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Risk of increased bleeding with alcohol?

j20
j20

Hi, I understand this has been talked about a lot but there is still something I am not so sure about. I mean what do they mean that if you drink alcohol you may increase your risk of bleeding? Do they mean the alcohol could give you random internal bleeds itself? Or do they mean that the more alcohol you drink the more likely you are to become impared and thus prone to injury which can be a risk if you're on warfarin?

rmb
rmb
I think they mean it could be both, but I think if you are otherwise healthy bleeding internally from drinking isn’t usually a risk. I think the impairment and hurting yourself is really the bigger concern. My doc was always fine with me having a couple of drinks.
j20
j20
hi, thanks for the reply. What would you consider a low risk in regards to 3.5 % 440 ml can of beer?
rmb
rmb
No idea.
j20
j20
Did you have a couple of drinks a night or a week btw?
rmb
rmb
A couple of drinks in one sitting. Quite honestly I didn’t think about it too hard.

I would say this:

Don’t binge drink; stick to a couple of drinks if you are wanting to drink.

I’m not a doctor so this is my personal opinion. You may want to just get your doctor’s advice on this. Alcohol affects everyone differently. INRs may be affected by drinking but then again, it may not, for those on warfarin. Also if someone is making you a drink, what is considered one drink may actually be two if they over pour. So there are just a lot of variables and it’s kind of impossible to say what’s right for each person.
j20
j20
Well that's pretty much what the doctors and nurses have told me anyway. I am bit of a worrier btw lol. As long as I don't binge drink and stick to government guidelines.

Goodness knows how my dad managed when he was on warfarin being an alcoholic. His levels must have been through the roof.
moolar
moolar
When on Warfarin, certain foods/drinks can impact your INR, but I ate/drank pretty much everything I did prior to taking thinners, just smaller amounts of what I knew could affect my INR, & in moderation.
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