A positive COVID-19 test can not only affect how alcohol tastes and smells, it can also change how alcohol is handled.
Anecdotal data show that some people report a change in their body’s response to alcohol after testing positive for coronavirus.
Rebecca Stein, 30, could tolerate alcohol until she was diagnosed with COVID in March 2020, she told BuzzFeed News.
One night after the mild symptoms subsided, she casually stole her husband’s whiskey.
A few seconds after the brown alcohol ran through her throat, she felt very drunk.
The next day, she suffered from a severe hangover that she felt didn’t deserve a sip. She said she was experiencing shortness of breath, regular fevers, general body aches and fatigue, along with her prolonged COVID symptoms of irregular heartbeat, chest pain, cough, sore throat, headache and nasal congestion. Reported.
It was “basically a relapse of COVID.”
“I wasn’t connecting the dots when this first happened. I had all the symptoms of COVID, so I woke up and took a COVID test, but when I drank it, my heart rate went up overnight. ,” Stein told BuzzFeed.
“My body seems to know pretty quickly that it’s been poisoned.”
Now, nearly three years after his initial COVID diagnosis, Stein still can’t enjoy alcohol.
Alcohol tolerance is commonly referred to as how much you can handle before becoming visibly intoxicated, whereas alcohol intolerance is an inherited metabolic disorder.
Metabolic disorders affect metabolism by affecting how the body converts and uses energy. In other words, alcohol intolerance is diagnosed when the body cannot break down alcohol efficiently.
It’s not an alcohol allergy, but it can cause nasal congestion, flushed skin, hives, low blood pressure, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Like other food intolerances, alcohol intolerance can develop over time, but many believe it is one of the many undetermined, lingering side effects of long-term COVID. I suspect there is a possibility.
More and more people are connecting on social media as they turn to Google and online forums in an attempt to determine if there is a connection between new ways their bodies respond to alcohol and previous COVID diagnoses. I’m here.
According to Addiction.net, in addition to the usual symptoms of alcohol intolerance, people are reporting:
- Decreased alcohol tolerance
- just a few sips of alcohol make me sick
- Poor mental health for days after drinking alcohol
- Increased anxiety after drinking alcoholic beverages
- Exacerbation of long COVID symptoms
“Two glasses of rum last night are the cause of today’s migraines. This started happening after I got infected, so I’m wondering if there’s a link between covid and increased alcohol intolerance. 1 person tweeted about themselves Unexpected hangover.
another twitter user A little more confident in her suspicions, she said:
“One of the long-term effects of COVID is alcohol intolerance.” who claimed about their new susceptibility to liquor. “I used to drink mostly wine and beer, but now even a glass of lager can’t sleep and it’s ruining the next day. I can’t concentrate, I’m anxious and I’m tired. Who knows if it works?”
Medical experts have some suspicions as to why COVID leads to alcohol intolerance, suggesting that the virus could directly affect the enzymes that process alcohol or damage the liver, thus slowing alcohol metabolism. I’m observing that it can affect the method.
Others hypothesize that both COVID and drinking alcohol trigger allergic reactions and activate mast cells that release histamine, triggering an influx of these immune responses.
Others also point out that many COVID patients experience blood flow problems that are known to be exacerbated by alcohol consumption.
The post-/long-term relationship between COVID and alcohol intolerance has yet to be studied by any official organization or expert, but it is expected to join the steadily growing list of COVID-related studies.
However, one thing the research confirms is that “drinking alcohol, even in small amounts, is a risk factor for everyone, regardless of age, sex, gender, ethnicity, tolerance to alcohol, or lifestyle. cause harm.” Canada.
If you are considering stopping or limiting your alcohol consumption due to possible alcohol intolerance due to COVID-19, if you are running a “January Dry” bet, or if you are “cold curiosity” This is potentially a lot of incentive if you’re going to plunge into the ‘mind’ trend.