Is taking medicine on an empty stomach the same as taking medicine before meals? This article teaches you the correct time to take medicine

In private messages and outpatient clinics, some patients often mistakenly believe that the medicine will work as long as it is taken into the stomach, and the time of taking the medicine is irrelevant. In fact, there is a certain correlation between the time of taking the medicine and the efficacy of the medicine. The interval between taking medicines is determined by the dynamics of drug metabolism in the body. If patients shorten the medication time or take the medicine irregularly on their own, the side effects of the drug may be enhanced due to excessive drug concentration, or even cause drug poisoning. It may also be that the drug concentration is too low and the desired therapeutic effect cannot be achieved. Therefore, patients should follow the doctor's advice and choose the right time to take the medicine.

Common medication times in daily life:

Morning medication: refers to taking it one hour before breakfast after getting up in the morning. Morning medication is not the same as taking medication in the morning.

Empty stomach: refers to taking medicine 1-2 hours before meals or about 2 hours after meals. Taking medicine on an empty stomach is different from taking medicine before meals. It is also wrong to eat immediately after taking medicine.

Before meals: refers to 30-60 minutes before meals. During this period, there is less food in the stomach, which is beneficial to drug absorption.

Mealtime: refers to a moment before or after a meal. During a meal means taking it with food.

After meal: refers to 30 minutes to 1 hour after a meal.

Before bed: refers to 15-30 minutes before going to bed.

When necessary: ​​refers to taking the medicine immediately when there is pain or an emergency, without a fixed time.

Once a day: Take once in the morning or evening, keeping the time of taking the medicine the same every day.

Twice a day: Generally, take it once in the morning and once in the evening during meals, with an interval of about 12 hours.

Three times a day: In theory, 24 hours is divided into three time periods, that is, taking the medicine once every eight hours. However, in order to facilitate the use of medication, patients are generally advised to divide the time outside of sleep into three periods to determine the time of taking the medicine. However, the instructions for antibiotics, anti-epileptic drugs, and Parkinson's drugs will clearly specify the time of taking the medicine, and they should be strictly followed.

In addition, if the patient is taking Chinese and Western medicines at the same time, he or she should consult the doctor whether the Chinese and Western medicines need to be taken separately and how long the interval between them should be.