Many are familiar with a drug like activated carbon. And almost everyone knows that in case of poisoning this is a first aid tool. Most often, the medicine is used for manifestations of intoxication, which are caused by:
- The use of low-quality or expired products, which contain a large number of chemical components.
- Overeating.
- Attempts to consume incompatible foods.
- Overdose of medicines.
- Drinking alcohol.
- The penetration into the body of salts of heavy metals and toxic compounds.
Properties of natural sorbent
Activated carbon in case of poisoning allows you to get rid of toxic substances. It adsorbs and holds on its surface harmful compounds that enter the human body. In this case, the drug:
- Protects from the harmful effects of toxic compounds the mucous membranes of the digestive tract.
- Prevents the absorption of harmful substances through the walls of the intestinal mucous membranes. Thus, the drug prevents the penetration of toxic compounds into the blood.
- Accelerates the process of elimination of substances hazardous to humans with feces. Coal itself is excreted from the body 7 hours after its use.
Activated carbon is a natural sorbent, which is obtained by carbonization of organic materials containing carbon, and its subsequent activation. Such a medication can be taken in case of poisoning without a doctor's prescription. However, do not forget about contraindications.
Who should abandon its use?
Before answering the question, how much to drink coal in case of poisoning, it is worth indicating contraindications. The drug is completely prohibited when:
- intestinal atony - a pathology characterized by a violation of intestinal motility;
- peptic ulcer disease;
- ulcerative colitis (non-specific);
- individual intolerance.
It is also worth abandoning the simultaneous use of activated charcoal and drugs that begin to act only after absorption by the walls of the gastrointestinal tract.
When is it better to stop taking it?
In some cases, taking a medication such as activated carbon should be discontinued, especially if:
- diarrhea
- dyspepsia - a difficult or painful digestion process, which is accompanied by discomfort and pain in the pancreas;
- constipation
- tendency to lower blood pressure;
- allergies.
Side effects
How much activated carbon for poisoning should I take? Before answering the question, it is worth paying attention to the side effects of the drug:
- The drug does not act selectively. Activated carbon removes not only harmful compounds from the body, but also beneficial substances.
- Together with dangerous microorganisms, coal also removes the intestinal bacteria necessary for the normal functioning of the digestive tract. This often leads to disruption of microflora.
Regardless of how much coal was taken during the poisoning, the patient after such therapy needs additional treatment. After taking such a drug, vitamin-mineral complexes and probiotics, which include beneficial microorganisms, are often prescribed.
If you do not follow the instructions?
Severe side effects are extremely rare. Therefore, coal is prescribed for poisoning. However, if the admission rules are not observed, patients may experience unpleasant consequences:
- hypothermia - hypothermia;
- embolism - a blockage of blood vessels, which can cause circulatory disorders;
- hypokalemia - a decrease in blood concentration of ions;
- hemorrhage - a pathological exit from the lumen of blood vessels into the space associated with them;
- hypocalcemia - a decrease in calcium in the body;
- hypoglycemia - a decrease in blood glucose levels.
In order to avoid such phenomena, you should carefully study the instructions and correctly calculate the dosage. However, in case of poisoning, it is better to consult a doctor.
Adult therapy
How much can an adult take with activated carbon poisoning? The main symptom of poisoning is nausea with vomiting. With such a violation, the medication is recommended to be used as follows:
- A single dosage can be calculated based on the body weight of the victim. For every 10 kg of body weight, 1 tablet is prescribed. Here is an example: if the victim weighs 70 kg, then he should take 7 tablets.
- Swallowing whole or chewing the drug is not recommended. This degrades its properties. Best of all, coal will adsorb and remove toxins if taken in the form of a powder, an aqueous emulsion (suspension), prepared from carefully ground tablets. In this case, the water should be at room temperature.
- If the victim suffers from vomiting, then coal is used to rinse the stomach. To save the patient from the rest of the vomit, it is recommended to dilute 2 dessert spoons of the powder prepared from coal tablets in 200 ml of boiled but chilled water. The victim should drink the prepared solution at a time.
- How to take activated charcoal for food poisoning? In this case, it is recommended to grind the tablets into powder and take 2-4 times throughout the runoff. Note that the daily dose of the drug should not exceed 30 g. The drug should be taken 1 hour before a meal or 2 hours after.
- If the victim has increased gas formation or painful diarrhea, then an aqueous suspension, which contains 1-3 g of coal, must be taken between meals.
- If the patient has vomiting or diarrhea, then it is necessary to increase the amount of fluid consumed. This is the only way to avoid dehydration.
- The duration of therapy with activated carbon in case of poisoning should be no more than 14 days, depending on the condition of the patient.
The most important thing is to take the medicine correctly. Timely bowel movement will only improve the effect of the drug. It is recommended to defecate 2 hours after the use of the medication. If this condition is met, then toxic compounds will not penetrate the bloodstream and will be excreted in a short period of time. The timely use of a natural sorbent will help to cope with nausea.
How much to give the child?
How much coal to drink when poisoning a child? After all, the body of a small person tolerates intoxication much harder. At the same time, the speed of exposure to drugs due to the incompletely formed gastrointestinal tract is quite high. For this reason, activated carbon, once in the baby's body, begins to act after 3 minutes. Before giving your child a natural sorbent, it is worth consulting with specialists of a narrow profile - a pediatrician.
So, how to take coal for poisoning children? The rules of admission are as follows:
- Dosage calculation is carried out based on the body weight of the child. The smallest are prescribed in ¼ part of the tablet per 1 kg of weight. After taking the medication, it is recommended not to give the baby food for 2 hours.
- Children (from 1 year) with poisoning produce gastric lavage. After that, they are given an aqueous suspension of the drug. The dosage calculation is also important. For every kilogram of body, 200 mg of coal (activated) is required. The duration of therapy can be no more than 5 days.
Example calculation for a child (from 1 year): a single dosage for a child weighing 10 kg - 2000 mg. In other words, at one time it is required to give the baby 8 tablets, since the active ingredient in one tablet contains 250 mg. The daily dosage is 24 tablets.
Pregnancy
Let's look at how to drink activated charcoal when poisoning a pregnant woman. According to the annotation, such a drug does not contain components that can harm the fetus. This natural sorbent is allowed during pregnancy. However, before using such a drug, you should consult a doctor.
The main condition for effective therapy is strict adherence to dosages prescribed by a specialist. Not sure how much to drink activated carbon for poisoning during pregnancy? Dosage is calculated as for an adult.
Alcohol poisoning
With excessive drinking, symptoms of severe intoxication often occur (dizziness, headache, colic, nausea with vomiting, etc.). The reason for these manifestations lies in such a component as acetaldehyde. It is also called methyl formaldehyde, ethanal or acetic aldehyde. The compound is formed in the liver during the oxidation of ethyl alcohol. As a result of many processes, acetic acid is formed.
If there is a lot of alcohol in the body, then the enzyme systems simply can not cope with the complete conversion of ethanol into acetic acid. The latter gradually accumulates in the body. Scientists have proved that the toxicity of ethanol is 30 more than the toxicity indicator of alcohol itself.
How to stop?
In case of alcohol poisoning, coal (activated) is a first aid tool. This drug helps to cope with the symptoms of intoxication, as well as with a hangover syndrome, while reducing the toxic load on the liver, heart and kidneys. To avoid unpleasant consequences, it is recommended:
- Before taking enterosorbent, wash the stomach. Such manipulations allow you to remove the remains of decomposed food and ethanol from the body. In addition, stopping the absorption of alcohol will avoid more severe intoxication of the body.
- After washing the stomach, it is recommended to take an aqueous suspension of the drug, prepared from 200 ml of boiled water and 10 tablets of activated carbon, crushed into powder.
- After that, maintenance therapy is carried out. It includes the intake of activated carbon up to 3 times a day for 1-2 tablets.
- During therapy, the victim must observe a drinking regimen to avoid dehydration and accelerate the elimination of toxic compounds.
With the correct conduct of all measures, an improvement in the general condition is noted after 60 minutes.
How to prevent?
Activated carbon can also be used to prevent alcohol poisoning. For this:
- Before the planned celebration (about 1.5 hours), it is recommended to take 6 tablets of the drug, having previously dissolved them in water or swallowed whole. In this case, it is recommended to drink the drug with plenty of water. This will prepare the body for the use of alcohol.
- You can speed up the process of eliminating toxins by consuming a large number of juices, fruit drinks and water.
- After the feast, it is recommended to take a natural sorbent, having previously calculated the dosage: 1 tablet is required per 10 kg of weight.
You need to know!
At home, you can only cope with moderate intoxication. If symptoms of severe poisoning are present, such as severe diarrhea, fever, pain in the abdomen and indomitable vomiting, then you should immediately call an ambulance. If the case is severe, then patients undergo gastric lavage or are injected with drugs using a special probe.