All people get sick from time to time, and many of them have to resort to antibiotics.It is widely believed in society that these drugs are incompatible with alcohol, but what to do if the period of treatment coincides with the holidays?Where is the truth and where are the legends in our ideas about the interaction of antibiotics with alcoholic beverages?
Antibiotics and alcohol
Antibiotics are drugs designed to fight bacteria.They penetrate the pathogenic microorganisms or interfere with their metabolism, disrupting it completely or partially.
Doctors still have different opinions on the issue of the compatibility of antibiotics with alcohol and when you can drink after therapy.There are many doctors who strongly recommend patients to completely avoid alcoholic beverages during therapy to avoid the consequences of taking an antibiotic and alcohol at the same time.They explain this by the fact that these drugs, together with ethanol, destroy the liver and negate the effectiveness of the treatment.
To date, many studies have been conducted, the results of which allow us to confidently assert that the pharmacological effect of most antibiotics under the influence of alcohol does not worsen and the load on the liver does not increase.
However, alcohol itself causes intoxication and dehydration.If you take antibiotics with large doses of alcohol, the body will weaken, and in this case, the effectiveness of the treatment will, of course, decrease.
There are also a number of antibiotics that react with ethanol in a disulfiram-like reaction.Their simultaneous use with alcohol is contraindicated, as this will lead to intoxication, accompanied by nausea and vomiting and convulsions.In very rare cases, death may occur.
Myths and reality
Historically, society has developed myths about complications after drinking alcohol during antibiotic treatment.
The main myths are the following:
- Alcohol neutralizes the effect of antibiotics.
- Alcohol in combination with antibiotics increases liver damage.
- Alcoholic beverages reduce the effectiveness of experimental therapy.
In fact, these theses are only partially true, which is confirmed by the results of numerous compatibility studies.In particular, the available data show that the intake of alcoholic beverages does not in any way affect the pharmacokinetics of most antibiotics.
In the early 20th and 21st centuries, many studies were conducted on the combined effects of antibacterial drugs and alcohol.Experiments involve humans and laboratory animals.The results of antibiotic therapy were the same in the experimental and control groups, but no significant deviations were found in the absorption, distribution and excretion of the active substances of the drugs from the body.Data from these studies show that it is possible to drink alcohol while taking antibiotics.
In 1982, Finnish scientists conducted a series of experiments among volunteers, the results of which showed that antibiotics from the penicillin group did not react in any way with ethanol;therefore, they can be consumed with alcohol.In 1988, Spanish researchers tested amoxicillin for compatibility with alcohol: a group of subjects showed only minor changes in the rate of absorption of the substance and retention time.
It has also been established that the pharmacokinetic parameters of some antibiotics, for example the tetracycline group, are significantly reduced under the influence of alcohol.However, fewer drugs with this effect have been identified.
The common belief that alcohol and alcoholic beverages increase liver damage has also been disproved by scientists around the world.More precisely, alcohol can increase the hepatotoxicity of antibacterial drugs, but only in very rare cases.This fact becomes rather an exception to the rule.
The scientists also proved that ethanol had no effect on the antibiotics used in the treatment of experimental pneumococcal infection in experimental rats.
Reasons for incompatibility
Despite the fact that the safety of the simultaneous use of most antibiotics with alcohol has been proven, there are a number of drugs that are incompatible with alcohol.These are drugs whose active substances enter into a disulfiram-like reaction with ethyl alcohol - mainly nitroimidazoles and cephalosporins.
The reason why you cannot take antibiotics and alcohol at the same time is that the above drugs contain specific molecules that can change the metabolism of ethanol.As a result, there is a delay in the release of acetaldehyde, which accumulates in the body and leads to intoxication.
The process is accompanied by characteristic symptoms:
- intense headache;
- rapid heart rate;
- nausea with vomiting;
- heat in the face, neck, chest;
- difficulty breathing;
- convulsions.
When coding alcoholism, a reaction similar to disulfiram is used, but this method should be used only under the strict control of a specialist.Poisoning during treatment with nitroimidazoles and cephalosporins can be caused even by a small dose of alcohol.Alcohol abuse in this case can lead to death.
Doctors allow small amounts of alcohol during treatment with penicillins, antifungal drugs and some broad-spectrum antibiotics.A portion of fortified drink while taking these drugs will not affect the effectiveness of the therapy and will not cause negative health consequences.
When possible
Although it is okay to drink alcohol while taking most antibiotics, it is not okay to take them at the same time.The best way to take such drugs is indicated in the instructions.
For example, the effectiveness of erythromycin and tetracyclines is increased by drinking alkaline mineral water and drinking sulfonamides, indomethacin and reserpine with milk.
If the antibiotic does not enter into a disulfiram-like reaction with ethanol, you can drink alcohol, but not earlier than 4 hours after the drug.This is the minimum time during which antibiotics circulate in the blood, and accordingly is the answer to the question of how long you can drink after taking the medicine.
In any case, during the treatment period it is allowed to take only a small dose of alcohol, otherwise the body will begin to dehydrate and the antibacterial drug will simply be excreted in the urine.
The combination of alcohol with an antibacterial composition is dangerous for the body.By finding out how long after taking the drug you can drink alcohol, you can eliminate all possible side effects.
Conclusions
The myth of the incompatibility of antibiotics and alcohol appeared in the last century and there are several hypotheses about the reasons for its occurrence.According to one of them, the authorship of the legend belongs to venereologists who wanted to warn their patients against drunkenness.
There is also an assumption that the myth was invented by European doctors.Penicillin was a drug in short supply in the 1940s and soldiers liked to drink beer, which has a diuretic effect and removes the drug from the body.
It is now proven that alcohol in most cases does not affect the effectiveness of antibiotics and does not increase liver damage.If the active substances of the drug do not enter into a disulfiram-like reaction with ethanol, you can drink alcohol during treatment.However, you must follow 2 basic rules: do not abuse alcohol and do not take antibiotics with it.