A gel made from milk protein and nano gold particles may cure hangovers and alcohol poisoning.
One of the biggest concerns when consuming alcohol is the risk of getting drunk or suffering from alcohol poisoning if too much is consumed.
According to scientists, acetaldehyde is the culprit behind many symptoms such as nausea, dry mouth, low blood pressure, increased heart rate, elevated skin temperature, and flushed face when drinking beer or alcohol.
Milk whey is the key ingredient in the new gel that can effectively combat drunkenness (Photo: Getty).
Recently, materials scientist Raffaele Mezzenga from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, along with a team of international researchers, discovered a gel that can catalyze the breakdown of alcohol in the intestines, forming acetic acid – a less toxic compound instead of acetaldehyde.
Initial experiments on mice showed that the new gel could reduce the blood alcohol concentration of intoxicated mice by up to 40% within 30 minutes.
In the following five hours, blood alcohol levels dropped by more than 50%.
Furthermore, mice that were given the gel daily also exhibited better health, with less weight loss and improved fat metabolism in the liver.
This indicates that the new gel significantly mitigates damage to various organs when alcohol is consumed.
To create this “miraculous” gel, researchers used whey extracted from curdled milk during cheese production and supplemented it with nano gold particles to facilitate enzymatic reactions.
“Not drinking alcohol is better for health,” researcher Mezzenga warned. “However, this gel could be beneficial for those who do not want to completely quit alcohol, as it reduces some of their side effects.”
Nevertheless, Mezzenga also noted that this gel is only effective while alcohol remains in the digestive tract. Once alcohol is absorbed into the bloodstream, its toxic effects are beyond the gel’s capability to mitigate.
