M AUTO BREWERY SYNDROME

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I'll search for information about this fascinating condition where the gut produces alcohol without drinking.Your gut can produce alcohol without drinking due to a rare condition called auto-brewery syndrome (ABS) or gut fermentation syndrome. Here's when and why it happens:

When It Occurs

Symptoms of intoxication tend to follow meals and drinks high in carbohydrates, like pasta, potatoes and fruit juice, with the fermentation process taking up to 24 hours. People typically experience random episodes of drunkenness that seem to come out of nowhere.

Why It Happens

Microbial overgrowth: Certain gut bacteria can produce enough alcohol to cause real intoxication without drinking. Recent research identified specific culprits including bacteria like Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae, as well as yeasts like Saccharomyces cerevisiae (brewer's yeast) and Candida albicans.

Contributing factors:

• Prolonged antibiotic use that disrupts gut balance
• High-carbohydrate, high-sugar diets that provide fermentation fuel
• Pre-existing conditions like diabetes, Crohn's disease, obesity, or liver disease
• Previous abdominal surgeries
• Impaired liver metabolism due to genetic variations or liver damage

The Process

When these microbes feed on the sugars you eat, they produce alcohol through fermentation. While everyone's gut produces tiny amounts of alcohol during digestion, in ABS this production exceeds the body's ability to metabolize it, causing blood alcohol levels to rise to intoxication levels.

Treatment

Treatment includes antifungal or antibiotic medications, strict low-carbohydrate diets, probiotics, and in some cases, fecal microbiota transplantation. Recent research from January 2026 showed promising results with fecal transplants providing long-lasting relief when other treatments failed.