Q & A Library

A widespread myth holds that you shouldn't drink alcohol while taking antibiotics, but in fact, drinking doesn't lessen the effects of the drugs. However, alcohol can lower your general energy and delay your recovery so it is best to minimize drinking until you've finished the prescribed course of antibiotic treatment. (Beyond that, chronic liver damage from excessive alcohol consumption can affect the metabolism and toxicity of antibiotics.)

There are other precautions you should take when on antibiotics. Antibiotics not only kill harmful bacteria that are making you sick, they also destroy the beneficial flora in your gut and can promote the development of resistant organisms in your body. To restore the helpful organisms, be sure to take supplemental acidophilus while you're on antibiotics. Acidophilus is the general name for dried or liquid cultures of the living lactobacillus bacteria that aid digestion. Always check the expiration date to help ensure that the acidophilus product you choose is still viable. Take one tablespoon of the liquid culture or one to two capsules after meals, unless the label directs otherwise. I recommend taking acidophilus to restore "friendly" cultures even when on antibiotics for just a few days. And I particularly recommend products containing lactobacillus GG, a strain proven to survive passage through the strong acid in the stomach. (Visit Culterelle for more information: http://www.culturelle.com/)

The organisms that withstand antibiotic treatment contribute to the growing problem of antibiotic resistance, which leaves us with fewer options for therapy when knockout treatments really are needed. For that reason, I generally encourage people to seek alternatives to antibiotics, whenever possible. For example, long-term antibiotic therapy for acne isn't very wise (instead, try an anti-inflammatory diet, taking essential fatty acids and using traditional Chinese medicine). I would reserve antibiotics for situations that really require them, such as bacterial infections in vital organs or fast-moving infections that the immune system can't contain.

Andrew Weil, M.D.

Are you concerned about drug and supplement interactions? Dr. Weil's Vitamin Advisor takes your prescription medications into account when formulating your personalized vitamin recommendation.