Comparative effects of low-carbohydrate, full-strength and low-alcohol beer on gastric emptying, alcohol absorption, glycemia and insulinemia in health

Abstract

Aims: The aim of this study was to evaluate the comparative effects of low-carbohy-drate (LC), full-strength (FS), and low-alcohol (LA) beer on gastric emptying (GE), eth-anol absorption, glycaemia and insulinaemia in health. Methods: Eight subjects (four male, four female; age: 20.4 ± 0.4 years; BMI 22.7± 0.4 kg/m2) had concurrent measurements of GE, plasma ethanol, blood glucose and plasma insulin for 180 min on three separate occasions after ingesting 600 mL of(i) FS beer (5.0% w/v, 246 kcal, 19.2 g carbohydrate), (ii) LC beer (4.6% w/v, 180 kcal,5.4 g carbohydrate) and (iii) LA beer (2.6% w/v, 162 kcal, 17.4 g carbohydrate)labelled with 20 MBq 99mTc-calcium phytate, in random order.Results:There was no difference in the gastric 50% emptying time (T50) (FS: 89.0± 13.5 minvs LC: 79.5 ± 12.9 minvs LA: 74.6 ± 12.4 min;P=.39). Plasma ethanol was less after LA than LC (P< .001) and FS (P< .001), with no difference between LC and FS (P=1.0). There was an inverse relationship between plasma ethanol at15 min and GE after LA (r= 0.87,P< .01) and a trend for inverse relationships after LC (r= 0.67,P=.07) and FS (r=0.69,P=.06). The AUC 0–180 min for blood glucose was greater for LA than LC (P< .001), with no difference between LA and FS (P=.40) or LC and FS (P=1.0). Conclusion: In healthy young subjects, GE of FS, LC and LA beer is comparable and adeterminant of the plasma ethanol response.