Nutrition is crucial in reducing alcohol cravings and preventing relapse in individuals recovering from alcohol use disorder. When the body lacks essential nutrients, it struggles to produce neurotransmitters, which are key in controlling cravings and lowering the likelihood of relapse. By integrating nutrient-rich foods into a well-balanced diet, the body receives the vital components needed to repair and enhance neurotransmitter pathways. This improvement in neurotransmitter function can lead to better mood regulation, cognitive abilities, energy levels, and impulse control, all of which are essential in the journey to recovery from alcohol dependence. The far-reaching health impacts of alcohol addiction are complex and closely connected to nutritional well-being.
1.6. Alcoholic Fatty Liver or Steatosis
Eating nutritious foods gives the body the vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants it needs to heal at a cellular level. A healthy diet helps reduce fatigue, minimize withdrawal symptoms, and provide essential fuel for mental clarity and focus during recovery. Eating a balanced diet supports long-term abstinence from alcohol by strengthening physical and psychological health, reducing addiction-related mood swings, promoting emotional stability, and encouraging sober living habits.
- All-cause mortality increased with increasing alcohol consumption, and only zero drinks minimized harm to overall health outcomes 20.
- Too little could eventually cause serious learning and memory problems, a condition called Wernicke-Korsakoff’s syndrome.
- However, patient adherence to KDs, particularly those that most tightly restrict carbohydrate content (32), is limited by their poor palatability.
- Ferroptosis is an iron-dependent cell death pathway accompanied by massive lipid peroxidation, and increasing evidence shows that ferroptosis plays an important role in the pathogenesis of various types of liver diseases, including ALD 149.
- Some of the alcohol that is ingested orally does not enter the systemic circulation but may be oxidized in the stomach by ADH and their isoforms.
The Impact of Nutrition on Addiction-Related Mental Health Disorders
Alcohol is then metabolized by the alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH)-mediated system; microsomal ethanol oxidizing system, which is a non-ADH system; and nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase–catalase reaction system, which is a non-ADH system 34. Prolonged excessive drinking induces the secretion of enzymes that increase alcohol and aldehyde metabolism. Recent studies have shown that alcoholic fatty liver is partially CYP2E1 dependent 35.
- Its actions are triggered by the formation of ROS and a redox imbalance (NAD/NADH).
- Alcohol use disorder (AUD) can lead to severe deficiencies in several vitamins and minerals.
- Firstly, it is a central nervous system depressant, affecting the brain by acting on neurotransmitters such as GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) and adenosine, which slow down brain activity and create a feeling of relaxation and tiredness.
- In the brain, the KD elevated levels of the metabolic markers acetone, AcAc, and glutamate and decreased choline and myo-inositol, metabolites linked to neuroinflammation (8).
- Previous research has linked alterations in methionine metabolism to ethanol-induced alcoholic liver damage 113,114,115.
Commonly acknowledged are the harmful effects of alcoholism on the liver and heart, but its influence on nutritional health is less apparent, though equally critical. Alcohol abuse can significantly impair the body’s ability to process and utilize essential nutrients, leading to severe and potentially life-threatening health issues. The following outlines how alcohol addiction adversely affects nutritional health and emphasizes the importance of incorporating nutritional therapy as a vital component of a holistic treatment strategy. While dietary changes and alterations in food preferences as a consequence of dysregulated drinking behavior are firmly established, very few studies have explored changes in nutrition-related behaviors during alcohol abstinence 23, 24, 188. For example, a study exploring the role of dietary choices and the likelihood of abstinence among people with AUD reported a positive correlation between enhanced carbohydrate and sugar intake and staying sober longer 23.
Alcohol Recovery: Nutrition And Vitamin Interventions
Alcohol abuse interferes with absorption of vitamins and minerals resulting in systemic health issues.. Alcohol can also damage the liver and other organs involved in critical metabolic processes. Additionally, many people who excessively consume alcohol tend to eat a poor diet, thereby worsening their malnutrition status. While substantial evidence supports the importance of addressing malnutrition in addictive disorders, the critical framework needed to evaluate its therapeutic potential remains to be identified. For example, what would be the most effective macro- or micro-nutrient composition of the recommended diets or food?
Cognitive and Mental Health Impacts
Therefore, the KD may have been less appetizing or more satiating then the regular chow, which could help to explain the greater weight loss in rats fed that diet. Studies that control for caloric intake are necessary to understand the interaction of KD with alcohol on weight loss. In this regard, preclinical studies from our lab have shown that intermittent access to a moderately high-fat diet (40% fat) significantly reduced alcohol drinking without impacting body weight 206–208. Even acute intermittent access (twice a week for two weeks) of this nutritionally complete palatable diet (NPD) was effective enough to reduce alcohol drinking and attenuate relapse-like drinking behavior 207, 208. Importantly, the NPD-induced effect on alcohol drinking was likely centrally mediated as selective changes in brain neurotransmitters gene expression and dopamine levels were observed in the brain reward circuitry of rats receiving NPD 208, 209. We also found that similar acute intermittent access to a high-sugar diet and saccharin, a non-calorie sweetener, were equally effective in reducing alcohol drinking 207, suggesting palatability instead of a particular macronutrient responsible for these effects.
Magnesium supplementation would be beneficial for individuals with magnesium deficiency, such as the elderly and alcoholics 146. Magnesium supplementation should be given along with thiamine supplementation, as mentioned above. Approximately 30% of alcohol consumed is absorbed into the body through the stomach while the remaining 70% is absorbed through the jejunum, and more than 90% is transported to the liver via the portal vein.
Study design and sample
For this reason, it is important for people who work with alcoholics to understand the role of nutritional deficiency in common alcohol-related diseases.. Chronic heavy drinking can lead to nutrient deficiencies linked to various health problems, including anemia, nerve damage, muscle wasting, impaired immune system functioning, and cognitive decline. Additionally, long-term alcohol abuse has been correlated to disruptions in appetite hormones which can result in poor nutrition. Alcohol also reduces fat metabolism, which is important for maintaining a healthy weight. Consuming too much alcohol can lead to a buildup of toxins that interfere with the normal function of enzymes involved in fat metabolism, leading to excessive fat gain.
Despite these findings, a previous study indicated that chronic drinkers’ blood levels can take up to three months to restore to normal after taking oral vitamin C supplements 65,66. This association between sweet/palatable food and relapse must be further explored clinically to address malnutrition and body weight-related issues, at least during early recovery from AUD. However, none of the FDA-approved drugs or clinical approaches targets compromised nutritional status in individuals with AUD, which may constitute a significant motivational factor that leads to relapse and poor treatment compliance. It is possible that improving nutritional status during abstinence would not only compensate for general malnutrition in AUD patients but also could serve to ameliorate some of the adverse symptoms observed during alcohol withdrawal, thereby enhancing prospects of recovery.
Increasingly, reports indicate that n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids are useful in alleviating ALD through multiple mechanisms 58. Fish oil is rich in n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids such as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and shows protective effects against fatty liver by lowering blood triglyceride levels in hypertriglyceridemic patients 59. Fish oil substitution increased plasma adiponectin concentrations and promoted fatty acid oxidation in the liver. In addition, the addition of fish oil promoted hepatic autophagy and lipid degradation, and subsequently inhibited the accumulation of lipids in the liver.
Best Foods and Supplements for Recovery
While vitamin interventions are an important part nutritional therapy for alcohol use disorder of addressing the negative health consequences of alcohol consumption, a holistic approach to health should not ignore the importance of a balanced diet and regular exercise. A balanced diet is essential in ensuring adequate intake of all necessary vitamins and minerals, reducing the risk of deficiencies that can be exacerbated by alcohol use. Including a variety of nutrient-dense foods in one’s diet can help recover lost or mal-absorbed vitamins. For example, including fish or flaxseed in one’s diet can provide omega-3 fatty acids, and breakfast cereals are a good source of flaxseed.
Ethanol metabolism produces an alcoholic fatty liver, alcoholic hepatitis, or cirrhosis 13,14. The major pathway of ethanol metabolism is the oxidative pathway that involves alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) present in the cytosol of hepatocytes 15. This ADH produces acetaldehyde, which is toxic due to its high reactivity and may form DNA or protein adducts 16,17. Some of the alcohol that is ingested orally does not enter the systemic circulation but may be oxidized in the stomach by ADH and their isoforms.