Every morning, I wake up and take enough Levoxyl that the new pharmacy clerks do a double-take when they see the amount. (Stupid thyroid just taking up space…)
On my prescription bottle, amid all the other notes and warnings, is a tag urging me to take the medication with “plenty of water.”
How much is that? Enough to get them down my throat? Eight ounces? A quart? And what is the purpose for “plenty of water?” Is it to ensure that they get into my stomach, or is there more to it? And is a cup of coffee sufficiently water-like?
I take Levoxyl (a much smaller dose I’m sure) and I’ve wondered about that myself. I usually wind up drinking about 4 to 6 oz 'cause I like a good drink of water when I get up. Don’t know if that’s “plenty” enough, but … definitely more than just a swallow.
The purpose of the admonishment is so you don’t get the pill stuck on the way down. My dad used to take his meds with just a swallow or two, and he was fine with that for years, but one day it wasn’t enough and the pill got stuck halfway down, causing much burning and distress. From that point, he made sure to drink half a glass at least, to make sure the meds made it all the way to the stomach.
Some meds need to be taken with food, to buffer the impact on the upper digestive tract, but the main purpose of the fluid is to get the pill down into the stomach acid bath to begin absorption. Half a glass, maybe six ounces, should be plenty. Coffee, or any liquid should be fine, as long as it doesn’t act against the meds, being as it is the mechanical action of the fluid “flushing” the pill down that is important.
what I hated was when one of the old style gel capsules decided to get stuck and break open half way down, so now you are trying to wash nasty powdery crap down with water …
I take some version of Synthroid and have worried about the water thing myself, since I hate water. I drink maybe 10 ounces of Crystal Light with it and call it a day. The hard part is waiting the hour to eat solid food.