Vomiting after alcohol

The feeling of nausea and subsequent vomiting is an extremely unpleasant condition for any person, and especially for a child. The reason for its development can be a variety of factors. Profuse and long-term continuous vomiting is fraught with the development of such a serious complication as dehydration. In the absence of timely help, it can lead to very serious consequences, including death.

How to stop vomiting? To correctly answer this question, it is necessary to establish the nature of the vomit, the frequency and intensity of vomiting attacks, and the presence of other accompanying symptoms. This information will help identify and eliminate the cause that triggered the gag reflex. In especially severe cases, if severe intoxication of the body is observed during vomiting, it is even possible to be hospitalized in a hospital to stabilize the patient’s condition.

Types of vomiting with a hangover

After drinking a large dose of alcohol, there are two types of vomiting.

Peripheral

Vomit represents the contents of the stomach, namely toxins (alcohol) and undigested food, that the body is trying to get rid of. In this case, vomiting brings relief and has a favorable outcome.

Important! The frequency of vomiting attacks does not exceed 1-2 times a day.

Central origin

Does not contain formalized vomit; it is based on bile and gastric juice. Doesn't bring relief. This vomiting indicates poisoning of the central nervous system, and will only get worse over time: after each gag reflex, dehydration will increase, as a result of which the urge to vomit will increase in frequency.

Important! The frequency of vomiting attacks is continuous, accompanied by constant urges and nausea.

Treatment and stopping vomiting

The choice of method for eliminating vomiting depends on what caused the body’s reaction. In some cases, there is no need to stop vomiting, since it is a way of cleansing the body of toxins that have entered it. How to stop vomiting in case of poisoning? If the patient is sure that the cause of a vomiting attack was poisoning with stale food, alcohol or anything else, it is first necessary to perform gastric lavage. For these purposes you can use:

• ordinary boiled water;
• weak solution of potassium permanganate;
• saline aqueous solutions.

The entire volume of liquid, about 2 liters, is drunk at one time. Then an attack of vomiting occurs spontaneously or is provoked by pressing two fingers on the root of the tongue. After such cleansing, you can take a special antiemetic (Cerucal, Motilium, etc.), enterosorbents (activated carbon, Smecta) to prevent recurrences of the attack.

After vomiting stops, measures are taken to prevent dehydration. To do this, take small amounts of liquid every 15 minutes. An effective remedy for restoring the acid-base and electrolyte balance is the drug Regidron, which must be taken in accordance with the instructions or recommendations of a doctor. A mixture prepared from 1 liter of boiled water, 15-20 g of salt and 80 g of sugar has a similar effect. It can even be used as a means to stop vomiting in an infant. To do this, it is necessary to regularly give the baby small portions (one teaspoon) of the resulting solution every 15 minutes. When a child experiences an attack of vomiting, it is important that parents remain calm and confident, otherwise the panic will be transmitted to the baby and cause him additional anxiety.

Regidron helps in the treatment and prevention of dehydration due to vomiting or diarrhea

For several days after a vomiting attack, it is not recommended to take large amounts of food or liquid at one time, as it can again provoke new vomiting and aggravate the patient's condition. In addition, it is necessary to observe bed rest and diet in order to minimize the load on the body weakened after vomiting. You should not eat fatty, fried, spicy foods, smoked foods, fresh vegetables and fruits. If a person immediately switches to his usual diet, his health may worsen again.

Important: If the attack of vomiting does not stop for two days, you need to contact a gastroenterologist. Most likely, such an attack is caused by diseases of the digestive system, the treatment of which should only be prescribed by a specialist after the diagnosis has been clarified.

Treating vomiting from a hangover at home

You can treat vomiting at home if:

• The patient's blood pressure did not drop below 70 mm. rt. Art.
• Vomiting occurred no more than 3 times a day and brought relief.
• The patient has no agitation (insomnia, tremors of the limbs, rushing around the room, the need for a hangover), and over the past 24 hours he has slept for at least 5-7 hours.
• The patient is conscious (not inhibited), clearly oriented in time and space.
• The patient does not have coffee-ground-colored vomit (this indicates bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract).
• In this case, you have a chance to be cured at home; all treatment will be limited to taking pills.

First aid

To stop vomiting you do not always have to resort to medications. Sometimes exposure to certain physical factors or the use of folk remedies is sufficient.

General recommendations

At home or at work, you can resort to the following manipulations:

• Sit down, close your eyes, relax. But don't lie down, as this will increase the risk of vomiting.
• Take a few deep breaths. At the height of inhalation, hold your breath for a few seconds.
• Ventilate the room. If it's hot outside, use air conditioning if possible.
• Cool your forehead and neck with a damp compress.
• Smell the Star Balm or a sprig of mint.
• Drink cold still water in small sips; you can also swallow small pieces of ice.
• Eat a mint candy or chew menthol gum. Not only the antiemetic effect is important, but also the mechanical effect of frequent swallowing on the motility of the gastrointestinal tract.
• Massage biologically active points located on the inner surface of the forearms, 3 transverse fingers further from the base of the palm.

Until the vomiting stops, you should not eat. Only drink in small portions.

Vomiting due to motion sickness deserves special attention. Dr. E. O. Komarovsky talks in the video about how to deal with this problem in children. Keep in mind that for adults, the ways to combat motion sickness are practically the same.

Folk recipes

We offer you a choice of several folk remedies to help get rid of vomiting:

• Finely chop 3 sweet apples, pour 1 liter of boiling water, add a teaspoon of grated ginger root. Cool and drink in small sips.
• Brew green tea with mint or lemon balm. Chamomile tea also helps. They should be drunk warm in small quantities.
• Grind the lemon and add a liter of water, let it brew for a while. Enjoy the drink chilled. You can also simply chew a piece of lemon.
• Pour 5-10 g of fennel or dill seeds into 200 ml of boiling water and drink after 15 minutes.
• Pour 2 tbsp. l. licorice root 500 ml of boiling water and evaporate over low heat until 250 ml of liquid remains. The decoction should be drunk after cooling.

Drug therapy

Among pharmaceutical products for stopping vomiting, several groups of drugs are suitable:

1. Prokinetics (domperidone, metoclopramide) normalize the motility of the gastrointestinal tract, directing it in the right direction. If you cannot take the pill due to uncontrollable vomiting, then metoclopramide injections come to the rescue.
2. Anticholinergics (buscopan, riabal) relieve spasm from the smooth muscles of the digestive tract, accelerate gastric emptying and enhance its motor activity.
3. Antihistamines (pipolfen, diphenhydramine) are effective for vestibular vertigo.
4. Betahistine is also used for problems with the vestibular system, but this is not an emergency medicine. It exhibits a therapeutic effect gradually and is prescribed simultaneously with antiemetics.
5. Enzyme preparations (mezim, panzinorm, creon) are also auxiliary means in the fight against vomiting caused by overeating or poor diet.
6. Enterosorbents (polysorb, activated carbon) by themselves do not stop vomiting, but they stop further absorption of toxins in the digestive tract in case of poisoning and speed up recovery.
7. Neuroleptics (droperidol, prochlorperazine) are drugs that inhibit the function of the vomiting center. They are prescribed only in extreme cases and only in a hospital setting.

It is impossible to list all the causes of vomiting and the means to combat them in one article, but keep in mind that if the source of the disease is obvious, all efforts must be directed towards its elimination. For example, if there is a sharp increase in blood pressure, which is accompanied by vomiting, you first need to reduce it. Captopril tablets are usually used for this.

If vomiting is a consequence of seasickness, then it is possible to use anti-motion sickness drugs - Dramamine, Ciel.

Attention! In case of uncontrollable vomiting, vomiting with blood, poisoning with drugs or chemicals, it is necessary to urgently seek medical help. This also applies to cases of brain injury and disease. Signs of its damage include weakness in an arm or leg, loss of sensation in a certain area of ​​the body, facial asymmetry, and speech impairment.

Drugs for treatment

The following groups of drugs are used to treat peripheral vomiting:

• Antispasmodics;
• Antiemetics;
• Adsorbents.

What to drink for nausea and vomiting?

For nausea and vomiting, it is safest to use antispasmodics. For example, let's take one of the most common:

No-shpa 2 tablets. 3 times a day.

What to take after antispasmodics?

30 minutes after taking antispasmodics, if we feel that the symptoms have decreased, you can add antiemetics (metoclopramide or cerucal):

Metoclopramide -1 tablet. 3 times a day, maximum daily dose 3 tablets.

These drugs should be sufficient. If they helped after the first dose, then they should be taken within 24 hours. In this case, antiemetics can be given if the patient does not have nervous system stimulation. Otherwise, you can get extrapyramidal disorders (this is motor activity with a pronounced impairment of mental consciousness), and you will only aggravate an already complex condition.

In the absence of knowledge of the peculiarities of the action of antiemetic drugs (cerucal, metoclopramide), often employees of medical institutions who have not encountered the treatment of vomiting of alcoholic origin are one of the first to inject this drug into a vein, without special training, which aggravates the situation by disturbing the patient’s psyche. There is only one treatment for the consequences in this situation - administering sleeping pills in loading doses into a vein and fixing the patient. Therefore, we strongly do not recommend using the services of medical professionals who do not have a license and a special set of drugs (only licensed doctors have access to a tranquilizer) for assistance. In this case, the best solution would be to call a narcologist at home and get help at your place of residence.

Vomiting after alcohol can be a symptom of pancreatitis due to alcohol abuse.

The final stage is the intake of adsorbents (activated carbon, polysorb, etc.)

In case of a positive effect from taking antispasmodics and metoclopramide, adsorbents can be used 2 hours after taking the tablets.

For example, 1 table. assets. coal per 10 kg of body weight 3 times a day. If the mass is 70 kg, then 7 tablets. - 3 times a day.

The function of adsorbents is to bind toxins that are in the intestines. Adsorbents do not “clean the blood”, but will only help with peripheral vomiting after taking antispasmodics and antiemetics. In case of poisoning of the central nervous system, when vomiting does not bring relief, there is no point in taking them.

Vomiting in pregnant women

According to medical literature, vomiting during pregnancy occurs in 70-85% of cases. Women are most susceptible to it at 6-16 weeks; this is the so-called early toxicosis. Nausea and vomiting are associated with changes in hormonal levels and the immune system, but these mechanisms are still not fully understood.

The difficulty is that in the early stages of pregnancy most medications are contraindicated, as they can disrupt the formation of the internal organs of the fetus.

For this reason, treatment begins with non-drug therapy, the use of herbal remedies (chamomile, licorice root, ginger). 10 mg of pyridoxine (vitamin B6) per day is also prescribed. The use of antihistamines, anticholinergics and neuroleptics in any case must be agreed with the attending physician.

You cannot refuse food, but it is advisable to ensure that it is as light as possible: more vegetables and fruits, lean meat in minced form, seafood, non-rich soups, croutons, dry cookies. Of course, you need to completely remove alcohol from your diet and stop smoking.

The most dangerous condition during pregnancy is uncontrollable vomiting. It occurs at least 5 times a day after each meal. Against this background, the expectant mother suffers from a lack of nutrients and salts, and gradually loses weight. In such a situation, hospitalization and intravenous infusion of saline and nutrient solutions are necessary.

Vomiting can be a symptom of many diseases and pathological conditions. Not all of them require emergency medical intervention, but in most cases it is still worth seeing a doctor. Especially if symptoms persist for a long time or if vomiting occurs for unknown reasons. Often, timely examination helps to identify real health problems and select adequate therapy.

Restoring water-salt balance

The next stage will be restoring the water-salt balance. You need to drink 3.5 - 4.5 liters of liquid per day (2-3 tablespoons every 10-15 minutes). Only fractional intake of liquid will not cause a strong load on the stomach and will allow all the liquid to enter the body without provoking repeated vomiting and nausea. Despite the strong thirst, it should be taken only in this mode. You should not use kefir, mineral water, brine, rehydron, etc. at this stage. You only need to take slightly cool water. Water is absorbed in all parts of the digestive tract and does not require the involvement of other processes to enter the bloodstream. This is quite difficult, but the most correct!

Is it possible to give intramuscular injections?

Yes, you can, and start according to the same scheme described above, if there are no contraindications. For example, No-spa 4 ml IM.

Important! Tablets are not given together with injections; there must be one route of administration (either injections or taking tablets).

IMPORTANT! If antispasmodics and antiemetics do not help you, then vomiting is of central origin (a toxic effect on the nervous system occurs), and you cannot do without the help of a doctor! Comprehensive assistance is needed here. In this situation, time will work against the patient; it is necessary to urgently contact a medical facility or call a doctor at home from our service.

In this situation, the doctor needs to connect to a vein and inject saline solutions, while simultaneously administering the above-mentioned groups of drugs. When administered into a vein, the drugs begin to act after 5-10 minutes, thereby, based on the effect, the doctor selects the dose and group of drugs.

A distinctive feature of toxic vomiting (vomiting of central origin) is the need to use sedatives (including tranquilizers with antipsychotics) together with drip administration of solutions into a vein, calculating the volume per body weight and fluid loss.

Attention! When treating yourself, you can make mistakes that will lead to negative consequences!

Cautions

Read the following warnings before treatment:

• Do not increase the dosage of drugs, guided by the principle “the more, the better” (there are maximum permissible doses of drugs, increasing the dosage can be dangerous).
• You cannot take the pills again if you vomit after taking them. It is impossible to calculate the doses of drugs that have already entered the blood; there is a risk of exceeding the dosages.
• Do not take drugs from the same group, but with different names (no-shpa, spasmalgon, drotaverine).
• Seek urgent medical help if relief does not occur 2 hours after taking antispasmodics and antiemetics.