A glass of red wine may pair well with a turkey dinner, but drinking even a small amount can cause headaches in some people. The dreaded “red wine headache” can occur between 30 minutes to three hours after consuming as little as a small glass’ worth. In a study published November 20 in the journal Scientific Reports, a team from the University of California, Davis and the University of California, San Francisco reports that they may have found the culprit.
[Related: Red wine is a trifecta of chemicals that can make some people feel terrible.]
Questioning the quercetin
The team believes that a flavanol found naturally in red wines can interfere with the body’s usual metabolism of alcohol, which may lead to a headache. This flavanol is called quercetin and it is found in multiple types of fruits and vegetables, including grapes. Quercetin is considered a healthy antioxidant and can even be taken as a supplement, but it can become a problem when metabolized alongside alcohol.
“When it gets in your bloodstream, your body converts it to a different form called quercetin glucuronide,” study co-author and UC Davis wine chemist Andrew Waterhouse said in a statement. “In that form, it blocks the metabolism of alcohol.”
The end result is an accumulation of a toxin called acetaldehyde.
“Acetaldehyde is a well-known toxin, irritant and inflammatory substance,” study co-author and UC Davis microbiologist Apramita Devi said in a statement. “Researchers know that high levels of acetaldehyde can cause facial flushing, headache and nausea.”
A medication called disulfiram that is prescribed to patients to help treat alcohol dependence to discourage drinking is known to cause these same symptoms if alcohol is consumed. Disulfiram also makes acetaldehyde from drinking alcohol build up when an enzyme in the body would usually break it down. Roughly 40 percent of the East Asian population also has alcohol metabolizing enzymes…
Read the full article here