Man in Vietnam Transfused With 15 Cans of Beer to Save His Life From Alcohol Poisoning
48-year-old man had to be transfused with almost 5 litres of beer or about 15 beer cans to save his life.
In the case of alcohol poisoning, one would expect a person to be kept away from any kind of alcohol for long. But in a severe case in Vietnam, a 48-year-old man had to be transfused with almost 5 litres of beer or about 15 beer cans to save his life. Nguyen Van Nhat, was pumped with a can of beer every hour till the time he regained consciousness! The man's liver was processing too much of methanol and in order to slow it down, the doctors had to transfuse him beer immediately. How Much Alcohol is Safe for Health? 'No Safe Level of Alcohol Consumption' Concludes New Study.
He was taking treatment in General Hospital in the central Vietnamese province of Quang Tri. The head of the ICU, Dr. Le Van Lam informed the local media and explained his case. He mentioned that a person's stomach and intestine continues to produce alcohol into the bloodstream, even if they are unconscious or have stopped drinking. The level of methanol in Nhat's blood was 1,119 times higher than the appropriate limit. The methanol in his body turned to formic acid and he thus became poisoned with methanol and lost his consciousness.
The medics immediately transfused about one litre of beer to slow down the alcohol processing in his body. Only after 15 cans were administered to did Nhat become completely conscious. He started becoming better but was admitted for about 3 weeks. Alcohol Causes 2.8 Million Deaths Each Year Worldwide: Study.
Alcohol poisoning is a result of consuming too much alcohol in a short period of time. The alcohol content in the blood continues to rise and it triggers alcohol poisoning, even though you may have stopped drinking. After you take your last drink, the blood alcohol content (BAC) level increases for about 40 minutes. The body cannot metabolize the amount of alcohol fast. So drinking a lot of alcohol in a short time can affect a person's body to a great extent.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 18, 2019 09:25 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).