Many people are familiar with such a drug as activated charcoal. And almost everyone knows that in case of poisoning it is a first aid remedy. Most often, the drug is used for manifestations of intoxication, which are caused by:
- Using low-quality or expired products, which contain a large number of chemical components.
- Overeating.
- Trying to eat incompatible foods.
- Medicine overdose.
- Drinking alcohol.
- Penetration of s alts of heavy metals and toxic compounds into the body.
Properties of natural sorbent
Activated charcoal in case of poisoning allows you to get rid of toxic substances. It adsorbs and retains on its surface harmful compounds that have entered the human body. In this case, the drug:
- Protects the mucous membranes of the gastrointestinal tract from the harmful effects of toxic compounds.
- Prevents the absorption of harmful substances through the walls of the intestinal mucosa. Temthe drug itself prevents the penetration of toxic compounds into the blood.
- Accelerates the process of excretion of substances dangerous to humans with feces. The very same coal is excreted from the body 7 hours after its use.
Activated carbon is a natural sorbent, which is obtained by charring organic raw materials containing carbon, and then activating it. Such a medication can be taken for poisoning without a doctor's prescription. However, do not forget about contraindications.
Who should stop using it?
Before answering the question of how much coal to drink in case of poisoning, it is worth pointing out contraindications. The drug is completely prohibited at:
- intestinal atony - a pathology characterized by a violation of intestinal motility;
- peptic ulcer;
- 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 best to stop taking?
In some cases, taking a medication such as activated charcoal should be stopped, especially if:
- diarrhea;
- dyspepsia - a difficult or painful process of digestion, which is accompanied by discomfort and pain in the pancreas;
- constipation;
- trends to lower blood pressure;
- allergies.
Side effects
How much activated charcoal should I take in case of poisoning? Before answering the question, you should pay attention to the side effects of the drug:
- The drug does not act selectively. Activated charcoal removes not only harmful compounds from the body, but also useful substances.
- Along with dangerous microorganisms, coal also removes intestinal bacteria necessary for the normal functioning of the digestive tract. This often leads to disruption of the microflora.
Regardless of how much coal was taken in case of poisoning, the patient after such therapy needs additional treatment. After taking such a drug, vitamin-mineral complexes, probiotics, which have beneficial microorganisms in their composition, 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 rules of admission are not observed, patients may experience unpleasant consequences:
- hypothermia - hypothermia;
- embolism - blockage of blood vessels, which can cause circulatory disorders;
- hypokalemia - a decrease in the concentration of ions in the blood;
- 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 is a decrease in blood glucose levels.
In order to avoid such phenomena, you should carefully study the instructions andcorrectly calculate the dosage. However, in case of poisoning, it is better to consult a doctor.
Adult Therapy
How much can an adult take in case of activated charcoal poisoning? The main symptom of poisoning is nausea with vomiting. With such a violation, the medication is recommended to be used as follows:
- Single dosage can be calculated based on the body weight of the victim. For every 10 kg of body weight, 1 tablet is prescribed. Let's give 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 wash the stomach. To save the patient from the remnants of vomit, it is recommended to dilute 2 dessert spoons of powder prepared from charcoal tablets in 200 ml of boiled but chilled water. The victim must drink the prepared solution at a time.
- How to take activated charcoal for food poisoning? In this case, it is recommended to crush the tablets into powder and take 2-4 times during the drain. Please note that the daily dose of the drug should not exceed 30 g. The drug should be taken 1 hour before meals or 2 hours laterafter.
- 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, it is necessary to increase the amount of fluid consumed. This is the only way to avoid dehydration.
- Duration of therapy with activated charcoal for poisoning should be no more than 14 days, depending on the condition of the patient.
The most important thing is to take the medication correctly. Timely bowel movements will only improve the effect of the drug. It is recommended to defecate 2 hours after the use of the medication. If such a condition is observed, then toxic compounds will not enter the bloodstream and will be removed from the body in a short period of time. Timely use of natural sorbent will help to cope with nausea.
How much to give a baby?
How much coal to drink when a child is poisoned? After all, the body of a small person tolerates intoxication much harder. At the same time, the rate of drug exposure due to the incompletely formed gastrointestinal tract is quite high. It is for this reason that activated charcoal, once in the baby's body, begins to act after 3 minutes. Before giving a child a natural sorbent, you should consult a specialist in a narrow field - a pediatrician.
So, how to take coal in case of poisoning for children?The admission rules are as follows:
- Calculate the dosage based on the body weight of the child. The smallest are prescribed ¼ of a tablet per 1 kg of weight. After taking the medicine, it is recommended not to give the baby food for 2 hours.
- Children (from 1 year) in case of poisoning, gastric lavage is performed. After that, they are given an aqueous suspension of the drug. It is also important to calculate the dosage. For every kilogram of the body, 200 mg of charcoal (activated) is required. The duration of therapy can be no more than 5 days.
Calculation example for a child (from 1 year old): a single dosage for a child weighing 10 kg is 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.
Use during pregnancy
Let's look at how to drink activated charcoal for 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 the dosages prescribed by the specialist. Do not know how much to drink activated charcoal in case of poisoning during pregnancy? The dosage is calculated as for an adult.
Poisoningalcohol
With excessive use of alcoholic beverages, 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 methylformaldehyde, ethanal or acetaldehyde. 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 cannot cope with the complete conversion of ethanol into acetic acid. The latter gradually accumulates in the body. Scientists have proven that the toxicity of ethanol is 30 times greater than the toxicity of alcohol itself.
How to stop?
In case of alcohol poisoning, charcoal (activated) is a first aid. This drug helps to cope with the symptoms of intoxication, as well as hangover syndrome, while reducing the toxic load on the liver, heart and kidneys. To avoid unpleasant consequences, it is recommended:
- Before taking the 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 gastric lavage, it is recommended to take an aqueous suspension of the drug, prepared from 200 ml of boiled water and 10 powdered activated charcoal tablets.
- After that, maintenance therapy is carried out. It includes takingactivated carbon up to 3 times a day, 1-2 tablets.
- During therapy, the victim must comply with the drinking regimen in order to avoid dehydration and accelerate the elimination of toxic compounds.
With the correct implementation of all activities, an improvement in the general condition is noted already after 60 minutes.
How to prevent?
Activated charcoal can also be used to prevent alcohol poisoning. To do this:
- Before the planned celebration (approximately 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 drinking alcohol.
- You can speed up the process of removing toxins by drinking plenty 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 for 10 kg of weight.
You need to know
At home, only moderate intoxication can be de alt with. If there are symptoms of severe poisoning, 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 drugs are administered usingspecial probe.
