Allergic reactions are a common occurrence. Irritants cause many people to suffer from being close to fluffy animals, refuse some food and even drink.
Everyone is well aware that drinking alcohol can lead to the most harmful consequences. However, few people have encountered such a phenomenon as an allergy to alcohol. In fact, such a pathology today is quite widespread. First of all, it is explained by the huge amount of “fake” products on store shelves. In other situations, this phenomenon is explained by individual intolerance to strong drinks.
Looking at funny photos of an allergy to alcohol, you can make the erroneous conclusion that there is nothing wrong with that. However, when it comes to the composition of alcohol-containing products, hazardous chemicals, preservatives and other components that negatively affect the human body are increasingly found in it. As a rule, after the initial use of such drinks, a person experiences a rather severe poisoning. However, after repeated use, a chronic alcohol allergy may develop.
Causes
Many mistakenly believe that in a bottle with ordinary vodka contains only alcohol diluted with water. However, according to medical practice, most poisoning does not occur due to intolerance to ethyl alcohol. This is due to the fact that strong drinks have a much more diverse composition.
Most patients note that a negative reaction occurs only after drinking a certain type of alcohol. This means that in the process of producing wine or a favorite brandy, not the highest quality products were used.
Most allergens are found in factory-made drinks. As a rule, a wide variety of synthetic impurities are added to them, which allow you to make the color and taste of the liquid more vivid. However, do not assume that natural products cannot cause an allergy to alcohol. For example, wine prepared according to all traditions may also contain allergens. Only in this case they are natural.
As a rule, the most common cause of an allergic reaction is the too long and continuous use of one or another low-quality drink. In this case, the body is overfilled with artificial additives and tries to get rid of irritants.
In addition, a similar reaction can develop in those who suffer from any other type of allergy.
Alcohol Allergy Symptoms
As with any other reaction of this type, there are no obvious signs of pathology in the first stage. A person may experience some malaise, but more often it is attributed to too large volumes of alcohol-containing products. The first thing that people pay attention to when allergic to alcohol is red spots in the face and neck. If the stimulus continues to adversely affect the body, then in this case, everything is not limited to the usual rash, as the disease progresses. If a person does not stop there and continues to take alcoholic beverages, then this can lead to serious gastrointestinal upsets.
Let us consider in more detail how alcohol allergy manifests itself:
- Some time after drinking a strong drink, a person observes redness on his hands and face. This is because the capillaries expand. Additionally, swelling may also occur.
- Body temperature rises. It seems as if a cold illness is starting. In addition, eyes may begin to watery. Patients begin to sneeze and suffer from a stuffy nose.
- Blood pressure rises, due to which there is a sharp flow of blood to the head. Against this background, headache and palpitations may develop.
Also among the signs of an allergy to alcohol, some note mild gastrointestinal upsets. For example, a patient may begin to feel sick.
In addition, there are more serious manifestations of such reactions.
Rash
With an allergy to alcohol, red spots appear very often. This is the first and most obvious symptom that many attribute to the incipient flu or too hot weather. However, with the appearance of any skin manifestations after drinking alcoholic beverages, it is worth reviewing your addictions.
The rash may manifest as urticaria or dermatitis. As a rule, redness is localized in the neck, chest and face. In this case, a rather strong burning sensation can also be observed.
If we are talking about pseudo-allergies, then in this case, rashes can also appear on the legs and other parts of the body.
Quincke's edema
Not everyone clearly understands how dangerous an allergy to alcohol can be. In a particularly severe form, such a reaction can lead to Quincke's edema. In this case, the lips, mucous membrane of the mouth, respiratory tract and eyelids of a person swell very much. In this case, symptoms may also include acute itching of the skin. With this form of allergy to alcohol, spots may appear throughout the body, and the skin may turn blue.
The main danger of Quincke's edema is that it becomes too hard for a person to breathe. Such a phenomenon can even be fatal.
How is allergy different from alcohol poisoning?
If you look at a photo of an allergy to alcohol and similar pictures depicting poisoning, then at first glance it is very difficult to find these or those differences.
This is not surprising, because in both cases nausea, vomiting, migraines and redness on the face can be observed. However, one should not assume that such symptoms affect the body in exactly the same way.
With allergies, the reaction does not occur due to the poisoning properties of alcohol or other products contained in the drink, but due to the negative effect of some components of the drink on the patient’s immunity. If, after a drunk glass of champagne, a rash that appears to be very itchy appears on the face, which is very itchy, this indicates an allergy to alcohol.
In addition, it is possible to distinguish the effect of the irritant from poisoning based on the volume of drunk products. With an allergy, a person needs only to take a few sips of a strong drink, after which he will show the first signs. In this case, the reaction can occur even when the alcohol comes in contact with the skin. If we are talking about poisoning, then most often nausea and redness appear after a person has drunk beyond his measure and has little control of himself.
The most difficult thing is to distinguish the symptoms of those people who drink alcohol exclusively on holidays. This is because in this case a person does not know his measure and can get poisoned even from a small amount of alcohol.
In order to diagnose an allergic reaction, a number of procedures are required. First of all, it is necessary to donate blood for tests. Also, the doctor may require samples of the skin. Based on the data received, the doctor will draw the appropriate conclusions and suggest further treatment.
If we talk about allergies to alcohol on the face and other parts of the body, then it can manifest itself in a wide variety of drinks.
Vodka
If we talk about allergies to this popular strong drink, then most often allergic reactions develop against the background of wheat and other natural or synthetic allergens in the liquid during production. Some people have an individual intolerance to alcohol.
Ethanol is a very strong solvent. When it enters the body, the permeability of the intestinal walls increases significantly. Because of this, not only particles of undigested food enter the bloodstream, but also numerous toxins.
Also in medical practice, there are cases when the patient’s liver is not able to produce the necessary amount of enzymes for the breakdown of ethanol. In this case, we are talking about intolerance to any alcoholic beverages. It is strictly forbidden to consume any strong drinks with such a pathology.
Cognac
As a rule, with the use of such a drink, a food allergy is caused. Even in the case of the acquisition of expensive cognac, there is a risk of getting this pathology. The fact is that a high-quality strong drink is made in oak barrels. This material contains special proteins that interact with pollen. A similar component is an extremely strong allergen.
If we are talking about low-quality cognac, then in this case there is a big risk of getting a fake, in the production of which vodka is combined with aromatic and coloring substances. Due to aggressive chemical additives, the immune system is forced to work in extreme mode.
On the other hand, cognac contains special tannins, which in some situations, on the contrary, help withstand allergies. They protect the intestinal wall from thinning, so that unnecessary substances do not enter the human blood.
Wine
Many people think that winemaking products are the safest. This is an erroneous assumption, since pesticides are used to grow large volumes of grapes. They are extremely toxic substances that are used in agriculture to protect crops from pests and diseases.
If the wine contains at least a minimal amount of pesticides, then this can lead to an extremely severe allergic reaction.
Among other things, sulfur dioxide is often added to wine. This component is a strong irritant. If we talk about the cheapest brands of this drink, then they usually contain a large number of flavorings and synthetic dyes.
Champagne
In this case, the factors causing allergic reactions are approximately the same as when drinking wine. However, it is worth noting that histamines and sulfates are additionally added to the sparkling drink. These components are preservatives.
In addition, in the production of champagne, sulfur dioxide is added to the raw materials, which prevents the early fermentation and undesirable fermentation of the drink.
Whiskey
This noble drink is also on the list of those that people often get allergic to. If we talk about its composition, then in whiskey there can be a wide variety of components. For example, it may contain malt, barley, rye, wheat, and many other ingredients. When these substances react with alcohol, they begin to be absorbed much faster into the blood, leading to an allergic reaction.
In addition, it is worth considering that quality whiskey is infused in oak barrels.
Treatment
What to do with an allergy to alcohol? First of all, it is worth removing the stimulus from the body as soon as possible. To do this, try to induce vomiting. After this, it is recommended to take activated charcoal or an antihistamine. However, you can not drink these drugs at the same time. It is also worth considering that some antihistamines do not combine with alcoholic beverages.
When the allergic reaction is eliminated, do not leave the problem unattended. It is worth contacting a specialist and passing the necessary tests. In this case, it can be revealed that the hypersensitive reaction could be hereditary. Regardless of the reasons, you should abandon the allergen.
Finally
If you continue to take alcoholic beverages, it can cause more serious consequences than itching or redness.
Excessive drinking, even in the absence of allergies, can be very dangerous to health. Therefore, you need to drink in moderation.