Motor performance during and following acute alcohol intoxication in healthy non-alcoholic subjects

Abstract

Chronic alcohol abuse has adverse effects on skeletal muscle, and reduced muscle strength is frequently seen in chronic alcoholics. In this study the acute effects of moderate alcohol intoxication on motor performance was evaluated in 19 non-alcoholic healthy subjects (10 women, 9 men). A randomised double-blinded placebo controlled design was applied to subjects receiving alcohol in juice and pure juice at two separate test periods. Isokinetic and isometric muscle strength and endurance were determined before, during, 24 and 48 h after the ingestion of alcohol in juice and juice (placebo). To detect a reduced activation of the central motor pathways superimposed external electrical stimulations during voluntary contractions were applied. Creatine kinase (CK) was measured to detect any alcohol-induced changes in sarcolemmal integrity. No change was seen in isokinetic as well as in isometric muscle performance during or following the alcohol intoxication as compared to the non-alcoholic condition. Also, no central activation failure was observed. No significant difference in CK increment was observed comparing the alcoholic- and non-alcoholic condition. In conclusion, a single episode of moderate alcohol intoxication (1,4 g/l) does not impair motor performance, and no accelerated exercise-induced muscle damage is seen.

Post-exercise alcohol ingestion exacerbates eccentric-exercise induced losses in performance

“…In accordance with the results of Poulsen et al (2007), our data confirm that a moderate dose of alcohol has no affect on muscular performance in the days following a drinking episode provided the muscle has not been damaged as a result of strenuous eccentric work. The results of our previous study (Barnes et al 2009) are thus due to an interaction between post-exercise alcohol consumption, the damaged muscle and/or the recovery processes initiated by EIMD.…”

“…Previous research (Poulsen et al 2007) suggests that the acute consumption of clinically relevant levels of alcohol does not affect muscular performance in the days following a drinking session. Further, indices of EIMD are unaffected when alcohol is acutely consumed prior to a bout of damaging exercise (Clarkson and Reichsman 1990).…”

Alcohol, Athletic Performance and Recovery

“…Consequently this will impair excitation-contraction coupling, decreasing strength output. Yet human clinical data fails to support this in-vitro evidence [13]. Secondly, alcohol consumption may compromise sarcolemmal integrity, with evidence of greater plasma rises in the intracellular enzyme creatine kinase (CK), following alcohol ingestion and exercise [14].…”

“…Indeed, in rodents a supraphysiological dose of alcohol markedly increased plasma CK. Furthermore, in both electrically stimulated rodent muscles [15] and in human subjected to eccentric loading this not evident [13,16,17,18]. Thus clear mechanisms remain elusive, with a need for supporting clinical data.…”

“…Alcohol was ingested immediately prior to exercise testing so this data is limited to the acute effects of alcohol intoxication and does not apply to more chronic hangover symptoms. Recent research has been unable to validate these findings, and have consistently seen no change in strength or power characteristics following acute alcohol ingestion [13,16,42]. Contrasting to McNaughton and Pierce, these studies have examined force output using an isokinetic dynamometer as their outcome measure of anaerobic performance.…”