60 - The Effect of Beer and Its Non-alcoholic Constituents on the Exocrine and Endocrine Pancreas as Well as on Gastrointestinal Hormones

Abstract

The possible adverse effect of excessive alcohol consumption on the pancreas has been known since many years. Alcohol (ethanol) is generally consumed in the form of alcoholic beverages which contain numerous non-alcoholic compounds. On gastric acid secretion it has been convincingly demonstrated that alcohol and alcoholic beverages have markedly different effects. In this chapter we provide an overview about the effect of beer and different non-alcoholic constituents of beer on the pancreas and their possible interaction with molecular mechanisms leading to “alcoholic” pancreatitis, diabetes and pancreatic carcinoma. The present data indicate that pancreatic enzyme secretion in humans is stimulated by non-alcoholic constituents of beer which are generated by alcoholic fermentation of glucose. Natural phenolic compounds (e.g. quercetin, resveratrol) of beer have been shown to exert different effects on the pancreas in in vitro experiments, such as inhibition of pancreatic enzyme output, of pancreatic stellate cell activation and of pancreatic cancer growth. However, some compounds, for example resveratrol and catechins, showed also protective effects against oxidative stress and on experimentally induced acute pancreatitis or experimentally induced diabetes in rats. Bioavailability and efficacy of these compounds are summarized at the end of this chapter.