Advil and Zyrtec are two popular over-the-counter medications used to treat different types of allergies. However, these two OTC drugs often come packaged together in the same box for a reason. As pharmacists recognize more drug interactions, they increasingly recommend that people take these medicines separately rather than together. Advil and Zyrtec are both antihistamines, which means they reduce the body’s response to an allergen and help your body feel less itchy. They also both have the potential to cause dangerous interactions if taken with another drug that is metabolized by the CYP450 enzyme. This article explains why you should never take Advil and Zyrtec together, why one or both may be unsafe when combined with other drugs, and how to safely use them when their benefits outweigh the risks.
Can You Take Advil And Zyrtec Together?
It is generally not recommended to take these medications together. Advil (ibuprofen) and Zyrtec (cetirizine) are both medications used to treat different types of conditions. Taking them together may increase the risk of adverse effects, so it is best to use one or the other at a time. For taking these medications together, you should check with your doctor or pharmacist to make sure they are safe to use together. You may need to avoid taking them together if they are not safe to use together.
Why You Should Never Take Advil And Zyrtec Together
1. The Dangers of Combining Advil and Zyrtec
Taking Advil and Zyrtec together can potentially lead to serious side effects. First, we’ll discuss the dangers of combining Advil and Zyrtec when it comes to their functions. Zyrtec is supposed to help relieve allergy symptoms, including watery eyes, runny nose, itching, and sneezing. Taking Advil and Zyrtec together can lead to blurred vision, dry mouth, difficulty breathing, nausea, vomiting, and a general increase in allergic symptoms. Since both medications are designed to treat allergies, combining them can lead to a negative response. For example, if you take Advil and Zyrtec at the same time, you could experience a more severe reaction to pollen than you would have if you took them separately. You should also be aware that combining Advil and Zyrtec could potentially lead to an increased risk of adverse side effects.
2. Advil and Zyrtec Have Different Functions
Advil and Zyrtec are completely different types of medications. Advil is an ibuprofen medicine that functions by reducing pain and inflammation. Zyrtec is a loratadine tablet that helps reduce allergy symptoms such as watery eyes, runny nose, itching and sneezing. It’s important to note that neither medicine will completely eliminate allergy symptoms. Both medications are designed to treat allergy symptoms, but they can’t cure allergies. If you regularly take either ibuprofen or loratadine, you may want to consider taking a multivitamin while you’re taking these medications. Multivitamins can be a great source of many of the vitamins and minerals that your body may not be getting from ibuprofen or loratadine alone. However, you should always talk to your doctor before taking a multivitamin to make sure it is appropriate for you.
3. Advil has the Potential to Negatively Impact Your Co-ordination
Advil is an anti-inflammatory medication that is commonly used to treat mild pain and reduce swelling. While these are generally safe uses, Advil also has the potential to negatively impact your coordination. If a person takes Advil and then participates in sports or activities that require coordination and mobility, they could fall easily or make mistakes while playing. Advil can also negatively impact physical activities such as driving, walking, and driving a vehicle. Advil can also negatively impact mental activities such as playing an instrument or performing in front of an audience. If you take Advil and plan to engage in any of these activities, you should be aware that you could make mistakes and fall more easily.
4. Advil has the Potential to Cause Gastrointestinal Problems
Taking Advil has the potential to cause gastrointestinal problems. What this means is that Advil can contribute to the formation of ulcers or gastrointestinal bleeding. Gastrointestinal bleeding is a serious health condition that requires immediate medical attention. If you take Advil and experience symptoms that suggest gastrointestinal bleeding, such as vomiting blood or passing blood in your stool, you should seek medical attention immediately. Gastrointestinal bleeding can be fatal if not treated immediately.
5. A Dangerous Combination: Respiratory Depression
If you take ibuprofen, a dangerous combination can occur respiratory depression. Respiratory depression is a state of reduced or constricted breathing that can ultimately lead to death. Taking ibuprofen has the potential to cause respiratory depression by slowing down the rate of breathing. If you take ibuprofen, you should never drive or operate machinery. Even if you don’t feel like you’re impacted by the medication, it’s still affecting your body and slowing down your breathing rate. This can be dangerous if you need to take action quickly while driving or operating machinery, such as a crane. You should never take ibuprofen if you are pregnant or breastfeeding. There are serious risks associated with taking ibuprofen during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
Why Advil And Zyrtec May Not Be Safe To Use Together?
- Advil and Zyrtec are two antihistamine drugs that are frequently packaged together and recommended to people with seasonal allergies. However, taking these two in combination can have dangerous side effects, including a risk of liver damage.
- When you take these drugs together, they compete for metabolization by the cytochrome P450 enzyme.
- This means that one or both drugs will remain in your bloodstream for a longer period of time. Since these are both blood-borne drugs, their extended presence has the potential to cause side effects.
- In particular, the extended period of time that Advil remains in the bloodstream has been linked to a higher risk of liver damage.
Possible Drug Interactions When Taking Advil And Zyrruh Together
- When taking Advil and Zyrtec together, it’s important to be aware of the potential drug interactions. While these two antihistamines do not create a chemical reaction when taken together, they can both remain in the bloodstream for a longer period of time due to metabolic competition.
- If you typically take both of these drugs once a day, taking them together may result in each drug being in your bloodstream for a 24-hour period. This can cause adverse effects that are more likely to occur when two antihistamines are present in your system instead of one.
- You should never take Advil and Zyrtec together, as this will result in an unsafe dosage. The recommended dosage for Zyrtec is 5 mg once per day, while the recommended dosage for Advil is 325 mg once per day. Taking both of these drugs together will result in a 5 mg dose of Zyrtec and a 325 mg dose of Advil. This will result in a total of 330 mg of ibuprofen, which is significantly higher than the recommended daily maximum dosage of 3,200 mg.
- Taking Advil and Zyrtec together may also cause induction interactions that can lead to liver damage. Induction interactions occur when one drug increases the metabolism rate or induces enzymes responsible for metabolizing another drug. As mentioned earlier, both Advil and Zyrtec are metabolized by the cytochrome P450 enzyme. If you take these two medications together without waiting at least 24 hours between doses, the enzyme may be “inducted,” which means that it is stimulated to metabolize both drugs at a higher rate than normal. This can result in dangerous drug interactions and an increased risk of liver damage.
Safer Alternatives To Taking Advil And Zyrtec Together
- If you have allergies, there are several safer alternatives to taking Advil and Zyrtec together. While these two drugs can provide relief from some allergy symptoms, they may not be worth the risk of liver damage.
- Both drugs offer other benefits that can help you avoid the dangers of taking them in combination. For example, Zyrtec is also an antihistamine that can provide relief for itchy eyes and sneezing symptoms.
- However, it does not have a risk of liver damage associated with taking it in combination with other drugs.
What To Do If You Have Taken Advil And Zyrtec Together?
- If you have taken Advil and Zyrtec together, it is important to seek medical attention as soon as possible. Taking these two drugs together has been linked to a number of serious side effects, including liver damage.
- If you have experienced any of these side effects after taking Advil and Zyrtec together, contact your physician for medical advice immediately.
- Departments of Health and Human Services and Labor, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Public Health Service Statement on Nonprescription Drugs for Acute Pain. February 1993.
Final Words
Zyrtec and Advil are two common medications used to treat allergies, but they should never be taken together. If you are taking these antihistamines, it’s important to be aware of the potential drug interactions, especially if you take other blood-borne medications. Taking one of these drugs in the morning and the other at night can help reduce the risk of a dangerous interaction. You may also want to consider taking metabolized by a different enzyme than the one metabolized by Advil and Zyrtec.
