Codiene and alcohol

[Mummy19832]

I took 30mg of codiene at 11am today will i be ok to have a couple of glasses of Prosecco tonight or not ?

Yes of course

Yes, absolutely. Codeine doesn’t have a particularly long half life.

Yes

Oddly, not according to Google. I have often taken paracodamol in the day and drunk in the evening though. Do you have any underlying health issues like asthma that might mean needing to be careful after taking codeine?

I'm not going to lie i sometimes take paracetamol before going out no no asthma and was only going to have a couple anyway I though they would be out of my system in 8 hours to be honest

I take 30/500 strength Cocodamol regularly for chronic bladder and lupus pain and enjoy an occasional drink. The contradiction is mainly if you’re new to taking it and not sure how it will affect you as it can make some people very sleepy and that coupled with alcohol can be dangerous as it increases the risk of drowsiness and breathing depresses during sleep.

Absolutely no issue with paracetamol, I understand, as DH and I have been doing that continually for decades (often washing them down with the wine LOL), but I think the issue over codeine is the fact that it is more than a pain killer and can have effects on the nervous system, specifically the respiratory system - which I was oblivious to and DO have allergic/post viral asthma. But if you don’t have any underlying health issues and are otherwise healthy I’d personally have no issues with drinking 7-8 hours after taking it - perhaps being sure to eat someone before/during as we process alcohol differently in the presence of food.

Obviously not offering advice - just saying I’d not see a problem in your circumstances. The decision has to be yours. :)

I take 8x 30mg a day due to knee issues. I occasionally have a drink - probably not the best idea but chronic pain is bad enough.

I think threads like this are potentially dangerous OP.
Strangers on the internet telling you that it's ok to mix paracetamol and codeine and whatever with alcohol?
Presumably you have looked at the NHS Guidelines and other reputable advice easily available by googling. Much better to be guided by that than pp on here.
I certainly wouldn't mix paracetamol with alcohol given the potential for liver damage.

Some posters are being alarmist - @Mummy19832 says she took 30mg at 11am, the half life calculation means she would have had barely trace amounts of it in her system by the time she started drinking at around 7pm. It’s the ability of the liver to process toxins that underlies the medical advice, which is focused on discouraging the taking of medication WITH alcohol. OP will be completely safe to have a couple of drinks this evening, 8 hours after taking the relatively small dose of codeine.

Obviously she would be wise to avoid taking it as a habit on days where she is planning to have a drink, or at all if she is on a course of codeine (3-4 hourly, to a max of 240mg a day for no more than 3 days unless clinically prescribed), but she didn’t indicate this was the case. She would also be sensible to avoid taking any more medications again today and to wait until the alcohol has cleared her system - ie not before tomorrow.

But I am sure OP referred to the packaging and Dr Google herself before making the final decision whether to have some prosecco or stick to tonic water.

A couple of paracetamol and a couple of drinks is not going to do anyone any harm whatsoever. It’s when you do it regularly, with a lot of alcohol and a max dose of paracetamol round the clock that it’s an issue.

a couple of codeine and a bottle of wine is a relaxing evening for me. Codeine taken 9 hours earlier won’t even register on the scale

You are contradicting yourself . On the one hand saying it's perfectly safe. On the the other admitting that there are certain circumstances when it is not ok to take alcohol with paracetamol.
That's why posts saying it is ok are dangerous. Pp have no idea of the individual circumstances and health conditions of those reading their advice.

.

🤨

No, I’m not contracting myself. 🙄

Im sorry but you are. It is not perfectly safe if its not safe in some circumstances.

And I expect you are aware everyone's idea of what a large amount of alcohol is varies dramatically? I remember reading about George Best's attempts to stop drinking. He drank white wine for breakfast because for him it was akin to fruit juice. It was still killing him.
And it's very easy to loose track of when and how much paracetamol you've taken even when you are stone cold sober.

If people decide to drink alcohol and take medication then fair enough. But I don't think others on threads like this should be telling them it's perfectly safe because it is potentially dangerous.

All medications are risky if you don’t take them at the correct doses. Including paracetamol.

See the nhs guidelines- it specifically says alcohol and paracetamol are safe together so you are being utterly pedantic and ridiculous. I advise in complex health care groups where many people take very strong medications, much stronger than an occasional dose of paracetamol!

Obviously no one should be downing a whole box of paracetamol and a bottle of vodka. That isn’t what anyone is saying or suggesting. Just be sensible.

https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/paracetamol-for-adults/