Alcohol Changes Brain Responses to Glucose and Insulin

Rats given large alcohol doses to simulate a 3-day bender developed abnormal brain responses to glucose and insulin resistance, which lasted for days after the alcohol wore off. Inflammation in the hypothalamus disrupted insulin receptor signaling in the brain. If these results apply to humans, binge drinking is not only an epidemiological risk factor but also a direct cause of insulin resistance that sets the stage for the metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes. Science Translational Medicine, Jan 2013