Drug & supplement interaction

Wine + Acarbose

Acarbose brand names: Precose, Prandase, Glucobay.

Major Interaction
Medically reviewed by · Updated October 2026
The bottom line Major

Acarbose falls into 2 drug categories that Wine can interact with; the most serious is rated major. Concomitant use of alcohol with hepatotoxic drugs may increase the risk of hepatotoxicity.

Read the full interaction report
SeverityMajor
LikelihoodProbable
Interactions2
EvidenceC
What do Severity, Likelihood & Evidence mean?
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Interaction report

Wine and Acarbose

These two interact in 2 distinct ways. Each one is explained separately below.

Why Are There 2 Interactions?

Wine interacts with whole categories of medication. Acarbose falls into 2 of those categories, so it can interact with Wine in 2 different ways. We’ve listed each one below — your overall risk is driven by the most serious of them (Major).

Major

HEPATOTOXIC DRUGS

1 of 2

Why this applies to Acarbose

Acarbose falls under HEPATOTOXIC DRUGS — the group Wine interacts with.

Concomitant use of alcohol with hepatotoxic drugs may increase the risk of hepatotoxicity.
Concomitant use of excessive amounts of alcohol with potentially hepatotoxic drugs can increase the risk of liver damage.
Severity Major Likelihood Probable Evidence C

Interaction has not been documented in well-controlled studies, however, the interaction has been demonstrated in some small human studies or in controlled animal studies in conjunction with multiple case reports..

Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS
Dr. Brian Staiger explains PharmD, Clinical Pharmacist

Here's the deal with mixing wine and acarbose. Acarbose works right in your gut, slowing how fast carbs turn into sugar after meals, so it isn't really activated or broken down by your liver the way many drugs are. But acarbose can rarely bump up liver enzymes, and regular or heavy drinking is hard on the liver too. Stack those together and you raise the odds of liver irritation or, rarely, liver damage.

One more thing worth knowing: alcohol can swing your blood sugar in unpredictable ways, sometimes dropping it too low, especially if you skip food. An occasional glass with dinner is a different story than drinking heavily. If you drink regularly, please check in with your pharmacist or doctor so they can keep an eye on your liver and blood sugar.

Contact Dr. Brian directly if you have additional questions on this interaction
References
  1. Fraser AG. Pharmacokinetic interactions between alcohol and other drugs. Clin Pharmacokinet 1997;33:79-90. PubMed
Moderate

ANTIDIABETES DRUGS

2 of 2

Acarbose also falls under ANTIDIABETES DRUGS.

Concomitant use may interfere with blood glucose control.
Alcohol can impair gluconeogenesis and may increase the risk of acute hypoglycemia when used concomitantly with antidiabetes drugs. However, the carbohydrates in wine may also worsen glycemic control in patients with diabetes.
Severity Moderate Likelihood Probable Evidence C

Interaction has not been documented in well-controlled studies, however, the interaction has been demonstrated in some small human studies or in controlled animal studies in conjunction with multiple case reports..

Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS
Dr. Brian Staiger explains PharmD, Clinical Pharmacist

Here's the thing to know if you're managing type 2 diabetes with acarbose and you enjoy a glass of wine. Acarbose works in your gut, slowing how fast carbohydrates turn into sugar after a meal. Wine throws two opposite punches at your blood sugar. The alcohol itself can lower it by blocking your liver from making new glucose, which raises your risk of low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), especially on an empty stomach. At the same time, the carbs and sugar in wine can push your blood sugar up.

So it's a bit unpredictable. With acarbose, low blood sugar can also be trickier to fix fast, so it's worth a quick chat with your pharmacist or doctor about how to enjoy wine safely.

Contact Dr. Brian directly if you have additional questions on this interaction
References
  1. Fraser AG. Pharmacokinetic interactions between alcohol and other drugs. Clin Pharmacokinet 1997;33:79-90. PubMed

What These Ratings Mean

Every interaction above is graded three ways — here’s the key to each label.

Severity how clinically significant the interaction is
Major

Clinically significant. Avoid the combination, or use only under close professional supervision.

Moderate

Usually worth avoiding or managing — may need monitoring, a dose change, or timing apart.

Minor

Generally not serious. Be aware of it and mention it to your pharmacist.

Likelihood how strong the evidence is that the interaction actually happens in people
  • LikelyWell-controlled human studies have demonstrated the likely existence of this interaction.
  • ProbableInteraction has not been documented in well-controlled studies, however, the interaction has been demonstrated in some small human studies or in controlled animal studies in conjunction with multiple case reports.
  • PossibleInteraction has been documented in animal or in lab research, or the interaction has been documented in humans but is limited to case reports or conflicting clinical research exists.
  • UnlikelyInteraction has been demonstrated in animal or in lab research but has been shown not to occur in humans.
Evidence the quality of the studies behind the rating (graded A–D)
  • AHigh-quality meta-analysis (quantitative systematic review).
  • BCase-control study.
  • CConsensus.
  • DAnecdotal evidence.

These ratings are for information only. Never start, stop, or otherwise change your therapy before speaking with your provider.

Keep it in perspective

Wine Also Interacts With Other Medications

Wine has 657 major, 270 moderate known drug interactions in our database — the Acarbose one above is among them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Major 657 Moderate 270 No known interaction 1,903 (incl. Acarbose)
Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Wine

Covers the 2,830 medications we’ve checked against Wine. Pick one to open its full report.

From our Q&A

Questions About Wine or Acarbose

These are real questions from readers, answered by the pharmacists at HelloPharmacist — written by a person, not generated from a database. Each one covers Wine or Acarbose, not necessarily both, but if one is close to what you were about to ask it will usually go further than a database entry can:

Not quite your question? Ask our pharmacists directly — it is free, there is no account required, and answers usually come back within 24 hours.

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Acarbose

This page covers Wine only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Acarbose page lists 281 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Beer (major), Siberian Cocklebur (major), Acai (moderate) and African Wild Potato (moderate).

By severity: 4 major · 240 moderate · 37 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Acarbose page

“Acarbose (Precose, Glucobay) is taken with meals to blunt the blood sugar rise after eating, and its supplement list calls for genuine care, starting with the four major-rated entries: heavy alcohol and the herb Siberian cocklebur can strain the liver alongside acarbose, while activated charcoal can soak up oral drugs and cut what reac…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Acarbose interaction page

One more smart check

Taking Wine as Part of a Dietary Supplement Product? Check It for Interactions

We hold 8 real supplement products containing Wine, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Wine. Your product may carry other ingredients that interact with Acarbose too, on top of Wine — and those would not show on this page. Find your product and we’ll check every ingredient on its label:

How much people look this up

Where Wine and Acarbose Sit Against Everything Else

Out of every supplement and medication people look up on HelloPharmacist, here is where these two land this week — and which way each has been moving.

Supplement Wine
Top half

#405 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today
Medication Acarbose
Top 10%

#279 of 2,830 medications looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today

Position among everything looked up on this site, not a measure of how commonly either one is used or how important it is. A supplement can climb this list because of a news story. It counts every request to the page, automated ones included, and nothing here identifies anyone.

Supplement

About Wine

What is Wine?

  • Social and relaxation use
  • Heart health (popular belief)
  • Antioxidant intake
  • Aiding digestion (traditional use)
  • Culinary flavoring

Wine is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented grapes and is not a true dietary supplement or medicine. Despite popular claims about heart benefits, the alcohol it contains carries real health risks, and no amount of drinking can be recommended to improve health. If you drink, do so in moderation, and avoid alcohol entirely during pregnancy or if you have certain medical conditions.

Read the full Wine monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Acarbose

What Is Acarbose Used For?

Brand names: Precose, Prandase, Glucobay

Acarbose tablets are used to help manage blood sugar levels in adults with type 2 diabetes. It is always used together with a proper diet and regular exercise — not as a replacement for them.

Acarbose can be used on its own or combined with other diabetes medicines, such as sulfonylureas, insulin, or metformin, to further improve blood sugar control.

See full Acarbose drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Wine

Browse every other medication we’ve checked against Wine — both the ones with a known interaction and the ones without. Select any drug for the full detail.

657Major
270Moderate
0Minor
1,902No known interaction
657 Major 270 Moderate 1,902 No interaction
Major

657 interactions

Showing 60 of 657 major interactions — see all 657 on the Wine page.

Moderate

270 interactions

Showing 60 of 270 moderate interactions — see all 270 on the Wine page.

No interaction 1,902 drugs checked — show the list

We also checked Wine against these medications and found no known interaction in our sources. Open any page to confirm.

Showing the 60 most looked-up of 1,902 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Wine list.

See the full Wine interactions page
See every supplement checked against Acarbose, ranked by severity
Sources

Sources & How We Checked

Interaction details are evidence-graded and sourced from the Natural Medicines database. The medication overview comes from MedlinePlus.

Content is written and reviewed by licensed HelloPharmacist pharmacists. See our data sources and editorial standards for how this information is built and checked.

Parts of this content are provided by the Therapeutic Research Center, LLC.

DISCLAIMER: Currently this does not check for drug-drug interactions. This is not an all-inclusive comprehensive list of potential interactions and is for informational purposes only. Not all interactions are known or well-reported in the scientific literature, and new interactions are continually being reported. Input is needed from a qualified healthcare provider including a pharmacist before starting any therapy. Application of clinical judgment is necessary.

© 2021 Therapeutic Research Center, LLC

Keep exploring
Wine monograph › Uses, safety, and every drug interaction in one place Acarbose supplement interactions › Every supplement checked against Acarbose, ranked by severity Acarbose drug information › The full plain-English guide to this medication Supplement interaction checker › Check any supplement or product against your medications Browse medications A–Z › Every drug we've checked against herbs & supplements Ask a pharmacist › Free, personal answer from our licensed team
Pharmacist Counseling Corner

Taking Wine and Acarbose Together: Common Questions

Can you take Wine with Acarbose?
This is rated a major interaction, so the combination is best avoided unless your doctor or pharmacist has specifically told you otherwise. Read the full details on this page and confirm with your pharmacist before combining them.
Why are there 2 interactions listed for Wine and Acarbose?
Acarbose belongs to more than one drug category, and Wine interacts with each of those categories a little differently. We list every one so nothing is missed — your overall risk is driven by the most serious of them.
How serious is the Wine and Acarbose interaction?
We rate it Major. This is a clinically significant combination that is generally best avoided, or used only under the direct supervision of your physician or pharmacist.

Written and reviewed by the HelloPharmacist editorial staff. Our editorial policy

Still Have a Question About Acarbose and Wine?

Our pharmacists answer your medication & supplement questions — free.

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This information is for education only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always check with your pharmacist or doctor before starting, stopping, or combining supplements and medications.