Can you drink alcohol while taking amoxicillin? i read the label and it didnt say 'not too'

It'd be very nice if people would avoid spreading urban legends and old wives' tales. Knee-jerk overreaction is also bad. Alcohol is, in and of itself, a drug. To say that you should never have alcohol with any drug is like saying you should never take anything, even aspirin, with a decongestant. The reason alcohol is counter-indicated in many medications is that sedation is a common side-effect, and alcohol can intensify this effect... there are other reasons, but this is the most common one. The most dangerous interaction, probably, is between alcohol and the world's most common overthecounter drug: tylenol. Wash down a handful of acetaminophen with a couple shots of vodka, and if you survive at all, you'll most likely have permanent liver damage... so it's good to ask your pharmacist about interactions, but there's no need to irrationally assume there will be a harmful effect when there's no evidence thereof.

However, if you are ill enough to need an antibiotic, then a systemic depressant like alcohol may slow your recovery (no matter what medications you are taking), but that has nothing to do with drug interactions, and moderate drinking (a couple of drinks, or two or three beers one evening) isn't likely to do all that much. I am not a doctor, so here's a cite from a reputable source, with links to the quoted material following:

<i>
Dr. Alan Galbraith says:

"There is no reason whatsoever that alcohol cannot be drunk while on amoxycillin or for most antibiotics. I do not know where this urban myth came from but it is very widespread even amongst some of the medical profession. There is only one group of commonly used drugs which are antibiotics in the wider sense of this term that may cause unpleasant adverse effects when taken with alcohol. These are the imidazoles, of which metronidazole (Flagyl) is the commonest in use."

"Contrary to popular believe there is no problems with alcohol and amoxycillin; most people including some doctors have this complete misconception."</i>

http://en.allexperts.com/q/Pharmacy-1407/Percocetl-Amoxicillin-Alcohol.htm http://en.allexperts.com/q/Pharmacy-1407/Alcohol-amoxicillin.htm