Currently, a significant increase in the number of patients suffering from allergic reactions is recorded. Absolutely any substance contained in food products, drinks can provoke the development of pathology. Can beer allergies occur? Similar cases are quite common. Let us consider in more detail the symptoms of the manifestation of an allergy to a hoppy drink and ways to solve the problem.
Allergy - what is it?
Before you begin the fight against the disease, you should understand what it is. The term "allergy" means an inadequate response of the human body's immune system to the effects of a substance. The latter are commonly called allergens. Symptoms of allergies vary depending on the type of ailment.
It is impossible to completely overcome allergies. To alleviate the condition, patients have to take antihistamines regularly. The list of such medicines is quite wide. Four generations of drugs are available on the market that can block the effects of free histamine. The drugs differ in the number of side effects, the duration of the effect, the presence of sedative properties.
Causes of Beer Allergy
Fans of a hoppy drink should be on their guard. Allergic reactions after drinking beer are increasingly recorded. To provoke a similar pathological phenomenon can be one or several components that make up the drink:
- Hop is one of the main ingredients of a foamy drink that gives it a light bitterness. The strongest allergen is myrcene - a substance contained in the essential oil of a plant.
- Malt is another important product that is prepared by soaking barley grains. If you are allergic to cereals or pollen, a beer allergy may well develop.
- Yeast is a necessary component for the fermentation of the product. Do not drink beer with intolerance to yeast in food.
Nowadays, finding natural beer is quite difficult. Most manufacturers add harmful ingredients to the composition of the drink: dyes, flavors, flavor enhancers. It is these components that can provoke the appearance of an allergic reaction.
How much beer can you drink per day so as not to harm the body? It all depends on the state of health and the naturalness of the product. Doctors recommend limited to 1 liter of beer per day, provided that the person does not have problems with the cardiovascular and digestive systems. But it’s better to halve this volume of low-alcohol drink and limit yourself to a glass of good quality beer per day.
Beer allergy: symptoms
Signs of intolerance to the foamy drink appear depending on the type of allergen. In this case, the disease manifests itself quickly enough. For barley malt, an allergy is manifested by symptoms such as coughing, difficulty breathing, a feeling of heaviness in the sternum. The face may become covered with red spots, a tingling sensation appears. Swelling occurs in the lips and under the eyes.
With hop intolerance, tearing, burning in the eyes, swelling of the eyelids appear. The nasal mucosa also suffers greatly, allergic rhinitis occurs. In extremely severe cases, an asthma attack may begin.
Allergy to yeast manifests itself in almost the same way as to other components of beer. In addition, nausea, vomiting, indigestion, and pain in the abdomen may appear.
Allergy to alcohol
Beer allergies often develop in people who have intolerance to stronger spirits. The reason is ethanol. Despite the fact that the body independently produces a small amount of this substance, a similar pathological phenomenon is still found in medical practice. How is an allergy to alcohol? First of all, red spots appear on the face, itching, swelling.
An asthma attack, loss of consciousness, increased blood pressure and body temperature are extremely rare. A similar condition may be due to a lack in the body of the enzyme responsible for the processing of ethanol - aldehyde dehydrogenase.
How to overcome the disease?
If an inadequate reaction of the immune system to a beer drink is found, you should refuse to use it and seek the help of an allergist. Only this method guarantees the complete elimination of the appearance of signs of a dangerous disease.
It will not be possible to completely get rid of the symptoms of pathology if contact with an allergen is nevertheless inevitable and it is difficult for a person to completely exclude the consumption of a favorite drink. Treatment can only significantly reduce the severity of symptoms or even completely prevent their onset for a certain time.
If you are allergic to beer, you should know what generations of antihistamines are available that can significantly reduce the symptoms of the disease. Keep in mind that alcohol, including beer, is completely incompatible with allergy medications.
First aid
If, when the first signs of an allergic reaction to beer occur, a person continues to consume a intoxicating drink, his condition can significantly worsen. In severe cases, you must call an ambulance. At home, before the arrival of the team of doctors, you should empty the stomach, provoking vomiting. Activated carbon, the Polysorb preparation, can be used as an absorbent.
Antihistamines: List
Medications that block histamine receptors must be at hand if you are allergic to a foamy drink. Such a drug is selected individually. The specialist takes into account the severity of the patient's condition, tolerance to the components of the drug and the presence of concomitant pathologies.
All generations of antihistamines have approximately the same effect:
- reduce the increased permeability of capillaries;
- prevent swelling of tissues;
- facilitate the condition of the patient;
- stop spasm of smooth muscles;
- reduce the hypotensive effect of histamine.
First and second generation drugs differ from newer ones in that they often cause side effects in the form of drowsiness. 3rd and 4th generation antihistamines are practically devoid of such drawbacks and are suitable for absolutely all patients.
The most effective are the following drugs for the treatment of allergies:
- "Suprastin";
- "Diazolin";
- Claritin
- Zirtek;
- Allegra (Telfast);
- "Tsetrin";
- Levocyterisin;
- Erius
- "Rupatadine";
- The Zodak.
Cetrine for beer allergies
The main active ingredient of the drug is the substance cyterisin. The drug has a quick effect and eliminates allergy symptoms within half an hour after administration. Cetrin is available in three forms: drops, syrup, tablets.
Allergies to beer respond well to treatment with this drug. To eliminate the symptoms (tearing, itching, urticaria, dermatitis), the disease should take 1 tablet of "Cetrin" per day. The dose can be divided into two doses. The daily dose is adjusted if the patient has liver and kidney disease.
Is the drug compatible with alcohol?
Many are interested in how much beer can be drunk per day when treated with antihistamines. Experts say that combining antiallergic drugs even with low-alcohol drinks is highly undesirable. It is especially dangerous to combine first-generation antihistamines with alcohol, because ethyl significantly weakens the therapeutic effect and enhances the manifestation of side effects.