Behind the Buzz: Alcohol’s Hidden Impact on Gut Health

Consuming alcohol creates a broad range of effects and it must be detoxified by your body. From occasional social use to outright intoxication, your liver works hard to clear alcohol and protect against its toxic effects. Alcohol also impacts your gastrointestinal tract and microbiome, producing subtle yet substantial effects that require repair and support.

The Effect of Alcohol on the Gut

Alcohol ingestion, whether from a single binge or chronic use, disrupts the gut microbiome, weakens the intestinal lining, and affects overall gastrointestinal health. These changes may not be immediately noticeable, but you might experience symptoms such as diarrhea, gas, bloating, reflux, or other seemingly unrelated issues like brain fog, fatigue, joint aches, skin rash, erratic blood sugar levels, or are more prone to other illness.

Alcohol consumption of any amount or type affects digestive system motility. It impairs the sphincter pressure between the lower esophagus and stomach, which can lead to reflux. It also alters the speed at which the stomach empties. This can contribute to changes in bowel motility causing diarrhea or constipation. In addition, alcohol increases stomach acid levels.

Oxidative stress from excessive alcohol damages the gut’s mucosal lining, breaking down its protective barrier and increasing intestinal permeability. Even a single episode of excessive alcohol consumption can erode this protective layer.

Other consequences include small intestine bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), a decrease in beneficial bacteria, and impaired absorption of nutrients and electrolytes. The combination of antibiotic use and chronic alcohol consumption additionally creates a synergistic negative spiral that stresses gut-brain connection.

Furthermore, higher amounts of oxidative stress occur in cells and mitochondria in the intestinal tract, liver, and elsewhere. This creates high amounts of reactive oxygen species (ROS), other free radicals, and lipid peroxidation. It results in depletion of cellular glutathione levels and reduced antioxidant activity. Cells and tissues malfunction and become damaged.

Consequently, large food particles, immune compounds, SIBO and other metabolic waste products, and alcohol enter the blood vessels that go directly to the liver. This results in a higher toxic load that must be processed, detoxified, and removed by the liver before it affects other organs and tissues.

A higher toxic load can greatly increase the inflammatory strain on your brain, immune system function, blood sugar management, blood vessels and heart, and other tissues, with fewer antioxidants available to support their function and homeostasis.

Alcohol use causes:

• Increased intestinal permeability with both low and high alcohol intake.

• Increased demand for butyrate, the primary short chain fatty acid (SCFA) required for gut lining integrity. 

• Decreased production of SCFAs, especially butyrate, due to dysbiosis and changes in gene signaling. 

• Decreased levels of glutamine, the primary amino acid required for gut lining repair. 

• Depletion of glutathione, the master antioxidant system, essential for all tissues and especially critical for detoxification, gut, immune system, and brain health. 

• Increased demand for phosphatidylcholine in the liver for protection and repair. 

• Many other changes.

Special Mention: Butyrate and Gut-Brain Protection

Butyrate, a postbiotic short chain fatty acid, is essential for maintaining gut lining integrity and affords protection to the liver. It is also essential for numerous other factors within the gut-brain connection, gut homeostasis, absorption of electrolytes and fluids, bowel motility, and much more.

Butyrate plays a powerful role in protecting the microbiome-gut-brain axis against the oxidative stress brought on by chronic alcohol use. Research shows that because of butyrate’s critical role in gut lining repair, it offsets microglial cell activation and suppresses NF-kappa B, PPAR-gamma and other inflammatory signaling pathways in the brain. This helps protect and preserve memory and cognitive function. It also helps protect the gut lining and microbiome, specifically with antibiotic use.

Another important point is that beneficial bacteria use acetyl CoA to produce butyrate. Alcohol consumption reduces this production pathway by causing gut dysbiosis. Acetyl CoA and butyrate support detoxification in both the gut and liver.

Vitamin B5, or pantethine, is metabolized into acetyl-CoA. Pantethine is nicknamed "the clear head pill” partly because of this effect, as well as its ability to help clear aldehyde produced by alcohol, Candida, and environmental chemicals.

Supporting Your Body

The liver is the primary site of alcohol detoxification, but as briefly described above, the gastrointestinal tract plays a critical role as well.

Diet

Focus on a diet of organic whole foods that are rich in fiber and contain resistant starches, fruits and vegetables in a variety of colors, and quality proteins to support your gut microbiome and detoxification pathways.

Consuming alcohol along with nutrient-rich foods make it easier for your body to manage the stress. In contrast, alcohol consumed with ultra-processed foods increases the overall burden on the gut and liver by adding empty calories with poor nutrients, forcing your body work harder and causing greater cellular damage.

Foundational Support:

• Daily Detoxify: Supports liver and kidney detoxification processes.

• Tributyrin Plus: Provides butyrate with prebiotic fibers, critical for gut homeostasis.

• Daily Protector Eye & Immune: Offers broad-spectrum antioxidant support essential for liver, gut, mitochondria, and immune function.

Additional Support:

• Daily Energy Multiple Vitamin: Replaces B vitamins depleted by alcohol consumption.

• Glutathione Ultra: Replenishes glutathione, the master antioxidant system depleted by alcohol use. Glutathione is required by all organs and tissues and is especially critical for detoxification, immune function, gut integrity, and brain health.

• GI & Muscle Helper: provides glutamine, which works with butyrate to repair the gut lining.

• Pantethine: Provides acetyl-CoA for additional butyrate-microbiome-gut-brain support and also helps energy production and mitochondrial function.

• Activator Plus: Offers additional support for liver detoxification, glutathione production, and choline metabolism.

Excessive alcohol intake affects everyone differently. Underlying factors like leaky gut syndrome, small intestine bacteria overgrowth from antacids, antibiotic use, Candida, gene SNPs that impair detoxification pathways, a history of concussion, and numerous other factors can impact your individual tolerance to alcohol.

Whether it’s a glass of wine every day, weekend binges, or a few cold ones at the game, your gastrointestinal tract, liver, and entire body face increased demands. Be proactive and give your body the necessary support it needs to manage these challenges. Please drink responsibly--for your health and with care for others.

Additional resources:

Best Nutrients for Detoxification Support

Revitalize Your Gut: How Prebiotics, Probiotics, & Postbiotics Work Together

Leaky Gut Syndrome: More Than Just a Gut Problem

Butyrate Aids Digestive Tract Health: Discover New Tributyrin Plus