Antibiotics are one of the most common and very effective methods today to treat many different diseases. Thanks to antibacterial drugs, a number of diseases that used to be a little more than 100 years ago, often even life-threatening, are now successfully treated without any consequences. Modern pharmacology brings a large number of antibacterial drugs onto the market that are supposed to be taken successfully even in infancy: Last but not least, some of the antibiotics are even used successfully in the treatment of infants.
Of course, antibacterial drugs are among the active ingredients, the arbitrary and unauthorized use of which is excluded. The use of this group of drugs should therefore always be justified and agreed with the doctor: Their uncontrolled use instead of the medicinal effect always harbors serious risks. But what can I say - the risks also exist with the intended use of antibiotics, because each of these drugs has its own side effects, which in some cases have unpleasant consequences.
And one of the warnings that applies to absolutely all antibacterial agents without exception is a warning about the impossibility, harm and high risk of combining such drugs with alcohol. In the instructions to one of the antibiotics, in any case, read in black and white: the consumption of alcoholic beverages against the background of therapy with such drugs is strictly forbidden. And this is not an empty ban: drinking alcohol with a "snack" with medication can have extremely negative consequences.
Alcoholic beverages are not only forbidden to "wash off" medicines. Alcohol after antibiotics is prohibited and for a few hours after taking the medication and for several days (or better weeks) after the end of treatment. Unless, of course, the patient does not want to have slightly different health problems after he has healed a "wound" that is no less serious and complicated.
Quitting alcohol after taking antibiotics should be for the simple reason that each of these drugs has its own elimination time from the body. This means that even at the end of the treatment, the active ingredients still remain in the blood, tissue and liver. And until the process of their elimination from the body is completed, antibiotics react to the consumption of alcoholic beverages after treatment with alcohol in the same way as to alcohol that is drunk directly during therapy.
And these reactions can be very different, but at the same time are clearly negative in each individual case. One of the reasons why alcohol is actually not recommended after antibiotic therapy and for the duration of treatment is that alcoholic beverages can significantly reduce the effects of drug use. So when alcohol and antibiotics are taken together, the active ingredients of the latter accumulate in the liver instead of being absorbed into the blood and developing a therapeutic effect. As a result, the burden on the liver from a pronounced mixture of drugs and alcohol is enormous, and the long-awaited healing is indefinitely delayed.
Alcohol after antibiotics is also contraindicated because it additionally overloads the liver: The natural "filter" etc. during the course of taking antibacterial drugs has an increased effect and the additional stress in the form of alcoholic beverages causes an even stronger impact on the organ. Antibiotics, which enter into a chemical reaction with alcohol that try to break down and process the liver, cannot provide healing services in this case, but very unpleasant conditions in the form of nausea, vomiting, dizziness, headache or even mental cloudiness. In some cases, a "cocktail" of antibiotics and alcohol can cause shortness of breath and, in extremely severe cases, death. And, unfortunately, such cases have occurred more than once in medical practice.
The body's response to mixing alcohol and antibiotics is unpredictable. Against the background of the joint use of such drugs and alcohol, for example, exacerbation of chronic diseases occurs due to severe reactions of the nervous, digestive and cardiovascular systems.
The combination of alcoholic beverages with antibiotics can also be a major factor in the development of allergic reactions, even if the patient has never suffered from an allergy before. So if the immune system is still able to protect the body with "increased speed" during the antibacterial treatment, alcohol consumption can definitely disrupt the functions of the immune system, which is reflected in the occurrence of allergies.
As an interim result, we can say with certainty: antibiotics and alcohol are simply in no way, in no way compatible. The reasons for this ban are given above, they are also based on the claim that it is better to exclude alcoholic beverages from life for some time after such treatment. If you don't want to risk your life and health in vain, of course.
When should you drink alcohol after taking antibiotics?
There is no clear answer to the question of when to drink alcohol after antibiotics. Each of the antibacterial drugs has its own individual period of elimination from the body. Accordingly, it is decided individually in each individual case when alcohol should be drunk after antibiotics.
The minimum period for abstaining from alcoholic beverages after the end of antibiotic therapy is three days. At the same time, there are drugs that are eliminated from the body for much longer, and in this case, alcohol abstinence can be 10, 14 days, or even several weeks. This is necessary so that the liver can also remove the residual effects of taking antibiotics from the body without additional stress in the form of alcohol.
By the way, doctors only adhere to the latter opinion and recommend that all patients practice sobriety for as long as possible at the end of treatment with antibacterial agents. The longer the patient gives his liver to remove antibiotics and then restore normal work, the lower the risk of a conflict between alcohol and antibacterial drug.
This is most important for people taking antibiotics for liver and kidney problems. In such cases, the alcohol ban is extended after the antibiotic therapy has ended: a liver that is not yet completely healthy must be neutralized and the remains of the antibiotic must be removed from the body. If the liver is subjected to even more stress from such an increased load, it is unlikely that it will do without complications.
For many people who are used to indulging in at least one glass of good red wine a day, it is difficult to give up their favorite habit even during antibiotic treatment. Such people often reject memories of the dangers of the combination of alcohol and antibiotics and for some reason justify themselves by saying that "a glass of wine does not work". And it is completely in vain: even specialists will never take the responsibility to think about the possible severity of the consequences. In some cases, a glass of wine after taking antibiotics may actually not show serious results. But in another situation, an insignificant amount of alcohol drunk while taking antibacterial drugs, even at first sight, can lead to serious consequences. So before rejecting warnings from well-wishers about the impossibility of combining alcohol and antibacterial agents, it is better to think a hundred times - is a glass of wine really more important than our own health?