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Nutrition Booze, diets & nutrition?

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steve-in-kville

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Couple coworkers that lift and are big gym rats got into a discussion last week on alcohol. Like how it affects digestion and diet as well as performance. I always understood that as soon as alcohol reaches the stomach, the digestive tract switches gears and stops digesting the real food. Someone else says alcohol isn't digested, it gets absorbed into the blood stream right away?

Comments on this?
 
Based on my readings, we have a system designed to process the amount of alcohol contained in a spoiled fruit, not much. Body will give alcohol preferential treatment over food/drink since it is toxic and hard to process, one reason sleep is of poor quality when going to bed with alcohol in system, sympathetic system and digestive system ramp up first so deep sleep is interrupted or non existent. Something else interesting from a Jordan Peterson lecture, a hangover is caused by withdrawal symptoms, not so much by dehydration, low blood sugar etc, from one episode of excessive ( more than 1oz alc per hour for most folks ) drinking. Also heard booze lowers testosterone, and I'm getting close to 57, so no bueno for me. I've had plenty, but at this stage I feel much better when I rarely partake.
 
Alcohol gets digested in the liver mostly, broken down in two steps to Acetyl CoA and used in the mitochondria. IIRC it does not trigger an insulin response like regular carbs. Very little of it is digested in the intestines unless drinking on an empty stomach - it passes quickly into the bloodstream. A fatty meal can slow alcohol absorption considerably by trapping it in the stomach. I have never heard anything about preferentially digesting etc. It does occupy a good bit of liver function while being metabolized.

It can interfere with sleep, mostly due to increasing blood pressure from thinning the blood, increased snoring/apnea from relaxed throat muscles, can delay REM sleep.
 
Menno Henselmans has a few well-researched articles on alcohol and training.


 
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