Alcohol consumption acute metabolic effects

Alcohol has a range of effects for some, desirable acute effects unwanted effects on the developing fetus and with long-term consumption, effects on the liver and other organs. In the US, over 2 million people experience alcohol related liver disease. Effects on the liver are dose related the more you consume the greater the effects. Early on there is an accumulation of fat in the liver as a result of the metabolism of alcohol. Some heavy drinkers develop an inflammation (alcoholic hepatitis) of the liver. Metabolites of alcohol, produced by the liver, are toxic to the liver cells. 

Alcohol has a triphasic effect on the elimination rates of drugs that require extensive biotransformation (21). For example, acute alcohol ingestion in combination with a TCA in a teetotaler who attempts suicide will significantly block the first-pass metabolism of the TCA. This chemical inhibition can triple the peak concentration of a TCA by increasing its bioavailability. This is why the consumption of alcohol in association with a TCA overdose increases lethality. 

Acute and chronic ethanol administration or intake and its subsequent withdrawal in experimental animals and in humans exert major effects on tryptophan and serotonin metabolism. The serotonin status is disturbed in animal models of alcoholism and in alcohol-dependent patients characterized by a higher preference for alcohol consumption. A few experimental studies have suggested that some aspects of ethanol toxicity may be improved by the administration of tryptophan.108109 These preliminary findings suggested the possibility of a beneficial effect of added tryptophan on hepatic protein synthesis in ethanol-treated rats, but whether tryptophan administration may be of therapeutic value needs to be established by further investigative studies. 

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