Alcohol Allergy

You like your weekend drink, don't you? Sitting in the bar or having a few friends around and downing a drink or two. Reminiscing about the past, talking about work and getting on with the recuperating process, ready to face the world again come Monday. That slight high, the small buzz that comes about when you down a drink, is exactly what you need sometimes. And god bless alcohol for that. Hold that thought for a minute...now what if after downing that drink you start having these weird reactions like nausea and the like? And I don't mean a hangover. What if you had them every time you had a drink? Bummer huh? That would mean you have an alcohol allergy and that you cannot consume alcohol without experiencing certain alcohol intolerance symptoms. What are these symptoms and why do they come about? That is exactly what we will be studying about in the article that is to follow.

What is Alcohol Allergy?

When we consume alcohol, the body breaks it down and converts it into vinegar (acetic acid) so that it becomes possible for the body to absorb it into the bloodstream and intestines. Much like it is done with food. To convert alcohol into acetic acid, the body requires an enzyme called Aldehyde Dehydrogenase (ALDH) which is present in our liver. When there is a deficiency of this enzyme or it is completely absent, the alcohol cannot be broken down and that is why the unpleasant symptoms make way in a person.

Sometimes people have a genetic condition in which there is an alteration in the ALDH enzyme called polymorphism present in their bodies. This enzyme causes the ALDH enzyme to become inactive and therefore the breaking down of alcohol becomes impossible, leading to the varied allergy symptoms.

This condition can also be caused due to an allergic reaction to a particular ingredient in the alcohol. This then affects only those people who are allergic to those ingredients that make an alcoholic drink. Other than that, an adverse reaction of certain medication forms with alcohol can produce these symptoms as well.

Symptoms

What exactly does a person experience when he/she is allergic to alcohol? Here are some symptoms:

• Sensations of vomiting, nausea and coughing will make way.
• The skin will begin to itch and tingle all over.
• There will be several instances of hot flashes and the sensation of skin burning.
• The skin will become red and flushed and might be accompanied by a typical rash and hives that are red and swollen and cause a lot of itching.
• There might be nasal congestion and blockage, making it difficult to breathe.
• Similarly, the throat might feel constricted and blocked.
• One could either have a stuffy or runny nose.
• There will be an intense increase in the heartbeats as well as a lot of heartburn experienced.
• The lips and/or tongue will start to swell.
• One might also experience chest pain and abdominal pain.
• Dizziness and headaches of varied degrees will be experienced.
• In severe cases it can even cause seizures and unconsciousness.

Cure

The first thing that you need to know is what exactly is causing the allergy. The ingredients are varied for varied drinks and therefore to know what is in the drink becomes important. An allergy test will determine what one is allergic to and one can therefore determine the kind of drinks they can consume and those that they have to avoid. Other than that, one has to be careful and pace their drinks so that these symptoms do not overwhelm a person.

There is an ongoing research to develop certain medication forms that will help activate the inactive Aldehyde Dehydrogenase (ALDH) enzyme so that alcohol can be effectively converted. But there is no success in the said area as of now.

In that way an alcohol allergy has no 'cure' really. In case of alcohol intolerance, one has to take the onus upon oneself and learn to avoid or stop drinking alcohol as far as possible. After all, risking one's life for a peg or a pint is in no way a smart thing to do.