Is it possible to combine alcohol and antibiotics?Even doctors do not give the right answer to this popular question.And while some are absolutely against such a duet, 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 while maintaining social activities.
Is it really necessary to abstain from alcohol in combination with a course of antibiotics?Let's think about it.
Much depends on the active ingredient of the drug.Some types of antibiotics are not alcohol-friendly at all, 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 understand this issue wisely if for some reason you still drink alcohol during antibiotic therapy.
Antibiotics and alcohol: myths and legends
There is a version that scary stories about not mixing alcohol and antibiotics began to spread after the war.The first legend says that during this period, venereological clinics in our country and abroad were simply overcrowded.Patients are soldiers and officers who have fully experienced the "enjoyment" of martial law.Medical staff deliberately scare patients, talking about the bad consequences of the combination of alcohol and antibiotics, because after drinking, the patient can again perform all serious actions, and the result of such "exploitation" can be a new sexually transmitted infection.
Another legend says that due to the difficulty of obtaining penicillin, it was evaporated from the urine of treated soldiers.For this reason, soldiers are forbidden to drink beer during therapy.
The danger of drinking alcohol while taking antibiotics is in the air and modern people prefer to avoid the mixture.But what does evidence-based medicine think about this?
What does the study say?
At the beginning of the 21st century, studies were conducted on the effect of ethanol on various types of antibiotics.During experiments on laboratory animals and human volunteers, it has been proven that most types of antibiotics are not affected by alcohol consumption.
Therefore, in the experimental and control groups, the studied antibiotics were equally effective.No significant deviations in the mechanism of absorption, distribution throughout the body, or elimination of decay products were identified.
In this way, there is a hypothesis that drinking 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 conducted in this regard.Are all those fears unfounded?
What antibiotics should not be combined with alcohol?
No, the fear is not unfounded: there are some antibiotics that, when in contact with alcohol, give very unpleasant symptoms - the so-called disulfiram-like reaction.The reaction occurs when ethanol reacts chemically with certain specific antibiotic molecules, resulting in changes in the metabolism of ethyl alcohol in the body.In particular, the intermediate, acetaldehyde, accumulates.Poisoning with this substance gives the following symptoms:
- severe headache
- nausea and vomiting
- increased heart rate
- redness of the face, neck, chest area, "hot" inside
- Intermittent heavy breathing
- limb cramps
A large dose of alcohol can be fatal!
These symptoms are very difficult to bear, often causing fear of suffocation or death.Disulfiram-like reactions are used in the clinic in the treatment of alcoholism ("coding").
Antibiotics that can cause the following symptoms:
- active ingredient metronidazole
- active ingredient ketoconazole (prescribed for thrush, for example, in suppository form)
- active ingredient furazolidone (prescribed for food poisoning or unspecified diarrhea)
- active ingredient chloramphenicol (toxic, rarely used: for urinary tract infections, biliary tract 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 Helicobacter pylori bacteria, which causes stomach ulcers)
- active ingredient cefamandole (injection for unspecified infections)
- active ingredient cefoperazone (available in injections, treats respiratory tract, including pneumonia, bacterial diseases of the genitourinary system and other diseases)
- active ingredient moxifloxacin (broad-spectrum antibiotic, prescribed for severe 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 drugs that are prohibited in combination with alcoholic beverages, check with your doctor and carefully read the instructions for the drug.
A wise decision
When treating any disease with antibiotics, under no circumstances should you overload your 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, especially if the disease is protracted.Spending energy on cleansing the body can damage the immune system and significantly increase recovery time.
In addition, research and medical practice confirm that both alcohol and antibiotics have a depressing effect on the liver.
Despite the fact that expert opinions on the compatibility of alcoholic beverages and antibacterial agents are divided (with the exception of drugs whose restrictions are categorical), most tend to believe that it is better to avoid alcoholic beverages during the course of antibiotic therapy.You should also know: if you drink a glass of wine during therapy, you should not refuse the next dose of antibiotics (of course, if it is a drug that has no contraindications for alcohol).