1
00:00:01,840 --> 00:00:07,280
Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of iHeartRadio, Hey brain

2
00:00:07,320 --> 00:00:13,120
Speaker 1: Stuff Lauren volabamb here. Alcohol is a complicated substance. It's

3
00:00:13,320 --> 00:00:16,800
Speaker 1: used in celebrations and ceremonies and is a drug that

4
00:00:16,840 --> 00:00:20,520
Speaker 1: we should all handle responsibly, and in the case of

5
00:00:20,520 --> 00:00:22,880
Speaker 1: a select few of us, we brew it in our

6
00:00:22,920 --> 00:00:28,120
Speaker 1: own guts. Wait what, Yes, it's true. Some people brew

7
00:00:28,200 --> 00:00:31,480
Speaker 1: alcohol in their own bellies, and it's really not as

8
00:00:31,600 --> 00:00:34,800
Speaker 1: convenient as it might sound. People with this condition have

9
00:00:34,840 --> 00:00:38,400
Speaker 1: been arrested for unknowingly driving under the influence of alcohol,

10
00:00:38,720 --> 00:00:41,880
Speaker 1: and have been accused by family members and medical professionals

11
00:00:41,920 --> 00:00:47,400
Speaker 1: of being closet drinkers. The condition is called auto brewery

12
00:00:47,479 --> 00:00:51,640
Speaker 1: syndrome or gut fermentation syndrome. For people who have it,

13
00:00:51,880 --> 00:00:56,040
Speaker 1: the simple act of eating carb rich foods I think bagels, pasta,

14
00:00:56,160 --> 00:00:59,880
Speaker 1: or sugary sodas kicks off a series of unfortunate guests

15
00:01:00,200 --> 00:01:05,880
Speaker 1: intestinal events that result in elevated blood alcohol levels. In

16
00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:09,440
Speaker 1: most humans, our gastrointestinal system will ferment tiny levels of

17
00:01:09,440 --> 00:01:12,440
Speaker 1: ethanol during the course of normal digestion due to the

18
00:01:12,680 --> 00:01:16,440
Speaker 1: normal yeasts and bacteria in our guts that eat carbohydrates

19
00:01:16,480 --> 00:01:20,679
Speaker 1: and excrete alcohol. But for people with auto brewery syndrome,

20
00:01:21,080 --> 00:01:25,560
Speaker 1: one or several of these usually harmless microorganisms has overgrown

21
00:01:25,920 --> 00:01:29,319
Speaker 1: to the point that they're basically pathogenic. They create so

22
00:01:29,400 --> 00:01:31,840
Speaker 1: much ethanol that the person can have the signs and

23
00:01:31,880 --> 00:01:35,399
Speaker 1: symptoms of alcohol intoxication even if they haven't ingested a

24
00:01:35,440 --> 00:01:40,960
Speaker 1: single drop. Although rare, autobrewery syndrome affects both adults and

25
00:01:41,080 --> 00:01:44,959
Speaker 1: children and is thought to be widely undiagnosed. As a result,

26
00:01:45,120 --> 00:01:48,559
Speaker 1: people experience side effects that are chalked up to other maladies,

27
00:01:48,640 --> 00:01:52,040
Speaker 1: such as chronic fatigue syndrome, irritable bowel, or memory loss.

28
00:01:52,760 --> 00:01:58,800
Speaker 1: They experience life through a belching, dizzy lens and researchers

29
00:01:58,920 --> 00:02:02,960
Speaker 1: aren't entirely sure why this happens. It's definitely an imbalance

30
00:02:03,040 --> 00:02:07,680
Speaker 1: in the patient's gut, oral or urinary microbiome and or microbiome,

31
00:02:07,880 --> 00:02:10,960
Speaker 1: depending on whether you're talking about bacteria or yeasts, but

32
00:02:11,440 --> 00:02:14,560
Speaker 1: those in themselves are really complicated parts of our health

33
00:02:14,760 --> 00:02:20,119
Speaker 1: that aren't entirely understood. There is evidence that having underlying

34
00:02:20,160 --> 00:02:25,600
Speaker 1: conditions like various gastrointestinal disorders, diabetes, liver dysfunction, or genetic

35
00:02:25,600 --> 00:02:29,160
Speaker 1: differences in how your digestive enzymes operate might make you

36
00:02:29,280 --> 00:02:33,320
Speaker 1: more likely to experience auto brewery syndrome, but the only

37
00:02:33,360 --> 00:02:36,280
Speaker 1: two factors that have been really definitively linked to it

38
00:02:36,400 --> 00:02:39,360
Speaker 1: are the use of antibiotics, which can kill off the

39
00:02:39,520 --> 00:02:43,040
Speaker 1: normal and even helpful bacteria in our microbiome, and the

40
00:02:43,080 --> 00:02:48,680
Speaker 1: consumption of carbohydrates and sugars. The condition was first reported

41
00:02:48,720 --> 00:02:51,760
Speaker 1: in Japan in nineteen fifty two, but wasn't formally named

42
00:02:51,880 --> 00:02:56,560
Speaker 1: until nineteen ninety. To diagnose autobrewery syndrome, patients will be

43
00:02:56,600 --> 00:02:59,480
Speaker 1: given a physical and a few lab tests, including stool

44
00:02:59,600 --> 00:03:02,959
Speaker 1: and or endoscopy cultures for the bacteria and fungi known

45
00:03:02,960 --> 00:03:06,640
Speaker 1: to be culprits. Patients are also often isolated for a

46
00:03:06,639 --> 00:03:09,880
Speaker 1: period of time and given high carb, high sugar foods

47
00:03:09,880 --> 00:03:13,519
Speaker 1: to eat. If their blood alcohol levels rise, auto brewery

48
00:03:13,560 --> 00:03:17,880
Speaker 1: syndrome may be what's happening. With a diagnosis, patients are

49
00:03:17,880 --> 00:03:21,480
Speaker 1: treated for whatever yeast or bacterial overgrowth has been detected

50
00:03:21,800 --> 00:03:24,839
Speaker 1: and encouraged to go on a high protein, low carb

51
00:03:24,960 --> 00:03:28,640
Speaker 1: diet until their symptoms resolve. With help from a nutritionist

52
00:03:28,680 --> 00:03:31,880
Speaker 1: and avoidance of antibiotics, patients can manage the condition and

53
00:03:31,919 --> 00:03:35,560
Speaker 1: avoid relapses. Though some patients have had the best long

54
00:03:35,640 --> 00:03:40,000
Speaker 1: term luck after fecal microbiotic transplants, in which a healthy

55
00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:42,920
Speaker 1: donor's poop is used to help you grow your own

56
00:03:43,120 --> 00:03:50,960
Speaker 1: healthy microbiome. Today's episode is based on the article The

57
00:03:51,040 --> 00:03:53,760
Speaker 1: Curse of Brewing Beer in your Own Belly on howstifforks

58
00:03:53,760 --> 00:03:56,760
Speaker 1: dot com, written by Lorel Dove. Brain Stuff is production

59
00:03:56,840 --> 00:03:59,200
Speaker 1: of by Heart Radio in partnership with hostfforks dot com

60
00:03:59,200 --> 00:04:01,800
Speaker 1: and is produced by Time They're Clang. Four more podcasts

61
00:04:01,840 --> 00:04:04,880
Speaker 1: for my heart Radio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts,

62
00:04:04,960 --> 00:04:06,760
Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.