Abstract
The consumption of alcohol is often accompanied by other foods, such as fruits and vegetables. This study is aimed to investigate the effects of 20 selected fruits on ethanol metabolism to find out their potential health benefits and harmful impacts. The effects of the fruits on ethanol metabolism were characterized by the concentrations of ethanol and acetaldehyde in blood, as well as activities of alcohol dehydrogenase and acetaldehyde dehydrogenase in liver of mice. Furthermore, potential health benefits and harmful impacts of the fruits were evaluated by biochemical parameters including aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transferase (ALT), malondialdehyde, and superoxide dismutase. Generally, effects of these fruits on ethanol metabolism were very different. Some fruits (such as Citrus limon (yellow), Averrhoa carambola, Pyrus spp., and Syzygium samarangense) could decrease the concentration of ethanol in blood. In addition, several fruits (such as Cucumis melo) showed hepatoprotective effects by significantly decreasing AST or ALT level in blood, while some fruits (such as Averrhoa carambola) showed adverse effects. The results suggested that the consumption of alcohol should not be accompanied by some fruits, and several fruits could be developed as functional foods for the prevention and treatment of hangover and alcohol use disorder.
Highlights
Alcohol consumption has been commonplace from prehistoric times
The effects of 20 selected fruits on ethanol metabolism were studied to find out their potential health benefits and harmful impacts
Citrus limon, Averrhoa carambola, Pyrus spp., and Syzygium samarangense juices significantly (p < 0.05) decreased the concentrations of alcohol, while Chaenomeles sinensis juice increased the concentrations of alcohol in blood, which might increase the damage induced by alcohol
Summary
Alcohol consumption has been commonplace from prehistoric times. The effects of acute alcohol consumption on the human body can take several forms including facial flushing, nausea, tachycardia, palpitation, confused consciousness, and vomiting, and long-term excessive alcohol use leads to gastrointestinal damages, alcohol liver disease, pancreatitis, neurologic disorders, osteoporosis and so on [1,2,3]. Alcoholic liver disease encompasses a broad spectrum of progressive pathologic stages, which includes fatty liver, steatohepatitis, fibrosis, and cirrhosis [4]. Acetaldehyde could cause toxic effects including lightheadedness, a rapid pulse, sweating, nausea, and vomiting at high concentrations. It is important to remove excess ethanol and acetaldehyde in order to prevent such toxicities [6]
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