All people get sick from time to time, and many of them have to take antibiotics. There is a public opinion that these drugs are not compatible with alcohol, but what if the duration of treatment coincides with the holidays? Where is the truth, and where is the myth in our understanding of the interaction of antibiotics with alcohol?
Antibiotics and alcohol
Antibiotics are drugs designed to fight bacteria. They penetrate pathogenic microorganisms or interfere with their metabolism, completely or partially disrupting it.
Doctors are still divided on the compatibility of antibiotics with alcohol and when you can take it after therapy. There are many doctors who advise patients to abstain from alcohol during therapy to avoid the consequences of taking antibiotics and alcohol at the same time. They explain this by the fact that these drugs, together with ethanol, destroy the liver and deny the effectiveness of treatment.
To date, many studies have been conducted that can reliably confirm that the pharmacological effects of most antibiotics do not worsen under the influence of alcohol and that the burden on the liver does not increase.
However, alcohol itself causes intoxication and thirst. If you take antibiotics in large doses with alcohol, the body will weaken, and in this case, the effectiveness of treatment will certainly decrease.
A number of antibiotics that react similarly to ethanol and disulfiram are also isolated. Their simultaneous use with alcohol is contraindicated, as it will cause intoxication, accompanied by nausea and vomiting, convulsions. In very rare cases, death is possible.
Myths and reality
Historically, there have been myths in society about the consequences of alcohol consumption during antibiotic treatment.
The main myths are:
- Alcohol neutralizes the effects of antibiotics.
- Alcohol, along with antibiotics, increases liver damage.
- Alcohol reduces the effectiveness of experimental therapy.
In fact, these theses are only partially true, as evidenced by the results of numerous studies on compliance. In particular, available data suggest that alcohol intake does not affect the pharmacokinetics of most antibiotics.
In the early 20th and early 21st centuries, much research has been done on the combined effects of antibacterial drugs and alcohol. The experiments involved humans and laboratory animals. The results of antibiotic therapy were similar in the experimental and control groups, but no significant deviation was observed in the absorption, distribution and excretion of the active ingredients of the drug. The data from these studies showed that it is possible to drink alcohol while taking antibiotics.
As early as 1982, Finnish scientists conducted a series of experiments on volunteers, the results of which showed that antibiotics of the penicillin group did not react with ethanol, so they could be used in combination with alcohol. In 1988, Spanish researchers tested amoxicillin for compatibility with alcohol: only a small group of subjects were found to have insignificant changes in the rate and duration of absorption of the substance.
It was also found that the pharmacokinetic parameters of some antibiotics, such as the tetracycline group, are significantly reduced under the influence of alcohol. However, fewer drugs have been identified that have this effect.
The general belief that alcohol, along with alcohol, increases liver damage is also refuted by world scientists. Conversely, alcohol can increase the hepatoxicity of antibacterial drugs, but only very rarely. This fact is more than the rule.
The researchers also found that ethanol did not affect the antibiotics used to treat experimental pneumococcal infections in experimental rats.
Reasons for incompatibility
Although most antibiotics have been shown to be safe to use concomitantly with alcohol, there are a number of medications that are not compatible with alcohol. These are drugs whose active ingredients react with ethyl alcohol in a disulfiram-like manner - primarily nitroimidazoles and cephalosporins.
The reason why it is impossible to take both antibiotics and alcohol at the same time is that the above drugs contain specific molecules that can alter the metabolism of ethanol. As a result, there is a delay in the secretion of acetaldehyde, which accumulates in the body and causes intoxication.
The process is accompanied by characteristic symptoms:
- severe headache;
- rapid heartbeat;
- nausea with vomiting;
- heat in the face, neck, chest;
- difficulty breathing;
- convulsions.
A disulfiram-like reaction is used in the coding of alcoholism, but this method should be used only under the strict supervision of a specialist. Even small doses of alcohol can cause poisoning during treatment with nitroimidazole and cephalosporins. In this case, alcohol abuse can be fatal.
Doctors allow small amounts of alcohol during treatment with penicillins, antifungal drugs and some broad-spectrum antibiotics. While taking these medications, some of the fortified drink will not affect the effectiveness of the therapy and will not cause any adverse health effects.
When
Although alcohol is allowed with most antibiotics, it should not be taken at the same time. It is better to take such drugs, as indicated in these instructions.
For example, the effectiveness of erythromycin and tetracyclines is enhanced by drinking alkaline mineral water and sulfonamides, indomethacin and reserpine - milk.
If the antibiotic does not react with ethanol like disulfiram, you can drink alcohol, but not later than 4 hours after taking the drug. This is the minimum time that antibiotics circulate in the blood, respectively, and is the answer to the question of how much you can drink after taking the drug.
In any case, only a small dose of alcohol is allowed during treatment, otherwise the body will start dehydration and the antibacterial drug will simply be excreted in the urine.
The combination of alcohol with any antibacterial ingredient is dangerous for the body. By understanding how long you are allowed to drink alcohol after taking the drug, you can rule out all possible side effects.
results
The myth of incompatibility of antibiotics with alcohol appeared in the last century, although there are several hypotheses about the reasons for its occurrence. According to one of them, the authorship of the legend belongs to venereologists who want to warn patients about drunkenness.
There is also a hypothesis that the myth was invented by European doctors. Penicillin was a scarce drug in the 1940s, and soldiers liked to drink beer, which had a diuretic effect and eliminated the drug from the body.
It has now been proven that alcohol in most cases does not affect the effectiveness of antibiotics and does not increase liver damage. If the active ingredients of the drug do not react with ethanol like disulfiram, you can drink alcohol during treatment. However, two basic rules must be followed: do not abuse alcohol and do not take antibiotics with it.