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Those who did not have chickenpox in childhood do not have immunity to this disease. For adults, it is much more dangerous than for children, because it is more severe and gives more complications. In addition, chickenpox in adults is a relative rarity, and not every doctor immediately diagnoses it. There is a high probability that the patient will not be treated immediately, but will be sent to be tested at a dermatovenerological dispensary.
Of course, a rash that covers the entire body is a serious cause for stress. And many are accustomed to relieve stress, if not with strong alcohol, then with beer. To understand whether alcohol is possible with chickenpox, you do not always need to refer to medical reference books, ordinary common sense is enough.
It is known that with chickenpox, the mucous membrane of the internal organs becomes more or less inflamed. Sometimes we are talking about a little irritation, in severe cases the same rash appears on the inside as on the outside.
If a pimple on the skin is treated with a swab dipped in alcohol, a person will feel a burning sensation. Now imagine what will happen when burning ethanol touches the inflamed mucosa, which is much more sensitive than the skin. Pain, vomiting, indigestion – this is just an incomplete list of consequences.
From the injured mucous membrane of the stomach – half a step to gastritis or ulcers. It is not for nothing that for any, even the mildest form of chickenpox, doctors recommend a diet of enveloping products: puree soups, jelly, milk porridge, boiled vegetables, and prohibit everything smoked, salty, sour, spicy. But ethanol can injure the mucous membrane much more than any pickled cucumber or a piece of herring!
Moreover, beer and champagne are no less harmful to the patient than strong alcohol. Carbon dioxide contained in carbonated drinks enhances the burning effect of ethanol.
Interactions between alcohol and chickenpox medications
With chickenpox, drugs are usually prescribed:
- antiviral (the causative agent of the disease is the varicella-zoster virus);
- antihistamines to relieve itching;
- antipyretic, if the high temperature lasts too long;
- antibiotics (if, in addition to a viral infection, the patient also became infected with a bacterial one).
The eternal worker-liver does not understand that a person takes medicines for good, and drinks alcohol for pleasure. For this organ, both drugs and alcohol are poisons that should be quickly neutralized. But if the body simultaneously receives two radically different in composition and principle of action of the toxin, then the liver is forced to use two different algorithms for their neutralization.
As a result, the rate of breakdown of harmful substances decreases. Much more toxins enter the bloodstream than the drug developers thought, which amplifies the side effects. And the toxic breakdown products of alcohol also remain in the blood for much longer than expected, causing weakness, nausea, vomiting, and other symptoms of poisoning.
Antiviral drugs usually have a lot of side effects. Consider the popular drug Acyclovir. Side effects include nausea and vomiting, headache, diarrhea, hair loss, and acute renal failure. Even ordinary diarrhea in a patient who is prescribed bed rest and is forbidden to wash is terrible. It is unlikely that there will be a person who would like to enhance such side effects.
Alcohol and antihistamines
Antihistamines are designed to reduce itching so that the patient does not have a desire to comb the rash. But alcohol dilates the capillaries and causes blood flow to the skin, which increases its sensitivity. In addition, alcohol “liberates”, reduces self-control. Increasing itching while reducing self-control is a sure way to get a couple of scars that will remain for the rest of your life.
For the first time after drinking, alcohol excites, and antihistamines calm. Taking such different means leads at least to stress, sometimes to hallucinations or memory loss. It is especially dangerous to drink alcohol when taking first-generation antihistamines – Dimedrol and Suprastin.
Alcohol and antipyretics
The result of combining antipyretic drugs with alcohol depends on what chemical compounds are contained in the drugs:
- paracetamol dissolved in ethanol is very harmful to the liver;
- Acetylsalicylic acid and ibuprofen, mixed with alcohol, literally corrode the stomach lining, causing ulcers to form.
Alcohol and antibiotics
Antibiotics significantly slow down the breakdown of ethanol. In turn, alcohol weakens the beneficial effect of antibiotics, but does not prevent them from killing the beneficial intestinal microflora. Ethanol slows down the production of enzymes needed to break down antibiotics.
As a result, the body, already weakened by the disease, receives a double portion of poison instead of a medicine. The inflammatory process continues, and the doctor selects an even more potent drug.
Drinking alcohol after chickenpox
The acute phase of chickenpox lasts 5-8 days. Then you have to endure another 2-4 weeks until the scabs themselves fall off.
In no case should alcohol be consumed with chickenpox in adults. But even after recovery, it is necessary to refrain from alcohol until the drugs are excreted from the body. Usually the duration of this interval is 1-10 days (the exact value is indicated in the instructions for the drug).
For the first time after recovery, it is better to refrain from carbonated alcoholic drinks and cocktails: they contain chemical additives that can provoke allergic reactions in a weakened body. Preference should be given to a small amount of high-quality cognac or vodka. If there is no allergy, you can drink some good dry wine, which purifies the blood.