Winston Churchill once said: “I have taken more good from alcohol than alcohol has taken from me.” [audio:http://hospitalstay.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/11-D.R.I.N.K..mp3|titles=D.R.I.N.K.]

Alcohol, a volatile, flammable, and colorless liquid, is one of the oldest recreational drugs. Alcohol is also one of the most commonly abused substances, and apparently men are twice as likely to develop alcoholism as women. Previously unclear as to why men and women responded differently to alcohol, a new study appearing in Biological Psychiatry reveals that dopamine may be part of the reason.

Researchers from Columbia and Yale studied 18-22 year old social drinkers after they consumed alcoholic or non-alcoholic drinks. The study also included a positron emission tomography (PET) scan for each individual to measure the release of alcohol-induced dopamine. While it serves many purposes, dopamine is important to the study because of its pleasurable effects when released in connection to sex or drugs.

Overall, the men had a greater dopamine release than women. “In men, increased dopamine release also had a stronger association with subjective positive effects of alcohol intoxication,” explained Dr. Nina Urban, corresponding author for this study. “This may contribute to the initial reinforcing properties of alcohol and the risk for habit formation.” Dr. Anissa Abi-Dargham, senior author on this project, also stated: “[A]nother important observation from this study is the decline in alcohol-induced dopamine release with repeated heavy drinking episodes. This may be one of the hallmarks of developing tolerance or transitioning into habit.”

The ability of alcohol to stimulate dopamine release may be inextricably connected to its abuse liability in people. The identification of an in vivo neurochemical mechanism may further explain the sex difference in alcoholism.

Sources:  Science Daily; Medical News Today