Drug & supplement interaction

Wine + Cimetidine

Cimetidine brand names: Tagamet HB, Tagamet, Cimetidine Injection.

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

Wine has a moderate interaction with Cimetidine. Concomitant use might increase blood alcohol levels and adverse effects.

Read the full interaction report
SeverityModerate
LikelihoodPossible
EvidenceC
What do Severity, Likelihood & Evidence mean?
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Interaction report

Wine and Cimetidine

Here is the interaction we found between these two, with the evidence behind it.

Moderate

H2-BLOCKERS

Why this applies to Cimetidine

Cimetidine falls under H2-BLOCKERS — the group Wine interacts with.

Concomitant use might increase blood alcohol levels and adverse effects.
Concomitant use of the H2-blockers cimetidine and ranitidine with low doses of alcohol (0.15 grams/kg) might increase blood alcohol levels and adverse effects. Effects with higher doses of alcohol (0.3-1.5 grams/kg) are variable.
Severity Moderate Likelihood Possible Evidence C

Interaction 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.

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

Here's the interesting twist with cimetidine and wine: it's not so much that the wine changes the medicine, it's that the medicine can change how you handle the wine. Cimetidine can block one of the stomach enzymes that starts breaking down alcohol before it reaches your bloodstream. With smaller amounts of alcohol, that may mean a little more ends up in your blood than usual, so you could feel the effects (a bit tipsy, drowsy, or lightheaded) sooner or stronger.

This is rated moderate and only a possibility, and with bigger amounts of alcohol the effect gets unpredictable. It won't hurt your heartburn treatment, but if you drink while on cimetidine, go slow and don't drive until you know how it hits you. Check with your pharmacist if you have questions.

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 658 major, 269 moderate known drug interactions in our database — the Cimetidine one above is one of them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Major 658 Moderate 269 No known interaction 1,903 (incl. Cimetidine)
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 Cimetidine

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 Cimetidine, 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 Cimetidine

This page covers Wine only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Cimetidine page lists 95 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Pu-erh Tea (major), St. John's Wort (major), Adrafinil (moderate) and African Wild Potato (moderate).

By severity: 3 major · 63 moderate · 29 minor.

Open the Cimetidine 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 Cimetidine 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 Cimetidine 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 Cimetidine
Steady interest

#2,067 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 Cimetidine

What Is Cimetidine Used For?

Brand names: Tagamet HB, Tagamet, Cimetidine Injection

Cimetidine lowers stomach acid. The over-the-counter tablets (sold as Acid Controller, Acid Reducer, Basic Care Acid Reducer, Equate Cimetidine, Tagamet and others) relieve and prevent heartburn linked to acid indigestion and sour stomach.

The prescription cimetidine tablets and cimetidine hydrochloride oral solution treat stomach and digestive tract conditions. These include active duodenal ulcer, benign gastric ulcer, erosive gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and pathological hypersecretory conditions. They are also used to keep duodenal ulcers from coming back after healing.

See full Cimetidine 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.

658Major
269Moderate
0Minor
1,902No known interaction
658 Major 269 Moderate 1,902 No interaction
Major

658 interactions

Showing 60 of 658 major interactions — see all 658 on the Wine page.

Moderate

269 interactions

Showing 60 of 269 moderate interactions — see all 269 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 Cimetidine, 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 Cimetidine supplement interactions › Every supplement checked against Cimetidine, ranked by severity Cimetidine 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 Cimetidine Together: Common Questions

Can you take Wine with Cimetidine?
There is a moderate interaction, so it may be acceptable with monitoring or timing changes — but check with your pharmacist first. Read the full details on this page and confirm with your pharmacist before combining them.
How serious is the Wine and Cimetidine interaction?
We rate it Moderate. This combination may require monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separating the times you take each one. Consult your pharmacist before using them together.

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

Still Have a Question About Cimetidine and Wine?

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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.