Stop using soft drinks to take drugs – UNILORIN pharmacist warns

A pharmacist, Busayo Idowu of the Department of Pharmacy, University of Ilorin
Teaching Hospital (UITH), warned on Saturday that taking drugs with beverages such as soft drinks could have adverse effects.
In an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ilorin, Idowu said that drugs, if taken with soft drinks might affect the absorption of the drugs. The expert noted that most soft drinks were acidic, which could decrease the anti bacterial action of tetracycline as they containcarbonates. Idowu warned further that such acidic drinks when combined with drugs could cause adverse reaction to patients.
According to him, absorption of some drugs such as aspirin, ketoconazole and phenytoin
could be affected also when taking with acidic beverage. He added that such drugs were best absorbed at highly acidic levels when taken orally.

“Acidic beverages delay the absorption rate and action of Erythromycin”, he said. He advised that drugs should preferably be used with water as it had the properties capable of eliminating unwanted effects. I word is enough for the wise.

[NAN]