Sometimes the dentist prescribes antibiotic treatment to the patient.This happens during bacterial infections of the mouth.You need to take antibacterial drugs in compliance with certain rules, which your doctor will tell you about separately.One of the most frequently asked questions is whether it is possible to combine antibiotics and alcohol?We talk about this in detail in our material.
Is it possible to drink alcohol with antibiotics?
You've been prescribed antibiotics and you don't know if you can drink a glass of wine or a glass of beer.There is an opinion that antibiotics and alcohol should not be mixed.For many who don't like to drink, it has even become a convenient excuse to drink.As soon as you say you are taking antibiotics, the persuasion to drink stops immediately.However, legends remain legends, but it doesn't hurt to find out the truth.Let's see if you can afford to drink alcohol during antibacterial treatment.
To begin, a few words about antibiotics.These are medications prescribed for bacterial infections.Different antibiotics have different mechanisms of action, but the result is the same: the death of bacteria or their inability to reproduce.
Important.Antibiotics are not used against viral diseases because they are unable to fight viruses.Therefore, in cases of flu and colds, taking antibiotics is not recommended.Many people with symptoms of acute respiratory illness take antibiotics immediately, which is a big mistake.You can only take these medications with your doctor's permission.
Like other medications, antibiotics have side effects.It should be noted that when combined with alcoholic beverages, the risk of side effects may increase.Additionally, there is a risk of new side effects.This applies not only to antibiotics, but also to other medicines, for example sleeping pills, antiallergic medicines, sedatives, anti-inflammatories and painkillers.
Speaking of antibiotics and alcohol, the compatibility of which is in question, it is important to note how alcohol interacts with the drug.Let's consider 2 main mechanisms due to which it is impossible to mix antibiotics and alcohol.
Drug metabolism
Any drug is metabolized in the body, that is to say it undergoes a series of transformations.The medicine is already beginning to disintegrate in the oral cavity.This process is accelerated in the gastrointestinal tract, where the drug is absorbed into the bloodstream from the small intestine.The substance then passes through the liver, where it can undergo changes.The drug circulates in the blood for some time, after which it is excreted in the urine (often in an altered form).
Now let's see what happens when you take alcohol during antibiotic treatment.Like medications, alcohol is also metabolized.This happens in the liver with the help of specific enzymes.If the liver has to deal with both alcohol and drugs, the enzymes will act too quickly or not have time to do their job.
If the liver functions too quickly, the antibiotic will be destroyed prematurely and will not have time to produce its full therapeutic effect.If liver function is slowed, the antibiotic will accumulate in the blood too quickly, resulting in high drug toxicity.
Increased side effects
In some cases, the combination of alcohol and antibiotics can cause an increase in side effects or the appearance of new ones (due to taking antibiotics).This is particularly indicated for antibiotics which cause, for example, drowsiness.If you also drink alcohol, your sleepiness will increase.
However, in addition to increasing the main side effects (indicated in the instructions for the drug), new ones may also appear.These often include headaches, nausea, heart rhythm disturbances, intestinal disturbances and abdominal pain.
Important: antibiotic resistance.Bacteria, like any other living organism, evolve and adapt to new environmental conditions.In this case, they are able to adapt to the action of antibiotics.This is how antibiotic resistance develops, that is, the resistance of certain types of bacteria to one or another type of antibiotic.Currently, it is one of the most serious medical problems, because resistant bacteria are becoming more and more numerous and the search for new antibiotics is difficult.Uncontrolled use of antibiotics is one of the causes of bacterial resistance.Often, patients stop taking the medication on their own as soon as they feel improvement.You can't do this with antibiotics.It is important to drink the entire course prescribed by the doctor, even if you experience significant relief “sooner than expected”.
What happens if you drink alcohol with antibiotics?
Let's look at some of the negative consequences of taking alcohol and antibiotics at the same time.Let us note right away that such phenomena may not be observed, but we are obliged to inform the reader about this, since such reactions occur in medical practice.
- Liver dysfunction.If your liver is healthy, you may not feel the effects of mixing alcohol and antibiotics.However, be aware that the liver undergoes a double burden of processing alcohol and drugs.
- Nervous system disorders.In some people, alcohol combined with antibiotics causes significant central and peripheral nervous system disorders.This results in headaches, dizziness, nausea and even convulsions.
- Sleep disorder.Disturbances may occur until day and night change.
- Cardiovascular disorders.Most often, it is a change in blood pressure (up or down).
- Allergic reactions.In rare cases, antibiotics and alcohol can cause serious allergic reactions, including anaphylactic shock.The latter is a serious disease that threatens human life.In this case, you need to call an ambulance.
- Digestive tract disorders.Combining antibacterial medications with alcohol can cause indigestion, abdominal pain and diarrhea.
How many days after taking antibiotics can you drink alcohol?
How much should you not drink after taking antibiotics?This is also one of the most frequently asked questions by patients forced to take antibacterial medications.In this case, it all depends on the specific drug, namely how long it takes to eliminate it from the body.
In most cases, it is enough to take a break of two days (48 hours) after taking antibiotics, after which you can indulge in alcohol.In some countries they recommend waiting 3 days.There is no consensus on this issue.The only thing we can say for sure is that you have to wait at least 2 days.
Why you shouldn't drink while taking antibiotics
Medical literature (scientific articles, treatment recommendations, etc.), which discusses the harm of the combination of antibacterial drugs with alcohol, indicates a number of negative phenomena that occur when taking alcoholic beverages and antibiotics at the same time.The negative consequences come down to two undesirable effects, namely:
- Reduced effectiveness of antibacterial therapy.Alcohol is said to inhibit the antibacterial activity of antibiotics.Thus, the suppression of the pathogenic microflora is less effective, which requires prolonging the treatment or finding a new antibiotic.
- Liver damage.With the simultaneous use of alcoholic beverages and antibiotics, a significant load is placed on the liver tissue.The risk of poisoning not only the liver, but also the body increases, since the liver is a filter through which blood passes.
Let's see how true these statements are.What if an antibiotic and alcohol have already been mixed, what will happen to the body?
As for the reduction in the effectiveness of antibiotic therapy, such a danger does indeed exist.But this applies not only to antibiotics, but also to other drugs.It should be noted that there is still no convincing data regarding the negative effects of alcohol on various groups of antibiotics.In an animal study, no interaction between antibiotics and alcohol was observed.A study in humans did not show a significant decrease in the effectiveness of antibacterial treatment.
However, the instructions for these medications state in black and white that it is advisable to abstain from alcohol.Experts say there isn't enough research on this issue, so it's best to avoid alcohol while taking antibiotics.In addition, in the studies conducted, volunteers received small doses of alcohol, which are unlikely to have a significant effect on the metabolism of pharmacological drugs.Therefore, to the question of whether you can drink if you are taking antibiotics, the answer is always negative.
To summarize the above, we can identify 5 main reasons why it is undesirable to combine antibiotics and alcohol:
- Deterioration of metabolic processes.Alcoholic beverages interfere with the absorption of nutrients, vitamins, minerals and medications.This means that antibiotics will be less absorbed into the bloodstream, reducing their effectiveness.
- Increased blood sugar.Alcohol is metabolized in the body to form sugars.This is a particularly dangerous situation for diabetic patients.In addition, an increase in sugar levels during infectious diseases can only aggravate the course of the pathological process, since sugar is a substrate for pathogenic microorganisms.
- Decreased immunity.Drinking alcoholic beverages reduces the body's defenses.Thus, the infectious process will only intensify.
- Allergy.The combination of antibiotics and alcohol increases the risk of allergic reactions such as skin rashes.
- Unforeseeable consequences.Despite the conflicting evidence, it is difficult to make predictions regarding the interaction of drugs with alcohol in each specific case.Perhaps this combination will lead to undesirable consequences for you.
Important: antibiotics and other medications.For the information of our readers, it is undesirable to combine antibiotics not only with alcohol, but also with other medications.When prescribing antibacterial treatment, the doctor will certainly ask what medications the patient is currently taking.Generally, it is not recommended to combine antibiotics with anticoagulants, anticonvulsants, certain hypoglycemic drugs and other medications.If for some reason the doctor forgot to ask you about the medications you are taking, do not hesitate to ask this question.
Antibiotics and beer
Or maybe beer with antibiotics, because of all alcoholic drinks, it's the least "strong"?Indeed, beer is a low-alcohol drink.However, its insidiousness lies in the fact that, as a rule, people drink a lot of beer.So, 100 ml of beer contains approximately 3 to 6 ml of pure alcohol.So, if you drink 0.5 liters of beer, that already represents 15 to 30 ml of ethanol.And if the beer is strong, this already represents 40-50 ml of alcohol.
You should also not relax about non-alcoholic beer, as it still contains a certain amount of alcohol.Therefore, if you are taking antibiotics (especially if it is a short course), it is better to refrain from alcohol, even if it is beer.For the sake of your health, you can wait a week or two without a bottle of beer.
Wine with antibiotics
The situation with wine is the same as that with beer.At the same time, wine is a stronger drink and there is more alcohol per unit volume in wine than in beer.
Cognac and antibiotics
Cognac, brandy, whiskey, vodka and other strong alcoholic drinks contain significantly more alcohol than wine and beer.During antibacterial treatment, it is best to avoid consuming such alcoholic beverages.It is not a fact that alcohol somehow interferes with the action of antibiotics.But even in the absence of convincing data, it is still better to give up alcohol.It certainly won't be worse.
Antibiotics and alcohol: myths
So, as mentioned above, the negative effect of alcohol on antibiotics is a debatable issue.No one has proven it yet.Medical recommendations regarding abstinence from alcohol consumption during antibacterial treatment are rather “insurance” against a possible negative effect.
There are several theories why doctors still prohibit drinking alcohol while taking antibiotics.One of them is that when treating sexually transmitted diseases, doctors simply punish their patients for their dissolute lifestyle.
There is a second interesting story related to the shortage of penicillin during World War II.It was in Africa, where British troops were carrying out military operations.For doctors, penicillin was worth its weight in gold.It got to the point that the urine of sick soldiers was taken in order to isolate penicillin and reuse the drug.But if you drink beer at the same time, the volume of urine increases sharply, which complicates the process of excretion of the drug through urine.Therefore, patients who were prescribed an antibiotic were prohibited from drinking.
Antibiotics based on amoxicillin and alcohol
Among other things, many patients may have a question: is it possible to drink alcohol while taking such medications?Do they pair well with beer, cognac and other alcoholic beverages?It should be noted that foreign instructions for amoxicillin and clavulanic acid do not indicate side effects associated with the combined consumption of alcohol.There are also no studies on the negative effects of combining amoxicillin with alcohol to reasonably prohibit patients from taking alcohol during antibiotic treatment.
Cephalosporin antibiotics and alcohol
It is undesirable to combine these drugs with alcohol, as this can lead to a reaction similar to disulfiram.With this interaction, the decomposition of ethyl alcohol is inhibited, which leads to the accumulation of acetaldehyde, which has a toxic effect on the body.
Azithromycin antibiotics and alcohol
Regarding the popular antibiotic azithromycin, studies have been conducted on laboratory animals.In particular, it has been shown in rats that the effectiveness of azithromycin does not decrease when taking alcohol at the same time.However, the instructions for the drug indicate that simultaneous use of the drug with alcohol is undesirable.This is mainly due to the negative effect of alcohol on the liver.
Conclusion
If we summarize all of the above, we can say the following.In most cases, antibiotics do not lose their effectiveness when taken with alcohol.However, given the negative effects of alcohol on the liver, it is better to refrain from such an association.Drinking alcohol will definitely not speed up the treatment, so it is best to avoid alcohol during the antibiotic treatment period.