Dietary protein and chronic intoxication with ethanol

Abstract

The nature of the dietary protein was found to affect the degree of inebriation of rats force-fed alcohol. Young adult males, fed diets differing in the protein moiety (6%), were given increasing doses of dilute alcohol by stomach tube, four times per week until, with 5.5 ml 40% v/v, about half of the rats became moderately intoxicated. This amount, which provided about 10% of the total calorie intake, was given until most of the rats in the three more susceptible groups had died. Rats on the other regimens still appeared in good health after 500 days and after more than 200 intubations with alcohol.A slightly improved tolerance for alcohol developed initially but after about 100 intubations tolerance began to decrease, more rapidly in rats fed some diets than in others. Protection decreased in the order (1) egg, (2) a protein mixture derived from seven natural foodstuffs, (3) milk, (4) oats, (5) rye, and (6) a mixture of peanut meal plus soy protein.