subject: How The Body Metabolizes Alcohol [print this page] Heavy drinking and alcohol abuse can cause serious health issues including cancer, liver disease, and pancreatitis. Yet, even some moderate drinkers are at risk of developing an alcohol related health issue. This is because everybody metabolizes alcohol differently. Alcohol metabolism is the rate at which the body processes, breaks down, and eliminates alcohol. Research by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)shows that Alcohol metabolism is controlled by genetic factors, such as variations in the enzymes that break down alcohol; and environmental factors, such as the amount of alcohol an individual consumes and his or her overall nutrition (Alcohol Alert, No. 72, July 2007).
Some drinkers are more genetically predisposed to acquire a health issue from drinking alcohol than others. Some moderate drinkers develop illnesses such as alcohol related liver disease while other heavy drinkers never experience any long term ill health effects. At the root of it all are the differences in alcohol metabolism.
Alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) are the two most common enzymes responsible for alcohol metabolism.Initially, ADH metabolizes into a toxic byproduct called acetaldehyde. Acetaldehyde can cause damage to the tissues and cells where alcohol metabolism occurs, including the liver where the majority of alcohol metabolism occurs, and the brain, pancreas, and gastrointestinal tract. The harmful byproduct is generally short lived before breaking down further into acetate, a less harmful byproduct. Finally, the acetate breaks down into carbon dioxide and water and is eliminated by the body.
ADH and ALDH enzymesvary from person to person. The variations not only help determine how quickly or slowly a person metabolizes alcohol but studies have shown it may also have an impact on how much a person drinks. Some variations of ADH and ALDH can make even moderate drinking unpleasant for a person such as flushing and nausea. Thus, these people may tend to refrain from drinking. Some people can quickly breakdown the harmful acetaldehyde byproduct into acetate before damage occurs while other variations of ADH and ALDH enzymes may cause a person to have an acetaldehyde buildup causing them health problems.
Researchers continue to study alcohol metabolism and the role it plays in alcoholism and alcohol related illnesses.
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