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From: larry@kitty.UUCP (Larry Lippman)
Newsgroups: net.med,net.college
Subject: Re: Re: prevention of hangovers
Message-ID: <712@kitty.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 15-Jan-86 15:46:35 EST
Article-I.D.: kitty.712
Posted: Wed Jan 15 15:46:35 1986
Date-Received: Fri, 17-Jan-86 07:17:37 EST
References: <3122@sdcc3.UUCP> <795@petrus.UUCP> <109@linus.UUCP> <9247@ritcv.UUCP>
Organization: Recognition Research Corp., Clarence, NY
Lines: 42
Xref: watmath net.med:3160 net.college:994

>>Chemical B (produced via the bodies breakdown of ethanol) is 
>>FORMALDEHYDE. Body breaks down the ethanol first, as it is more dangerous
>>than the formaldehyde in the small concentrations that are encountered.
>>Formaldehyde concentrations in the bloodstream cause nausea and headache,
> 
> Your high school chemistry is strongly lacking! Formaldehyde is the
> product of partial oxidation of METHANOL and is the cause of blindness
> when people drink sterno or other nasty stuff.

	Right; methanol is oxidized to formaldehyde by the action of the liver
enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase.  Incidently, ethanol is sometimes given as part
of treatment for methanol poisoning because ethanol competes for alcohol
dehydrogenase much better than methanol.

	For the record, ethanol is oxidized and eventually converted to water,
carbon dioxide, and ATP in four stages:

ethanol --> acetaldehyde   [by action of alcohol dehydrogenase]

acetaldehyde --> acetic acid   [by action of aldehyde dehydrogenase]

acetic acid --> acetyl coenzyme A   [by action of acyl coenzyme A synthetase]

acetyl coenzyme A --> ATP + CO2 + H2O   [through citric acid cycle]

> I heard (but cannot vouch) that amyl alcohol is the impurity that is
> responsible for those hangover affects.

	True.  Fusel oil is the name for a mixture of amyl alcohols, acids,
esters and aldehydes found in alcoholic beverages, and is the primarily  
impurity responsible for hangovers.
	Another cause for a hangover is cerebral edema, which is caused by
hypoglycemia or other glycogen-related impairment of liver function resulting
from ethanol ingestion.
	This kind of discussion sorta takes the fun out of drinking, don't it?

==>  Larry Lippman @ Recognition Research Corp., Clarence, New York        <==
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