Metronidazole interactions

[coolname]

Hey guys I am about to start taking a long term course of metrogyl. I know you can't drink alcohol while taking it, and was just wondering if anyone can tell me why that is? Does it put too much strain on your liver or something like that? Also is there anything else I should avoid taking while I am using metrogyl? Thanks in advance

[Alice]

In general, the advice to not drink due to the interaction of antibiotics with alcohol is considered to be outdated. In most cases, there is no danger whatsoever. Having said that, it looks like metronidazole is one of the few that can actually interact with alcohol metabolism (or vice versa).

Wiki: Consuming alcohol while taking metronidazole has long been thought to have a disulfiram-like reaction with effects that can include nausea, vomiting, flushing of the skin, tachycardia, and shortness of breath.^[24] Consumption of alcohol is typically advised against by patients during systemic metronidazole therapy and for at least 48 hours after completion of treatment.^[6] However, some studies call into question the mechanism of the interaction of alcohol and metronidazole,^[25] ,^[26][27] and a possible central toxic serotonin reaction for the alcohol intolerance is suggested.^[13] Metronidazole is also generally thought to inhibit the liver metabolism of propylene glycol (found in some foods, medicines, and in many electronic cigarette e-liquids), thus propylene glycol may potentially have similar interaction effects with metronidazole.^{[citation needed]}

If it were me, I would try a small dosage of alcohol to see what happens. I like to experiment.

However, if you need long term antibiotics then it's probably a good idea to stop drinking simply to give your body the chance to clear the infection without the extra strain of processing alcohol in the first place. I have had a couple of serious skin infections that were antibiotic resistant and it's pretty scary when there is nothing available to treat it due to overuse of antibiotics. It's a very concerning situation.

Do whatever you can to nourish yourself back to health as quickly as possible.

Edited November 21, 2014 by Alice

[coolname]

Thanks alot alice. The doctor has prescribed them to me to try and treat/prevent diverticulitis and associated colitis, just incase you were wondering. I would prefer to not take antibiotics if I can avoid it, but figured this has to be worth a try. Surely it is better than more damn surgery. And not drinking alcohol won't be a problem for me

[doxneed2c-me]

If you have colitis you shouldn't drink for ulcers can form and bleeding can start. I have ulcerative colitis and though you might not have the same thing most forms of colitis can bleed and once you start bleeding it can go downhill rapidly. Also you may end up wanting to take back that night of drinking if you start to bleed but it is too lateto fix at that point.

Also I was under the impression drinking while on antibiotics decreased the efficiency of the antibiotics not so much that the interaction of alcohol and other antibiotics could cause undesirable effects just that it would lower the efficiency and also weaken the immune system making it pointless to be taking the antibiotics.

[coolname]

Thanks for your input dox, and I hope you are ok. I have not had any bleeding, but have decided to not drink alcohol for a few months anyway while I am taking the metrogyl. I have already had a small section of my bowel removed and now they want to remove more, but I think I will keep that as a last resort

[doxneed2c-me]

Try to watch what irritates your colon. None of these diets they suggest actually work it is just a form of control in a situation where people have none. The things you need to watch are fibrous things like all fruits and vegetables. Some people who have sensitivities to lactose and gluten should continue to avoid whichever they are sensitive too. If you have never had problems with wheat and milk you won't just all of a sudden have it. Track what irritates your colon and avoid it. Basically if you notice things that don't digest the way they did then avoid them. If you notice it is vegetables you can try removing the skin and/or cooking them. cooking with skin on is useless it will still cause problems. You must chew the vegetables very well on top of that. My biggest mistake was eating a bunch of raw broccoli one night.

Also if you start feeling feverish track your temperature.

Take care I wish you the best colitis is never fun to deal with I hope yours goes away but it is life for me which isn't the end of the world anyway since azathiopurine and remicade make a world of difference and don't interact with anything of interest aside from other purines and immunosuppressants.

[coolname]

Dox that is exactly what I have been doing but haven't noticed anything so far that definitly causes problems. My gp told me to try avoiding green vegetables and most types of fruit, especially stone fruit for some reason. I am waiting to see a doctor early next month who apparently knows alot about this sort of thing, so will just have to wait and see what happens. So until then it is just metrogyl and taking it easy for me. It sucks, but I don't really know what else to do until then. By the way, this has only been going on for me since I had my appendix removed just over a year ago. I was fine until then