All people get sick regularly, and many of them have to take antibiotics.There is a general consensus in society that these drugs are incompatible with alcohol, but what if the treatment period falls on a holiday?Where is the truth and myth in our thinking about antibiotics interacting with alcoholic beverages?
antibiotics and alcohol
Antibiotics are medicines designed to fight bacteria.They penetrate the pathogenic microorganism or interfere with its metabolism, destroying it completely or partially.
Doctors still have different opinions about the compatibility of antibiotics with alcohol and when you can drink alcohol after treatment.Many doctors strongly recommend that patients avoid alcohol altogether during treatment to avoid the consequences of taking antibiotics and alcohol at the same time.They explain that these drugs, along with ethanol, can damage the liver and negate the effectiveness of the treatment.
To date, many studies have been carried out, the results of which allow us to confidently assert that the pharmacological effects of most antibiotics are not worsened under the influence of alcohol, and the load on the liver is not increased.
However, alcohol itself can cause intoxication and dehydration.If antibiotics are taken in conjunction with heavy drinking, the body becomes weakened, in which case the effectiveness of the treatment will of course be reduced.
There are also many antibiotics that react similarly to disulfiram with ethanol.Their simultaneous use with alcohol is contraindicated, as this can lead to intoxication, accompanied by nausea, vomiting and convulsions.In rare cases, death may occur.
Myth and reality
Historically, society has developed myths about the complications of drinking alcohol during antibiotic treatment.
The main misunderstandings are as follows:
- Alcohol can neutralize the effects of antibiotics.
- Alcohol combined with antibiotics can increase liver damage.
- Alcoholic beverages can reduce the effectiveness of experimental treatments.
In fact, these arguments are only partially correct, as confirmed by the results of numerous compatibility studies.In particular, available data suggest that consumption of alcoholic beverages does not affect the pharmacokinetics of most antibiotics in any way.
At the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries, considerable research was conducted on the combined effects of antibacterial drugs and alcohol.Experiments involve humans and laboratory animals.The results of antibiotic treatment in the experimental group and the control group were the same, but no obvious deviation was found in the absorption, distribution and excretion of pharmaceutical active substances in the body.Data from these studies suggest that it is okay to drink alcohol while taking antibiotics.
As early as 1982, Finnish scientists conducted a series of experiments on volunteers, which showed that penicillin antibiotics did not react in any way with ethanol; therefore, they could be consumed with alcohol.In 1988, Spanish researchers tested the compatibility of amoxicillin with alcohol: one group of subjects showed only minor changes in the absorption rate and retention time of the substance.
Studies have also found that the pharmacokinetic parameters of certain antibiotics, such as tetracyclines, are significantly reduced under the influence of alcohol.However, there are fewer drugs that have this effect.
Alcohol and alcoholic beverages are widely believed to increase liver damage, but this view has been refuted by scientists around the world.More precisely, alcohol can increase the hepatotoxicity of antibacterial drugs, but only in rare cases.This fact becomes an exception to the rule.
The scientists also demonstrated that ethanol had no effect on antibiotics used in experimental rats treated for experimental pneumococcal infections.
Reason for incompatibility
Although most antibiotics have been shown to be safe when used concomitantly with alcohol, there are many medications that are incompatible with alcohol.The active substances of these drugs react similarly to disulfiram with ethanol, mainly nitroimidazole and cephalosporins.
The reason you cannot take antibiotics and alcohol at the same time is that these drugs contain specific molecules that can alter the metabolism of ethanol.As a result, the excretion of acetaldehyde is delayed, and acetaldehyde accumulates in the body and causes poisoning.
The process is accompanied by characteristic symptoms:
- Severe headache;
- rapid heartbeat;
- Nausea and vomiting;
- Heat in the face, neck, and chest areas;
- difficulty breathing;
- twitch.
Disulfiram-like reactions are used to code alcohol intoxication, but this method can only be used under strict supervision by experts.Even small doses of alcohol may cause intoxication during treatment with nitroimidazole and cephalosporins.In this case, alcohol abuse can lead to death.
Doctors allow small amounts of alcohol while being treated with penicillin, antifungals, and some broad-spectrum antibiotics.Drinking fortified beverages while taking these medications will not affect the effectiveness of your treatment or cause negative health consequences.
when can
Although it is okay to drink alcohol while taking most antibiotics, they should not be taken at the same time.The best way to take this type of medicine is stated in the package insert.
For example, drinking alkaline mineral water and drinking sulfonamides, indomethacin, and reserpine drugs together with milk can increase the efficacy of erythromycin and tetracycline drugs.
If the antibiotic does not cause a disulfiram-like reaction with ethanol, you can drink alcohol, but not earlier than 4 hours after taking the drug.This is the minimum time for antibiotics to circulate in the blood, and accordingly answers the question of how soon after taking the medicine you can drink alcohol.
Regardless, you should only consume small amounts of alcohol during treatment, otherwise your body will begin to become dehydrated and the antibacterial medication will simply be excreted through your urine.
Alcohol combined with any antibacterial ingredient is dangerous to the body.By knowing how soon after taking your medication you can drink alcohol, you can eliminate any possible side effects.
in conclusion
The myth about the incompatibility of antibiotics and alcohol emerged in the last century, and there are several hypotheses as to why it occurs.According to one of them, the authors of this legend were venereologists who wanted to warn their patients against alcoholism.
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 could flush the drug out of the body.
It has now been shown that alcohol does not affect the effectiveness of antibiotics or increase liver damage in most cases.It is possible to drink alcohol during treatment if the active substance of the drug does not undergo a disulfiram-like reaction with ethanol.However, you should follow two main rules: don't drink alcohol and don't take antibiotics at the same time.