One of the most commonly asked question that I often field in my office is the influence of alcohol on seizures and epilepsy. There are basically three fundamental points that one needs to understand about alcohol and epilepsy that I hope you will find useful when considering this question.
Alcohol can increase you chances for seizures
Alcohol can lower ones seizure threshold. This is directly influenced not only by the amount of alcohol you take but by simply ingesting any amount. Although the more you imbibe the more likely you are to have problems; the fact of the matter is that alcohol increases the tendency to have seizures and, therefore, is a reason why one should avoid it if you need to.
Alcohol can interact with your medications
One of the most fundamental facts about alcohol is that it tends to increase or emphasize the side effects of the seizure medications you are taking. Therefore, if you are on a drug that tends to make you more tired or leads to imbalance or other types of side effects, alcohol will only increase the chance that you are going to have not only the side effects of that medication but also the side effects of the alcohol which includes the staggering and the slurred speech and the other things that make you “look as though you are drunk”.
Alcohol is a depressant
Alcohol is essentially a legalized drug that is socially acceptable. Fundamentally, everyone perceives alcohol as an agent that basically allows you to feel less inhibited but the truth of the matter is that it tends to make you feel more depressed over time or increases the side effects where one feels sleepier or exhausted.
Although alcohol is a very commonly accepted part of our society and culture, it is a good idea to avoid it should you have seizures because of these issues. You should always talk to your doctor or healthcare practitioner about this topic but when in doubt avoiding alcohol is probably the best rule of all.
Alcohol can increase you chances for seizures
Alcohol can lower ones seizure threshold. This is directly influenced not only by the amount of alcohol you take but by simply ingesting any amount. Although the more you imbibe the more likely you are to have problems; the fact of the matter is that alcohol increases the tendency to have seizures and, therefore, is a reason why one should avoid it if you need to.
Alcohol can interact with your medications
One of the most fundamental facts about alcohol is that it tends to increase or emphasize the side effects of the seizure medications you are taking. Therefore, if you are on a drug that tends to make you more tired or leads to imbalance or other types of side effects, alcohol will only increase the chance that you are going to have not only the side effects of that medication but also the side effects of the alcohol which includes the staggering and the slurred speech and the other things that make you “look as though you are drunk”.
Alcohol is a depressant
Alcohol is essentially a legalized drug that is socially acceptable. Fundamentally, everyone perceives alcohol as an agent that basically allows you to feel less inhibited but the truth of the matter is that it tends to make you feel more depressed over time or increases the side effects where one feels sleepier or exhausted.
Although alcohol is a very commonly accepted part of our society and culture, it is a good idea to avoid it should you have seizures because of these issues. You should always talk to your doctor or healthcare practitioner about this topic but when in doubt avoiding alcohol is probably the best rule of all.
By Joseph I. Sirven, MD
Editor-in-Chief, Epilepsy.com
Last Reviewed: May 2, 2012
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