Taking Antibiotics on Tisha B'Av
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Question
I am taking antibiotics due to a throat infection. I started a week before Tisha B'Av and have a few days left. 2 pills a day. What should I do on Tisha B'Av? If I cannot swallow a pill without water. Thank you very much.
Answer
Shalom and blessings
I am attaching the instructions of our teacher, the Gaon, Rabbi Avraham Fried, shlita, regarding fasting while taking antibiotics:
Antibiotics
If there is a fever, weakness, or feeling unwell - eat and drink as usual.
If there is no fever and you feel well - in the first five days take the antibiotics on Tisha B'Av without eating and drinking beforehand, as most types of antibiotics do not require eating and drinking, except for the types mentioned below.
[Types of antibiotics that require eating beforehand are: sulfa, strong antibiotics for inflammation of the gallbladder or kidneys, and then you are exempt from fasting and eat and drink as usual].
After five days, if there is no fever and you feel well - generally, the instruction is to take before and after the fast.
There is a need to distinguish between types of pills: there are pills taken twice a day, such as Augmentin, then the pill taken twice a day is taken already before the fast begins, the night pill [and even if this is fewer hours than the usual instructions], and after the fast, take the fast pill, and four hours after that take another pill [there is an option to skip one pill, as skipping once a day is not significant].
There are pills taken three times a day, such as Cefovit. Then until the fast begins, take the second pill of that day, skip the third pill of that day, and during the fast do not take pills, and after the fast take one pill, and four hours after that another pill, and skip one pill, and there is an option to take two pills immediately after the fast, and four hours after that another pill [you can do this or that, according to the person's desire].
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