Citation

Goldberg L, Jones AW, Neri A. Blutalkohol 1979; 16(6): 439-452.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1979, International Committee on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety and Bund gegen Alkohol und Drogen im Straßenverkehr, Publisher Steintor Verlag)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The effects of an orally administered sugar mixture (1.66 g kg-1) given together with ethanol (0.70 g kg-1) on blood ethanol profiles and on ethanol-induced changes in performance and behaviour have been studied in 11 subjects using a double blind crossover design. Subjective estimates of various moods and objective measurements of hand steadiness and standing steadiness (body sway) were among the variables studied during the acute and post-alcohol (hangover) phases. The sugar treatment caused a reduction in subjective as well as objective alcohol-induced CNS-manifestations in both the acute and post-alcohol phases of impairment. During the acute phase the reduced impairment observed was correlated to the lower blood alcohol levels resulting from the delayed absorption of alcohol in the presence of sugars. A theoretical model was derived to estimate the magnitude of an overall alcohol-induced effect on the CNS. This was based on the critical blood alcohol thresholds necessary to cause a significant performance decrement with the CNS-tests employed and on the underlying blood alcohol parameters. The theoretical results were substantiated by the experimental findings.