Doctor warns against mixing coffee with common medications

Drinking coffee alongside certain medications may pose health risks, a Russian physician has warned, citing potential drug interactions and reduced treatment efficacy.

Therapist Nazifat Urtenova told Gazeta.ru that even in the absence of explicit contraindications, coffee can alter drug absorption or intensify side effects.

Fluoroquinolone antibiotics such as ciprofloxacin and norfloxacin delay caffeine elimination, potentially causing insomnia, anxiety and tremors. Tetracyclines may also be less effective when taken with coffee due to reduced gastrointestinal absorption.

Oral contraceptives, which contain estrogen, can slow caffeine metabolism, leading to its accumulation and triggering headaches and sleep disturbances.

Urtenova also warned that combining coffee with paracetamol may increase liver toxicity, while pairing it with ibuprofen or aspirin may irritate the stomach lining.

Coffee should not be combined with certain antidepressants, particularly MAO inhibitors such as moclobemide and selegiline, due to the risk of hypertension. Tricyclic antidepressants, including amitriptyline, may amplify stimulant effects, increasing anxiety.

The beverage also interferes with iron absorption and may reduce the effectiveness of diabetes drugs like metformin, as well as cardiovascular medications including beta-blockers and antiarrhythmics.

Antiepileptic drugs such as carbamazepine and valproic acid may also be less effective when taken with coffee, Urtenova added.

N.Tebrizli