In July 2013, the International Journal of Clinical Medicine, published a report about a rare condition called “auto-brewery syndrome.”  The article notes the rare nature of the condition, as well as the lack of literature on the disease, its causes, and how to treat it.  Auto-brewery syndrome, also known as gut fermentation syndrome and endogenous ethanol fermentation, is a condition in which a patient exhibits intoxication without having consumed any alcohol.  Generally speaking, the mechanism is thought to be yeast in the gut that ferments carbohydrates, producing ethanol within the digestive system.  This report was the first to specifically examine the role of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, commonly known as brewer’s yeast.

While this report was referenced by the Atlantic Wire as a “stupid human trick,” it was critical for the Texas man the authors used as the case study.  The New York Daily News reports that a 61-year-old man in Texas was suspected by his wife of sneaking alcoholic drinks throughout the day and, when he presented at the hospital complaining of dizziness, he was at five times the legal limit for blood alcohol.  The man insisted he had not been drinking, but doctors laughed at him.  However, that hospital visit eventually resulted in finding out about his rare condition.

The man had too much brewer’s yeast in his gut.  As a result, when he consumed starch, he sparked a chemical reaction within his stomach that caused fermentation.  Consequently, the man would become intoxicated seemingly out of the blue.  To the dismay of his wife, the man ended up drunk after church, making her question how many drinks he was secretly having throughout the day.

Now that doctors have found out the source of his spontaneous insobriety, they are helping him keep his alcohol production down.  The man has been put on anti-fungals, which should hopefully reduce the amount of yeast in his gut.  With less yeast present in his gut, the chemical reaction will become more infrequent.  In addition to anti-fungals, the man is also on a low-carb diet.  Reducing his carbohydrate intake will give the yeast less to react with and ferment.

As this case has come to light, it gives a whole new meaning to the term “beer gut.”  The report mentions a few other cases, the earliest documented one of which was in Japan.  Another notable case covered a 3-year-old that became intoxicated after consumption of a carbohydrate-rich fruit drink.