Almost everyone experienced the unpleasant consequences of drinking alcohol at least once. Classical manifestations - indigestion, swollen and reddened face, drowsiness, lethargy, increased gas formation. It is especially worth paying attention to red spots after alcohol. It is believed that they serve as a sign of not the classic manifestation of alcohol poisoning, but allergies. In this case, it is necessary to understand the causes of this phenomenon and, if necessary, to do treatment. In this article we will try to understand the problem in as much detail as possible.
The occurrence of an allergy to alcohol
The cause of any allergy is a malfunction in the immune system of the human body. It manifests itself in different ways. Red spots after alcohol are one of the factors. In most cases, a failure occurs in a situation where an organism begins to consider a harmless substance to be harmful. To combat it, antibodies are produced by the human immune system. Entering into contact with a foreign substance, they emit powerful chemical compounds. Excess of the latter is just considered the main allergic symptom. In this case, these are red spots on the body after alcohol.
It should be recognized that in its pure form, an allergy to alcohol is extremely rare. And its true causes have still not been reliably determined.
Features
To understand the nature of red spots on the body after alcohol, you need to understand how alcohol interacts with the human body. Note that the human body itself constantly produces alcohol in small quantities. As a rule, the average blood content is from 0.01 to 0.03 mg. For this reason, the very existence of such an allergy seems strange to many researchers.
In people with a similar problem, an allergic reaction can cause only 1 ml of pure alcohol, which is the equivalent of a sip of beer or 10 ml of wine. Moreover, the consequences can be very dangerous, even fatal. The situation is further complicated by the fact that preliminary allergy tests for alcohol in many people can be negative. However, they are positive for ethanol degradation products. It is acetic acid and acetaldehyde.
Even more often, an allergic reaction, the manifestation of which are red spots after alcohol, is caused by the various components that make up alcohol. For example, it can be various additives - brighteners, flavorings, preservatives, thickeners. And maybe the raw material from which the drink was made. These products contribute to the development of allergies in humans, even if they are not sensitive to pure alcohol.
Moreover, there is the concept of an acquired allergy to the alcohol itself or any of its ingredients. It can occur at any period of life.
Symptoms
With this type of allergy, symptoms can be caused even by a small amount of drunk. And it doesn’t matter whether the body reacts to the alcohol itself or to the substances that make up it. Symptoms may be different - red spots after taking alcohol - one of the most harmless. Anaphylactic shock is possible. In such a situation, the patient’s life is at risk.
The classic symptoms of this allergy, in addition to red spots, are as follows:
- itching of the nose, lips and face;
- increased lacrimation, characteristic of such a condition conjunctivitis;
- swelling of the throat, face and other parts of the body;
- hoarse cough, stuffy nose, shortness of breath;
- eczema, severe skin rash;
- cramping and pain in the stomach, vomiting, nausea, diarrhea;
- loss of consciousness, dizziness.
In some cases, alcohol leads to a deterioration in the well-being of patients with classical urticaria. True, rashes that cause physical contact with the stimulus are extremely rare. If a person suffers from bronchial asthma, then alcohol can cause him various complications. This will be shortness of breath up to bronchial obstruction, a strong and ongoing cough. Also, alcoholic beverages exacerbate the symptoms of food allergies. In this case, too, can end in anaphylactic shock.
There are situations when strong alcohol provoked a strong allergic reaction to products that the patient could eat before without any consequences, and then this began to lead to serious problems. This is explained by the fact that alcohol increases the ability of the digestive system to absorb the nutrients entering the human body. A classic example is an allergy to chicken or other birds, which is common enough. Moreover, it can manifest itself only in those cases when a person has a bite while drinking.
If you or someone you know has one or more of these symptoms after drinking alcohol, you should immediately consult a doctor for advice and subsequent assistance. If you ignore the symptoms, this can lead to sad consequences. Most likely, the allergic reaction to the stimulus will intensify, it will be harder to tolerate the symptoms until a lethal outcome occurs. In this case, the fact that red spots appear after drinking alcohol is one of the first symptoms, after the appearance of which one should seriously worry.
Alcohol intolerance or allergy
It is necessary to distinguish between allergies and intolerance to alcohol. This is also a fairly common phenomenon, which can manifest itself with various unpleasant sensations. Including stomach cramps, red spots on the face after alcohol, nausea, headaches, vomiting, palpitations.
The difference between these conditions is that in case of allergy, the human immune system reacts either to alcohol itself or to a substance that is part of a particular drink. But with intolerance to ethyl alcohol, the digestive system is simply not able to cope with it, which leads to similar consequences.
This happens if the human body does not produce a special enzyme that helps to absorb some substances and break down them. For example, such a phenomenon is often found among residents of Asian countries. They have a poorly functioning gene, which is responsible for the conversion of alcohol to acetaldehyde, and then to acetic acid. Because of this, acetaldehyde in the body becomes so much that all of the above symptoms occur.
Intolerance to other substances related to alcohol
In addition to intolerance to ethyl alcohol, the human body can react poorly to other substances that appear in his body along with alcohol.
For example, problems arise with histamine. This is a chemical substance that the human body produces. But at the same time, it is found in certain drinks and foods, especially fermented ones. A lot of histamine is found in sauerkraut, smoked meat, cheese, beer and wine. To break it down, our body, as a rule, produces another substance, which is known as diamine oxidase. But if it turns out that the required amount cannot be produced, histamine begins to accumulate, which leads to similar allergic symptoms - red spots on the face after alcohol, stuffy nose, diarrhea, and abdominal pain.
Intolerance to sulfites may also occur. These compounds are often found in beer or wine. They act as a preservative or limit fermentation. In the food industry, potassium pyrosulfite and potassium hydrosulfite are most often found. In the composition of foods and drinks, they are designated E224 and E228, respectively. Also, reactions similar to allergic ones can cause sulfur dioxide. It is especially a lot of wine.
In some cases, the pain that accompanies the use of alcohol leads to the development of cancer. Fortunately, this is extremely rare. As a rule, in this case they are diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma or lymphogranulomatosis. The danger of such an ailment is that enlarged lymph nodes in Hodgkin's disease do not hurt. A person begins to feel discomfort only after drinking alcohol. The exact reason for this has not yet been established.
Diagnostics
If you have red spots on your body after alcohol or other symptoms described in the article, you should definitely consult a doctor for advice. Depending on the specific signs and manifestations of the ailment, the doctor will refer you to an allergist who will find out the exact causes of this condition.
Most likely, at the reception you will have to answer exactly which alcoholic beverages cause the symptoms that bother you, how they appear, how long ago these problems appeared. Also, remember in advance whether you have relatives suffering from a similar allergy, what other diseases you have.
If the doctor suspects you are allergic to alcohol, he will offer to undergo appropriate testing. The most common type in modern diagnostics is a skin test. At the same time, a small amount of allergen is applied to the skin scratched with a special medical tool or pricked skin. If this is an irritant, then the reaction will be obvious. A blood test is also used for antibodies and antigens that it contains.
If it is not possible to establish an irritant in such ways, in some cases the doctor may suggest that the patient drink a small amount of alcohol, which, presumably, causes a negative reaction. In this case, the doctor should carefully monitor the reaction of the patient's body.
Wine
When a person is covered with red spots after alcohol, often the reason can be covered in wine. The most allergenic is red wine. Often, a negative reaction provokes one of the ingredients that make up its composition or the raw materials that were used for its manufacture. For example, a certain grape variety. The fact that after alcohol red spots appear on the face, the non-ethyl components of this drink may be to blame. For example, by-products of fermentation, which turn ordinary grape juice into wine. You should carefully consider the additives that give alcohol the necessary taste, texture and aroma. In some cases, even the mold that appears on the cork of the wine bottle causes an allergic reaction.
We will analyze each of the causes of red spots after alcohol in more detail. The grapes from which wine is made as a raw material often acts as a powerful allergen. In addition to the substances that it contains, an ailment can trigger the processing of berries before collection. In modern conditions, sulfur dioxide is often used for this. Fungal diseases, which plants often suffer from, also cause allergies.
As a by-product of the fermentation of grape juice, histamine should be most feared. Its content in wine can be different, very different depending on the variety and type of drink. There is more histamine in red wine than in white, and its concentration in Shiraz is higher than in Cabernet.
About a third of patients with an allergy to alcohol complain that they feel bad after taking small doses of alcohol. In this case, preservatives are to blame. The main reason why red spots appear after alcohol is sodium pyrosulfate. It is one of the oldest preservatives. In this capacity, it was used by the ancient Romans. After consuming drinks containing it, the condition of patients with asthma worsens. They may have an attack. Sodium pyrosulfate is especially abundant in white and barrel wine. Recently, more and more wines with a low content of sodium pyrosulfate in their composition have appeared on sale. Although patients with high sensitivity to sulfur compounds are still not recommended to use them.
To increase the shelf life of wine, other sulfur compounds can be added to it. They can also lead to an asthma attack, and in people sensitive to certain substances cause anaphylactic shock. Complicating breathing in asthma is sodium benzoate, known as E211. It can also become a factor provoking urticaria.
Of food colors, allergy sufferers should be wary of tartrazine. This substance is designated as E102. Usually, it is added to wine to give it a distinctive golden hue. This substance is highly allergenic, can trigger an attack of asthma and rashes on the skin.
Allergic reactions after cheap champagne can be caused by sweeteners that are added to it to mask the flaws of the sparkling drink. Finally, proteins may be the reason why red spots after alcohol appear on the body. They are necessary for manufacturers to change the transparency of the drink. Proteins can cause allergies on their own. It is still unknown whether they are capable of provoking a negative reaction after their use as a illuminator.
Beer
In second place after an allergy to wine is beer. This drink also contains a large number of various substances that can provoke one or another characteristic symptom.
For fermentation of cheap beers with the help of enzymes, rice, corn, potatoes, as well as a variety of malt - wheat, barley, corn, rye are used. Allergies are provoked by protein compounds that are present in these substances. Gluten-free beer, which is brewed on the basis of sorghum, is also a danger to susceptible patients. It causes allergies with individual intolerance to this cereal. Also, only in the event of individual intolerance is the danger of hops.
The content in the finished product of brewer's yeast is quite low, but sufficient to cause allergies.
The histamine in beer is significantly less than in red wine. But even this small amount of this chemical can provoke problems. Allergies are also to flavorings and flavors. These include orange zest, coriander, extracts of berries and fruits. In the manufacture of a drink, they are almost completely processed, but residual traces of ways to cause individual symptoms. For example, red spots after drinking alcohol.
In beer, as in wine, there are preservatives. These are calcium and potassium benzoates, sulfites. There are more preservatives in draft beer than in bottled beer. Finally, the danger is illuminators. In this case, tannins and tannic acid. They are dangerous in the presence of individual intolerance.
Strong alcohol
There is an opinion that vodka is alcohol, which is least likely to cause allergies. This is true only if we are talking about high-quality vodka. Then its main ingredient is ethyl alcohol diluted with water. Other components that may be hazardous are not available.
Probable allergens are found in plant materials, but they are usually removed at the stage of product purification.
But if vodka is cheap or flavored, then you should be wary of allergies. The provoking factors in this case are brighteners, flavorings, fusel oils and other impurities.
Cognac is another strong drink, an allergy to which is not common. It is made from grapes, and the main reason that after alcohol the face becomes covered with red spots is the sulfur compound, which is used as a preservative, as in wine. Also at the stage of fermentation of grape raw materials, histamine can form.
Tannins, which are part of cognac, reduce the likelihood of permeability of intestinal cells, which reduces the effect that alcohol produces. However, they can cause allergies on their own. If you come across low-quality cognac, then it may contain many foreign impurities-allergens - dyes, flavors, fusel oils.
It is believed that allergies to alcohol in its pure form can not occur in humans. However, it is not possible to drink 96% alcohol, since in this case a mucous membrane burns. Alcohol is diluted, and all kinds of additives and cause allergies in humans. The situation is aggravated by the fact that alcohol is a first-class solvent.
Treatment
If a person is covered with red spots after alcohol, this is a symptom that must be eliminated. The bad news is that it is impossible to completely recover from an allergy. Modern medicine only helps alleviate symptoms, prevent reactions that can threaten a person’s life or health.
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If red spots appear after alcohol, but the reaction is not strong, antihistamines can help. They are taken orally. Also used are agents that relieve specific unpleasant symptoms. Rinse the nasopharynx with a decoction of chamomile, with itching, painkillers and healing ointments will help. In severe situations, it is recommended to carry a medical bracelet with a dose of adrenaline to use in an emergency. After that, you need to immediately call an ambulance and agree to hospitalization.