A female hormone, estrogen, promotes excessive alcohol consumption in women, according to a new study.
- Researchers found that female mice drank more when their estrogen levels were high.
- Conversely, consumption was lower when the level of this hormone decreased.
- In the future, they want to continue their research to find out whether this hormone has the same effect in men.
What if, in women, excessive alcohol consumption was linked to hormones? Yes, but more specifically to one of them, estrogen, according to a new study published in the journal Nature Communications.
High estrogen levels promote alcohol consumption
“[Nos connaissances sont limitées] on what motivates alcohol consumption in women, because most studies (…) have been carried out on men”, indicates Dr. Kristen Pleil, main author of this study, in a press release.
Scientists therefore decided to study estrogen, a female hormone produced by the ovaries. It is used to prepare the fertilization and gestationbut she is also involved in different tissues and organssuch as the mammary glands, mucous membranes, skin, cardiovascular system, brain, etc.
In their work, the researchers analyzed the hormonal levels of female mice when they were served alcohol. Thus, they observed that they drank more when their estrogen levels were high. Conversely, consumption was lower when the level of this hormone decreased.
The hormone impacts neurons
“When a female takes her first sip from the bottle containing alcohol, her neurons go crazy, explains Dr. Kristen Pleil. What if [son niveau d’œstrogène est] high, they become even crazier.” This mechanism explains, according to scientists, that mice drink a lot during the first 30 minutes of alcohol availability.
But why does estrogen produce such an effect? At the brain level, researchers have discovered the mechanism by which the hormone acts: it binds to neuron receptors and thus directly modulates communication between cells, which promotes alcohol consumption.
“We believe this is the first time anyone has demonstrated that during a normal estrous cycle, endogenous estrogen produced by the ovaries can use such a rapid mechanism to control behavior”, underlines Dr. Kristen Pleil.
In the future, scientists plan to continue their research to determine whether estrogen has the same effect in men. Furthermore, based on this discovery of the role of estrogen, researchers wish to work on the development of a new treatment, to limit alcohol consumption when hormone levels increase.
In France, alcohol consumption causes 49,000 deaths per year, according to the Ministry of Health. She is also responsible, according toNational Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm), more than 200 diseases and various conditions.
