First aid for alcohol poisoning

Many people think that drinking alcohol is a way to relieve emotional tension, relax and cheer up. Few people think that even a small dose of alcohol can be a very insidious and cruel poison to the human body. According to statistics, more than 50% of deaths as a result of poisoning occurs precisely when poisoning by alcohol and its surrogates. Therefore, it is very important to provide timely assistance to a person who is poisoned by alcohol-containing beverages.

Each organism is individual, therefore for each person there is a so-called own dose of alcohol, which becomes a poison for him. It depends on weight, hereditary factors, the presence of chronic diseases, the condition of the stomach and liver, the conditions for taking alcohol (snacks, other drinks) and many other factors.

A person in a state of intoxication is not able to adequately assess his condition and therefore may not notice that he was poisoned by alcohol-containing drinks.

Signs of alcohol poisoning

• Lack of self-criticism and reassessment of their capabilities (a person does not recognize that he is drunk and continues to drink);


• lack of coordination of movements, attention disorder;


• loud, incoherent and fuzzy speech;


• the emancipation of instincts, controlled in a sober state (sexual, food, etc.);


• slow pulse - less than 60 beats per minute;


• facial flushing, increased sweating;


• nausea and vomiting.

If you do not stop drinking alcohol, the signs of poisoning are exacerbated, and the onset of alcoholic coma is possible. A person loses consciousness, his body temperature drops, his pupils narrow. Perhaps involuntary urination and defecation, profuse vomiting. In such a state, the activity of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems is disrupted. The affected pulse quickens, it becomes filiform (poorly palpable), breathing becomes noisy. There may be an abundant separation of saliva and mucus, sometimes in the form of foam.

Alcohol coma can be of varying degrees of severity. If the coma is superficial, then after washing the stomach, the person regains consciousness. And for coma of moderate severity and deep coma, the patient requires emergency hospitalization in the toxicology department to provide medical care.

First aid for alcohol poisoning

When the first signs of alcohol poisoning appear, wash the affected stomach of the amount of alcohol that has not yet been absorbed into the blood. For this purpose, it is necessary to induce vomiting in the poisoned.

If a person is conscious, he should be offered to drink several glasses of boiled water at room temperature and mechanically provoke an attack of vomiting. The stomach should be flushed until water begins to flow out instead of vomit from the victim. After washing the stomach to the poisoned person, it is necessary to drink sweet tea with lemon, natural coffee or milk and take activated charcoal (1 tablet for every 10 kg of human weight). It is necessary to warm the injured person by applying a warm heating pad to the feet and hands.

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If a person is unconscious, then it is necessary to urgently call the ambulance team. To bring the victim to his senses, you can bring a cotton wool dipped in liquid ammonia to his nose. If ammonia is not at hand, you can rub the patient's ears, thus ensuring blood flow to the head. You also need to ensure the flow of fresh air into the room by opening the window. It is impossible to start gastric lavage and force the sorbents to drink if the person is inadequate or unconscious. If the victim is unconscious, vomiting, then you should turn his head on its side in order to avoid getting vomit in the airways.

In severe cases, even cardiac arrest is possible. In such a situation, it is necessary to immediately begin resuscitation (indirect heart massage), without waiting for the ambulance crew to arrive.

How to prevent alcohol poisoning

It is desirable, of course, to abandon the use of alcoholic beverages. If you still want to drink, then you can take some preventive measures that will help prevent alcohol intoxication:

• do not drink alcohol on an empty stomach;


• before the feast, you can eat a sandwich with butter or bacon;


• during the feast it is necessary to have a good snack;


• you can not lower the strength of drinks and mix different alcohol;


• you should not drink alcohol with carbonated drinks;


• the room must be ventilated, especially with large crowds of people;


• smoking is not recommended;


• Before taking alcohol and during a feast, you can take drugs that prevent intoxication (Zorex, Limontar).

Which doctor to contact

Severe alcohol poisoning is treated in the toxicology department, where a patient is examined by a toxicologist, resuscitator, neurologist. With repeated alcohol abuse, especially in adolescents, it is necessary to consult a narcologist.