Is it possible to combine alcohol and antibiotics?Even doctors do not give an exact answer to this popular question.And although some are categorically against such duets, others believe that it is important to consider what kind of alcohol you drink and how much.There is a third opinion that by approaching the issue wisely, you can successfully undergo treatment and at the same time maintain social activity.
Is it really necessary to abstain from alcohol in combination with antibiotics?Let's find out.
Much depends on the active ingredient of the drug.Some types of antibiotics are not at all friendly to alcohol, while others can interact normally.Of course, after reading this article, you should not mix alcohol with pills.However, knowing certain things will help you not to panic, but to intelligently understand the problem if for some reason you still drank alcohol during antibiotic therapy.
Antibiotics and alcohol: myths and legends
There is a version that scary stories about the non-combination of alcohol and antibiotics began to spread after the war.The first legend says that during this period venereology clinics in our country and abroad were simply overcrowded.The patients are soldiers and officers who have fully experienced the “delights” of martial law.The medical staff deliberately intimidated the patients, talking about the terrible consequences of combining alcohol and antibiotics, because after drinking, the patients could again commit all serious acts, and the result of such “exploits” could well be a new sexually transmitted infection.
Another legend says that due to the laboriousness of obtaining penicillin, it evaporated from the urine of the treated soldiers.For this reason, soldiers were prohibited from drinking beer during therapy.
The danger of drinking alcohol while taking antibiotics is in the air and modern people prefer to avoid these mixtures.But what does evidence-based medicine think about this?
What do the studies say?
At the beginning of the 21st century, studies were carried out on the effects of ethanol on different types of antibiotics.During experiments on laboratory animals and human volunteers, it was proven that most types of antibiotics are not affected by alcohol intake.
Thus, in the experimental and control groups, the antibiotics studied were equally effective.No significant deviations were identified in the mechanisms of absorption, distribution throughout the body or elimination of decomposition products.
In fact, there is a hypothesis that the consumption of alcoholic beverages increases the adverse effects of antibiotics on the liver.Such cases are rarely described in the medical literature due to their rare occurrence (up to 10 cases per 100,000).At the same time, no additional research has been carried out in this regard.Are all fears unfounded?
Which antibiotics should not be combined with alcohol?
No, the fears are not unfounded: there are several antibiotics that, when in contact with alcohol, give extremely unpleasant symptoms - the so-called disulfiram-like reaction.The reaction occurs when ethanol chemically reacts with certain specific antibiotic molecules, resulting in changes in the metabolism of ethyl alcohol in the body.In particular, an intermediate substance, acetaldehyde, accumulates.Poisoning with this substance presents the following symptoms:
- severe headache
- nausea and vomiting
- increased heart rate
- redness in the face, neck, chest area, “heat” in them
- intermittent heavy breathing
- limb spasms
Large doses of alcohol can be fatal!
These symptoms are very difficult to bear, often causing fear of suffocation or death.The disulfiram-like reaction is used in clinics in the treatment of alcoholism ("coding").
Antibiotics that may cause the following symptoms:
- active ingredient metronidazole
- active ingredient ketoconazole (prescribed for candidiasis, for example, in the form of suppositories)
- active ingredient furazolidone (prescribed for food poisoning or diarrhea of an unspecified nature)
- active ingredient chloramphenicol (toxic, rarely used: for infections of the urinary tract, bile ducts and some other diseases)
- active ingredient co-trimoxazole (can be prescribed for infections of the respiratory tract, kidneys and ureters, prostatitis)
- active ingredient lornoxicam (used to treat bacterial infections of the respiratory and ENT organs, kidneys, urinary tract, etc.)
- active ingredient tinidazole (often prescribed for infection with the bacteria Helicobacter pylori, which causes stomach ulcers)
- active ingredient cefamandole (injections for infections of unspecified nature)
- active ingredient cefoperazone (available in injections, treats the respiratory tract, including pneumonia, bacterial diseases of the genitourinary system and other diseases)
- active ingredient moxifloxacin (broad-spectrum antibiotic, prescribed for serious conditions including fever if bacterial infection is suspected)
When taking these medications (both oral medications and suppositories or eye drops), you must avoid drinking alcohol!
To make sure that your antibiotic is not included in the group of medicines that are prohibited from being combined with alcoholic beverages, consult your doctor and carefully read the instructions for the medicine.
Smart decision
When treating any disease with antibiotics, in any case, you should not overload the body with alcoholic beverages.After all, like any toxic substance, ethanol requires “neutralization” in the body.The body uses additional reserves to fight the poison, often the last ones, especially if the illness is prolonged.Spending energy on cleansing the body can damage the immune system and significantly increase the recovery period.
Furthermore, research and medical practice confirm that both alcohol and antibiotics have a depressant effect on the liver.
Despite the fact that the opinion of experts on the compatibility of alcoholic beverages and antibacterial agents is divided (with the exception of those medicines for which restrictions are categorical), the majority tends to believe that it is better to avoid alcoholic beverages during antibiotic therapy.You should also know: if you drank a glass of wine during therapy, you should not refuse the next dose of antibiotics (of course, if it is a medicine for which there is no contraindication to alcohol).