I drink a lot of tonic water...which contains quinine. Should I watch my intake?

Question

Instead of alcohol at the bar, I drink tonic water and lime. It looks like a gin and tonic so people don't give me crap for not drinking.

However it has quinine in it. According to wiki in the US it only has 83ppm which is a fraction of the medical dose. But since i drink a lot of it should I be watchful of my intake?

Is there potential poisoning or toxic levels to beware of? Long term effects of drinking it so often?

Answer 1

BROTHER!!!!!

Whenever I sidle up to the bar, instead of ordering anything containing ethanol, I order a Pseudo Gin & Tonic, which consists of a mix of Ginger Ale and Tonic Water.

But, to answer your question. Yes, you should watch your intake.

Quinine is a medication which was found to decrease the symptoms of Malaria.

Millitary personnel were required to ingest a glassful of it on a daily basis, which is why it was originally mixed with Scotch, but can be mixed with other drinks just as easily.

As with all medications, too much can make you as ill as the illness you were trying to avoid.

Me, I have downed as much as a two-liter bottle in a single day and not had any ill side-effects, but then, I don't drink it every day, but more like about once or twice a month.

I wonder if I can find an article on the toxicity of quinine for you.......

Here's a nice article showing that it is indeed toxic, but it didn't say how much would be considered toxic.. probably for the reasons that the authors didn't want to have anybody try to hold them responsible for anybody following any of their unintended suggestions... http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=3548270&dopt=Abstract

Here we go...

http://www.intox.org/databank/documents/pharm/quinine/ukpid13.htm..

Which says that an adult can die with as little as 1500mg of Quinine in his system.

So, now, the question is.. how much quinine do they put into Tonic Water.. I would imagine that it is 300mg per cup, based on the same article.. as that would be the standard daily dosage for an adult.

If that is true, however, then five cups COULD kill a person.. although the same article says that it is usually only after 8000mg that a person would kill themselves with it.

So, perhaps I just got lucky those times when I chug-a-lugged those 2L bottles of the stuff---- Maybe I should rethink my chug-a-lugging it.. right there along with you.. :-)

Answer 2

Quinine Tonic Water Side Effects

Answer 3

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Answer 4

People who are sensitive to quinine often find that it causes tinnitus (ringing in the ears). If you have this sensitivity, and you keep taking quinine, it is possible to cause permanent hearing loss -- so if this happens to you, stop drinking tonic water.

Answer 5

Medicinal doses of quinine sulphate are given to people suffering from night cramps

Answer 6

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Answer 7

I would not worry too much. I doubt any studies have been made of the effects of tonic water minus the "Mother's Ruin".

Answer 8

I can't imagine you'd drink enough to cause cinchonism (Google the term, for details), but there are some concerns about the possibility of it causing cardiac rhythm disturbances on occasion. This would be rare and wouldn't stop me drinking it, but it's worth mentioning. (I like my whisky neat.)

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Answer 10

Tonic water DOES NOT have quinine in it. Quinine comes from the bark of a tree in Micronesia, and even if it did, the only problem you would have is not being susceptible to malaria.