Ask Dr. H: Antibiotic leaves a bad taste

Question:

I received Biaxin 500mg tablets to fight a bug bite infection. Although the medicine killed the infection, it has left me with a very sickening taste in my mouth, a loss of smell, and some possible hearing loss. When will my senses return to normal?

Answer: Biaxin is an excellent antibiotic, useful for the treatment of sinus infections, bronchitis and pneumonia, tonsillitis, and skin infections such as yours.

But while it is undeniably effective, one of the better-known side effects of Biaxin is a metallic taste.

It may be associated with an altered sense of smell. There have been rare reports of transient hearing loss associated with the use of Biaxin.

I can empathize with your condition, as I experienced a similar altered sense of taste a few years ago while taking an antibiotic for a respiratory infection. Every food or drink tasted metallic. Even filtered water tasted awful. Chocolate was about the only thing that seemed to taste right.

Fortunately, just as I did, you will gradually come to your senses over the next few weeks as the medication gets out of your system and taste buds recover. Hearing and smell may take a bit longer, so be patient.

During this time, since your taste buds can't make heads or tails of a mouthful of food, avoid putting excess salt or sugar on your food - particularly if health problems require that you watch them. Finally, if you're pregnant or trying to conceive, you should not take Biaxin.

Q: Why do I always get an urge to urinate when I'm cold after being outdoors for a while during the winter?

A: It's all very normal. Your body is shutting down the production of the "anti-diuretic hormone" (ADH). The normal role of ADH is to help your body maintain the correct water concentration in the blood. ADH acts the complete opposite of a diuretic water pill like Lasix.

Prolonged cold exposure serves as a stimulus for your body to do certain things to keep from freezing to death: shivering and chattering of teeth to generate body heat; shunting of warm blood from the arms and legs to vital areas like the brain, heart, lungs, and abdominal organs; and urinating off "excess" blood water volume to create a smaller volume of blood to heat.

The increased urination you notice is all part of an attempt to maintain normal body temperature. As soon as you warm up, everything reverts to normal and thirst will remind you to replace any lost fluid.

While we're talking about the cold outdoors, did you also notice that your nose is running? You're not getting a cold; it's the common condition called "vasomotor rhinitis." Nasal tissues swell, often weeping varying amounts of thin, watery nasal discharge in response to some sort of irritant - like cold air.