Can I drink Alcohol while Taking Antibiotics? Is it safe
If you have been prescribed an antibiotic for a bacterial infection, you might be wondering if it’s safe to drink alcohol. The short answer is that you should avoid alcohol while you are on antibiotics. This will help the body fight against infection quickly and prevent the risk of experiencing side effects.
Antibiotics and alcohol can cause similar side effects, such as drowsiness, stomach upset, and dizziness. If someone consumes both, the risk of experiencing side effects increases automatically. Before you have an alcoholic drink, it is better to wait until you are done with the antibiotic medicines treatment course.
How does alcohol affect infections and healing?
For a few seconds, put antibiotics aside, and let’s concentrate on alcohol. Just having a few glasses of alcohol can easily make you sick and challenging to get well. Alcohol is responsible for changing your blood sugar levels and slowing down the healing and recovery process. Consuming alcohol for a long time can weaken your immune system and increase the chance of experiencing another infection.
Is it safe to take antibiotics with alcohol?
You should know that not all antibiotics interact with alcohol. Depending on the type of antibiotic you are taking, doctors might suggest to limit or avoid alcohol consumption.
Some types of antibiotics, like tetracyclines and Nitroimidazoles, should not be mixed with alcohol strictly. Doing so can lead to dangerous side effects and make it difficult for the body to remove bacteria.
Nausea is a widespread side effect of antibiotics, and consuming alcohol can worsen this symptom. Though nausea is considered a common side effect of both alcohol and antibiotics, not all people experience it when taking antibiotics & alcohol together.
With some types of antibiotics, the risk of consuming alcohol is less. Yet, drinking any amount of alcohol can still cause some risks to a person having antibiotics.
As a result, it is better to avoid alcohol altogether during the treatment with antibiotics, as this helps in preventing discomfort and other severe side effects.
Reasons to avoid drinking alcohol when taking antibiotics
Your doctor might recommend avoiding drinking alcohol while you are taking antibiotics for numerous reasons. Alcohol and medication interactions are something you need to take care of, not only with antibiotics but also with other medications alcohol may interact. Especially alcohol abuse or excessive alcohol consumption may cause specific problems, and using it with antibiotics may lead to the following effects:
The effectiveness of antibiotics is affected.
It is essential to know that alcohol does not interfere directly with how an antibiotic kills bacteria. However, using alcohol can make the antibiotic less effective.
This can happen if your liver increases the production of certain enzymes in response to alcohol consumption. If these were some of the similar enzymes responsible for metabolizing your antibiotic, you might not get the high dose required to fight the infection.
Erythromycin is an antibiotic that might cause this. This is the reason why doctors do not suggest consuming alcohol with antibiotics.
Side effects
Another concern is that combining alcohol with an antibiotic can increase your chance of experiencing side effects. Most antibiotics have the potential to cause side effects such as nausea or stomach irritation. These effects increase if you have too much alcohol. Other potential side effects like dizziness and headache can also worsen if you have alcohol.
In case you take an antibiotic like Metronidazole used to treat vaginal infections and skin infections, it may interact with alcohol. Using alcohol during the effects of Metronidazole may have an increased risk of side effects like dizziness, facial flushing, headaches, vomiting, and nausea.
Sulfamethoxazole and Trimethoprim treat infections like Urinary tract infections, pneumonia, and ear infections. Drinking alcohol while taking them can cause severe fatigue, headache, dizziness, anxiety, chest pain, and heart palpitations.
Your liver is a vital example. Some antibiotics, such as Rifadin (Rifampin), carry a risk of damaging your liver, mainly if you suffer from liver disorders. Consuming alcohol regularly can also damage your liver early. As a result, there is no sense in combining antibiotics with alcohol.
Also, the antibiotic drugs like linezolid (Zyvox) may interact with certain alcoholic beverages such as beer and red wine. Drinking these beverages with this medicine can cause a significant increase in blood pressure.
It is always a good idea to avoid alcohol with antibiotics that depress your central nervous system. Mixing alcohol with some medicines for depression or seizures can cause too much sedation and even death or coma in extreme conditions. So, yes, for some people, alcohol with certain antibiotics can lead to severe reactions and harmful interactions.
Some mild to moderate reactions to combining alcohol with antibiotics include:
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Racing heartbeat
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Facial flushing
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Dizziness
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Headache
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Nausea
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Sweating
Impact on recovery
Taking alcohol with antibiotics can also affect your ability to heal and recover from illness. If you consume alcohol, it will make you feel dehydrated and interfere with your sleep, both of which slow down your recovery.
Consuming alcohol regularly has several adverse effects on your immune system and increases the risk of several infections like pneumonia. During your treatment with antibiotics, you should give your body a break from alcohol as this will help the body to recover from illness quickly.
Which antibiotics interact with alcohol?
Some antibiotics which interact with alcohol include:
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Mandol
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Cefotan
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Zefazone
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Rocephin
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Erymax
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Flagyl
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Myambutol
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Trecator
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Tindamax
Avoid combining these antibiotics with alcohol, as it can be unsafe for you.
Summary
Thus, the best thing is to avoid alcohol consumption during your treatment with antibiotics. Some people might experience side effects by combining the two; in some cases, the recovery process can slow down. It is better to consult a doctor once and then start your treatment with antibiotics accordingly. If you experience any severe reaction after consuming alcohol during the treatment, consult a doctor immediately.