Is the mixture of alcohol and antibiotics a “good” cocktail? Antibiotics combined with moderate alcohol consumption is possible but not recommended. The interactions between one and the other will depend on their elimination by the stomach, the metabolism of the person, the quantity and the nature of the product ingested.
Can you mix alcohol and antibiotics?
The mixture of alcohol and antibiotics is not recommended. “This alcohol-antibiotic mixture will increase the quantity and frequency of side effects usually expected by this class of drugs, including skin reactions“, notes Dr. Basseporte, general practitioner. There is no no formal contraindications drinking alcohol and taking antibiotics at the same time. “This mix is not the best especially in the context of acute alcohol consumption, and will have modifications on the mode of elimination of one and the other by the liver“, emphasizes Dr. Philippe Azevedo, addictologist. Depending on the metabolism of the antibiotic or alcohol, one will prevail over the other and their elimination will be more or less delayed. When antibiotics are eliminated before alcohol, an “antabuse” effect is observed. There is a accumulation of a toxic degradation of alcohol in the body and the latter causes harmful symptoms: nausea, “flush syndrome”, palpitations and digestive discomfort. “These effects will last for a certain amount of time. Once the drug is eliminated, the breakdown of alcohol by the liver will resume“, adds Dr. Azevedo.
► In people dependent on alcohol with hepatic pathology (a cirrhosis for example), the degradation of alcohol will be modified. It will thus be longer and the potential accumulation of the drug greater.
► The alcohol-nitroimidazole mixturean antibiotic generally prescribed to combat genital, dental and digestive infections, is strictly contraindicated.
Alcohol consumption is not recommended with nitroimidazole creams
What are the risks if we mix?
The risks associated with the alcohol-antibiotic mixture are alter the liver’s breakdown of either, resulting in the side effects of alcohol or antibiotics. “If the alcohol degrades more slowly, the signs of drunkenness, alcoholic impregnation, will take longer to appear and the transformations of alcohol by the liver will also be disrupted”, says Dr. Azevedo. The side effects of this mixture are generally digestive disturbances, hot flashes, palpitations and/or strong body odor when the elimination of toxic waste from alcohol is delayed.
Can you drink alcohol with antibiotic cream?
Cream antibiotics, insofar as it is an application and a local effect on the skin, do not interact with alcohol consumption. “Antibiotic creams do not usually diffuse into the blood. The consumption of alcohol in parallel with this application can therefore be authorized, except for nitroimidazole creams“concludes Dr. Basseporte.
Thanks to Dr Philippe Azevedo, addictologist, Paris and Dr Julien Basseporte, general practitioner, Joinville-le-Pont.