However, one 2015 study found that light to moderate drinking (between 1 and 60 drinks a month) did not seem to make COPD worse or cause more health problems related to COPD. But the researchers weren’t able to say what the effect of heavy drinking (more than 60 drinks per month) was on COPD, since there weren’t enough heavy drinkers in the study. Excessive alcohol consumption can weaken a person’s immune system, increasing their susceptibility to lung conditions, such as pneumonia, syncytial respiratory virus, and acute respiratory distress syndrome.

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Heavy drinking can also cause nutritional deficiencies and even make your lungs more prone to being damaged by smoking. The body of research is not robust enough to form firm scientific conclusions and many of the studies that have been done on alcohol and COPD are poorly controlled and contradictory. Many also fail to separate the effects of drinking and smoking, which makes it impossible to tell whether or not negative health effects are the result of alcohol or tobacco consumption. Drinking too much alcohol can significantly reduce your immune system’s ability to stave off illnesses and infections. Even a single episode of heavy drinking can inhibit your body’s ability to fight viruses and bacteria for up to 24 hours.

Several studies observed decreased numbers of neutrophils in people with AUD. Alcohol exposure suppresses neutrophil production by the bone marrow and other blood cell–producing (i.e., hematopoietic) tissues (Melvan et al. 2011; Raasch et al. 2010; Siggins et al. 2011). This decreased neutrophil proliferation may account for the decreased number of neutrophils found in the lungs during the host response to pneumonia following alcohol consumption.

Health Conditions

If you are taking medication to manage your COPD, even a moderate amount of alcohol can reduce its effectiveness. But alcohol can also increase the power of certain medications, which may endanger your lungs. It is not our intention to serve as a substitute for medical advice and any content posted should not be used for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.

Alcohol Can Increase COPD Symptoms and Make You More Likely to Get Sick

For people with COPD, this may include medical monitoring and medication-assisted treatment. Unfortunately, this can lead some people down a path of alcohol dependence. Thankfully, effective treatment is available for those with alcohol addiction, as well as any co-occurring physical or mental health concern. Sleep apnea can present a larger problem for people with COPD, who already struggle with lung health and breathing-related issues. People who drink heavily are 25 percent more likely to experience an episode of apnea while asleep. While many people can have an occasional social drink, others struggle to control their alcohol intake.

1. Many also fail to separate the effects of drinking and smoking, which makes it impossible to tell whether or not negative health effects are the result of alcohol or tobacco consumption.
2. This observation suggests that in individuals with heavy alcohol exposure, the host neutrophils arrive late at the infected lung but stay longer (Sisson et al. 2005).
3. When a person drinks large amounts of alcohol, the drug affects every system of the body.
4. Many people don’t realize they have allergies or sensitivities to alcohol.
5. Once in the alveolar space, neutrophils ingest, degrade, and remove invading pathogens (Nathan 2006).

From there, they migrate into the airspace within the alveoli to the sites of microbial invasion. Once in the alveolar space, neutrophils ingest, degrade, and remove invading pathogens (Nathan 2006). This neutrophil-recruitment process is impaired by alcohol; even brief alcohol exposure decreases neutrophil recruitment to infected sites (Astry et al. 1983).

Medical

When you drink before bed, the alcohol disrupts your brain’s normal sleep cycles. As a result, your sleep quality is lower and you have an increased risk of waking up and not being able to sleep in the morning. For instance, many antibiotics are known to not mix well with alcohol, causing uncomfortable side effects like dizziness, drowsiness, and stomach distress.

GM-CSF is secreted by type II alveolar cells and is required for terminal differentiation of circulating monocytes does alcohol affect copd into mature, functional alveolar macrophages (Joshi et al. 2006). The levels of GM-CSF are reduced in chronic alcohol-drinking mice (Joshi et al. 2005). Chronic alcohol intake also decreased alveolar binding of PU.1, a transcription factor responsible for GM-CSF activation.