If you’ve decided to use Mounjaro to lose weight you might wonder how it will impact your day to day. More specifically: can you drink alcohol on Mounjaro? Whether you’re worried about side effects or feel you might be “missing out” at social events, it’s good to make sure you’re clued up on the facts before you decide whether to drink.
When it comes to losing weight, it’s generally suggested by medical professionals, personal trainers or diet specialists that you cut down on, or cut out alcohol. Not only will you consume fewer calories, but cutting down also comes with lots of health benefits like lower risk of stroke, liver disease, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol.
But what if you’re taking a weight-loss medication like Mounjaro? Can you still drink alcohol, or do you have to cut it out altogether? Let’s get into the research.
Can you drink alcohol on Mounjaro?
While we don’t have much research yet on how alcohol reacts with tirzepatide (the active ingredient in Mounjaro), it’s generally recommended to avoid alcohol altogether when you start taking it, and slowly introduce it to test your tolerance as you adjust to the medication.
Drinking alcohol on Mounjaro could increase your risk of some side effects. Mounjaro can commonly cause various mild gut-related symptoms, like nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, and constipation. As alcohol can also have these effects on your body, these may be more likely to happen when combined with a weight loss medication like Mounjaro (the same goes for semaglutide-based weight loss injections). If you experience any of these side effects while taking Mounjaro, it’s best to avoid alcohol as much as possible.
Additionally, the Mounjaro patient information leaflet notes that dehydration can be a side effect when you first start the medication, often due to gut-related side effects. As such, it’s recommended that you drink a lot of water if you’re taking weight loss medications. As alcohol can also make you more easily dehydrated, this could be an increased risk if you combine alcohol and Mounjaro.
Alcohol can also cause major fluctuations in your blood sugar levels, particularly causing them to drop below a healthy range (hypoglycemia). As Mounjaro works to control your blood sugar levels and make sure they don’t spike too high, some people (especially those with diabetes who are already taking medications that lower blood sugar) might be more likely to experience a dangerous drop and have a hypoglycemic episode if they drink alcohol. If you have diabetes, you should avoid drinking alcohol on Mounjaro.
Finally, drinking alcohol can cause you to gain weight more easily as it’s high in calories and often boosts your appetite for carbohydrate-fuelled meals. This means it could counteract the benefits of using Mounjaro for weight loss if you drink regularly. Check out our article on the best diet to follow on Mounjaro.
Due to the lack of studies on the effects of alcohol and weight loss medications like Wegovy, Ozempic and Mounjaro, it’s best to only drink alcohol rarely and in extreme moderation.
Does Mounjaro help with alcohol cravings?
Interestingly, recent research suggests that Mounjaro and other weight loss drugs like Ozempic may actually help when it comes to reducing alcohol intake. Before we get into the science, it’s important to note that the following study was conducted on mice.
One study found that semaglutide (the main ingredient in drugs like Ozempic) reduced alcohol cravings and the desire to drink alcohol. Researchers found that rodents drank less alcohol when given semaglutide, as well as other calorific drinks (e.g. sugary fizzy drinks), suggesting that it could reduce the desire to binge drink.
They also found that semaglutide increased the frequency of brain signals to areas that manage stress and emotion, and enhanced the release of a neurotransmitter called GABA that helps the brain feel calm — except for rodents that were already dependent on alcohol.
Previous studies on mice also found that these kinds of weight-loss drugs suppressed the rewarding effects of alcohol and reduced alcohol consumption.
A 2023 study analysing social media posts and a second group of participants (no mice this time) who took semaglutide or tirzepatide found that people who took these weight loss drugs reported drinking less alcohol generally, and on occasions where they binge drank. They also reported feeling less stimulated by alcohol, suggesting these medications could impact how alcohol interacts with our brains.
While these studies are promising, much more research is needed to understand exactly how mixing Mounjaro and alcohol can affect our brain chemistry.
Does Mounjaro affect alcohol tolerance?
Taking Mounjaro may not directly lower your alcohol tolerance, but losing weight could. The less you weigh, the more you will be affected by a given amount of alcohol. But biological sex can come into play too. Women, and those assigned female at birth, have less of an enzyme called dehydrogenase, which breaks down alcohol in the stomach. So they may get drunk faster if they have a higher blood alcohol content than men, and people assigned male at birth, drinking the same amount of alcohol.
One study which specifically looked at women who had undergone a type of weight-loss surgery called a sleeve gastrectomy found that their blood alcohol levels were almost double compared to the group who hadn’t had surgery. They became drunker much quicker, and reported “intense feelings of drunkenness”.
While research here is again quite limited, what we do know about weight loss and alcohol tolerance suggests that cutting down on drinking alcohol whilst on Mounjaro would be beneficial, especially while your body gets used to the drug and any potential side effects.
Side effects of Mounjaro and alcohol
There isn’t enough research yet to say what the direct side effects of alcohol on Mounjaro could be. But as previously mentioned, we do know that there’s a possibility of alcohol increasing the likelihood of the gut-related side effects of Mounjaro.
The manufacturer of Mounjaro states that “there is no information on tirzepatide and concomitant alcoholic beverage use because this has not been studied”. Noting that in their clinical trials, participants were excluded if they had a history of alcohol abuse or any condition that may prevent them from following and completing the trial correctly.
Looking to cut down your alcohol intake?
Ultimately, it’s a good idea to cut down on alcohol if you’re starting Mounjaro for weight loss. Realistically, it’s easier said than done, but it's possible. Here are a few tips on cutting down on alcohol to get you started:
- Plan and set a budget: If you’re going out, plan to limit how much you’ll drink and spend. You could take a fixed amount of cash with you, or just set a mental limit.
- Talk about it: Letting your friends and family know that you’re cutting down (or cutting out) and why it’s important to you eases social pressure and prepares them to support you.
- Take it one day at a time: Cutting back a little each day is progress.
- Switch to low-and-no-alcohol drinks: Opting for a lower ABV (%) means you get all the taste with fewer effects.
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of water before and after alcohol. Between alcoholic drinks, opt for a soft one.
- Take a break: Try to have several drink-free days a week. As time goes by, you might find that your drink-free days turn into drink-free weeks.
If you do end up having a drink, don’t be too hard on yourself about losing progress. Just take it a day at a time.
Your Mounjaro journey
Hopefully after reading this article, you feel more empowered in deciding whether to drink alcohol or not while taking Mounjaro. While it’s frustrating that there isn’t enough research to definitively say you can or can’t drink at all on Mounjaro, we do know that you should only drink in extreme moderation whilst taking weight-loss drugs, and always consult a medical professional beforehand. In the end, you may not even have the cravings to drink alcohol whilst on Mounjaro anyway!
If you still have questions about weight loss and alcohol, the clinical team at Voy are here to help and can create a personalised weight loss plan for you. Not sure if Mounjaro is right for you? Take our weight loss quiz to see if weight-loss medications would suit you.
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