How would it feel to be drunk all the time?
Not pleasant.
Irrespective of how cool you think inebriation might be, it’s not always fun being drunk when you haven’t drank a single drop of alcohol!
Yes, there exists a rare medical condition in which your body produces alcohol, causing instant drunkenness!
Auto-brewery syndrome happens when an over-abundance of yeast, trapped in the digestive system propels the body to convert common carbohydrates into alcohol!
When someone with this rare condition, eats something that is particularly starchy, a simple chemical reaction occurs in the body that ferments the carbs, producing ethanol. It is also known as “gut-fermenting syndrome” for obvious reasons.
Symptoms
There is a lack of medical recognition of this rare condition. But there was a case of a 61-year-old man suffering from auto-brewery, who complained of chronic whole-body symptoms, including headaches, fatigue, moodiness, muscle pain, stress intolerance, cognitive impairment and the feeling of intoxication. In addition to this, there have been a few other cases of people complaining of being “forever drunk”.
How dangerous can it be?
Well, you might think being drunk without actually spending a penny on drinks is cool but it’s actually quite the opposite.
There might be a possibility of alcohol poisoning. Or worse, you run the risk of being involved in a potentially life-threatening accident, after probably consuming an ‘extra helping of pasta’!
Ever thought about being hungover permanently? Does that scare you?
The worst part is that there is no sure-shot treatment for the condition.
Well, in the case of a woman from upstate New York who showed the symptoms, doctors are trying to treat the condition with a combination of a “carb-free” (low carb) diet and anti-fungal medications, that aim at combating the proliferation of yeast in the gut.
