Mar 30, 2021,04:41pm EST Elva Ramirez
Contributor Spirits I cover
travel, dining and the business of living well.
Great news: More states are expanding vaccine eligibility
ahead of the President’s May 1 mandate. On March 30, for example, New York
opened up vaccine appointments to adults aged 30 and up; by April 6, all
residents 16 and over will be eligible for shots.
Just over 16% of the U.S. population, or 53.4 million
Americans, are fully vaccinated as of March 30, according to the CDC. This
merits its own share of celebrations.
So, the big question is: Can you drink after you get your
vaccine? Can you drink between doses? Should you wait to drink until after your
last shot? If so, for how long should you wait?
The CDC’s guidelines for vaccine side effects include pain,
nausea, muscle pain and headache, among others. The agency doesn’t include any
advisories against alcohol use. Moreover, the FDA’s guidelines for vaccine
administration and use don’t mention alcohol; the only warnings the FDA gives
for vaccines have to do with severe allergies.
The CDC does warn that people may experience a more intense
reaction after receiving a second dose. Side effects, which include fever and
chills, can be more pronounced after the second dose. These symptoms can be
more intense if one has been drinking (which would be the case with any common
cold or mild flu). Try to imagine nursing a hangover at the same time as the
flu: none of that seems fun.
Last fall, a Russian scientist, Anna Popova, caused a minor
stir when she recommended that Russians quit drinking
alcohol two weeks before their vaccine shot, and then three
weeks after the second. New
Scientist interviewed another Russian scientist, who also said
he “strongly recommends refraining from alcohol for three days after each
injection.”
The thinking is based on scientific literature that links
excess alcohol use with a lowered immune system. Immunologist Eleanor Riley
from the University of Edinburgh told New Scientist, “Heavy drinkers have many
problems and poor immune function is one of them.”
According to New Scientist, volunteers for vaccines trials
at the University of Oxford were not told to abstain from alcohol during their
vaccinations. Pfizer has confirmed they don’t give any contraindications
relating to alcohol use and the vaccine.
The best approach is a cautious one. Get your vaccines,
follow the CDC’s guidelines on hand-washing, social distancing and masks. And
when, after your second shot, you find you don’t get (or get over) mild side
effects, pop open a glass of bubbly something and raise a toast to what is
hopefully the beginning of the end of pandemic drinking.
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Elva Ramirez I cover spirits, dining and the business of living well.
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