Zestril).

Your doctor or pharmacist can tell you about any interactions these items may cause with Lipitor. Lipitor and Livalo are both statins, which help lower cholesterol levels in your body. Beta-blockers help manage high blood pressure, and blood thinners help prevent blood clots. Some people taking Lipitor may also need to take beta-blockers or blood thinners, depending on their other health conditions. For adults taking Lipitor, the usual recommended dose is 10 mg to 80 mg. Depending on your condition, you may start with a dose of 10 mg to 20 mg and then have your dose increased during your treatment.

The associations between drinking and CV diseases such as hypertension, coronary heart disease, stroke, peripheral arterial disease, and cardiomyopathy have been studied extensively and are outlined in this review. Although many behavioral, genetic, and biologic variants influence the interconnection between alcohol use and CV disease, dose and pattern of alcohol consumption seem to modulate this most. Low-to-moderate alcohol use may mitigate certain mechanisms such as risk and hemostatic factors affecting atherosclerosis and inflammation, pathophysiologic processes integral to most CV disease. Both the negative and positive effects of alcohol use on particular CV conditions are presented here. The review concludes by suggesting several promising avenues for future research related to alcohol use and CV disease. One common risk factor for CV disease is the composition of the lipids found in the blood, and the effects of alcohol consumption on lipid profiles have been extensively studied.

Each woman was given either no alcohol or 15 g of alcohol (1 standard drink) with either a low-carbohydrate or a high-carbohydrate, high-fat meal. The women’s metabolic measurements were then taken over the next 6 hours. The researchers found that the alcohol-drinking subjects (particularly those who were insulin sensitive) had higher insulin levels and a slower rise in glucose levels after a low-carb meal. They recommended confirming these results in younger women and in men, particularly since their subjects had been older women, who have more significant cardiovascular risk. Long-term heavy alcohol consumption induces adverse histological, cellular, and structural changes within the myocardium. These mechanisms contribute to the myocyte cellular changes that lead to intrinsic cell dysfunction, such as sarcoplasmic reticular dysfunction and changes in intracellular calcium handling and myocyte loss.

You should also schedule recurring blood tests around the three-month mark to check the health of your liver. If you’re taking statins and need to take one of these medicines, a doctor may prescribe an alternative statin or your current statin at a lower dosage. In some cases, they may recommend that you temporarily stop taking your statin. If one or more of these apply to you, you may need to be frequently monitored to check for complications.

It’s not rare for some people to experience a sore throat and a stuffy nose after a night of drinking alcohol. Studies suggest that alcohol, especially red wine, can promote the release of histamine in the body, a alcoholism: definition symptoms traits causes treatment substance involved in allergic reactions. The release of histamine can cause symptoms like a runny nose and nasal congestion. Lipitor can also cause common cold symptoms, such as a sore throat and a stuffy nose.

When you drink, try to have a meal or snack before having a cocktail or have a glass of wine with a meal, which will slow absorption of alcohol, Weaver says. And be sure to drink plenty of water or another non-alcoholic beverage—perhaps alternating these with alcoholic drinks—to help you stay hydrated. Ultimately, the risk-vs-enjoyment calculus of consuming alcohol should be considered on an individual basis, based on your current health status, your medication use, and other factors, experts say. “I don’t think alcohol is evil by any means but it’s a riskier proposition as you get older—you have to be more cautious,” says Moore. The brain also becomes more sensitive to the effects of alcohol as people get older, Moore says. “This can make people more prone to developing problems with coordination or balance,” increasing their risk of falls.

For full details of cautions and interactions relating to your specific medicine, check the patient information leaflet that comes with it. Before you start treatment with Lipitor, tell your doctor and pharmacist if you use cannabis. By sharing this information with them, you may help prevent possible interactions.