Can We Stop The Carnage Of Illicit Hooch Through Information And Timely Medical Intervention?
By Brooks Robinson and Sukant Khurana, Ph.D.
Within many batches of hooch produced illegally reside substances that will provide drinkers with the kick that they are
looking for but when contaminated, can also result in death. Such illicit alcohol related deaths are not commonplace in
all parts of the world but a recurring occurrence in countries like India and Russia. In India recently close to 200
people died of such comtamination. Let us examine illicit liquor in India. Illicit liquor in India is frequently added
with additional distilled alcohol and ammonium salt- called “Nausader” in Hindi, to spike up the potency. If the
additional alcohol has methanol contamination, in significant amounts instead of it being pure ethanol, poor victims end
up paying the price with their health and lives. Methanol can be produced in the distillation process of alcohol
produced from sugars, if the distillation temperature is allowed to rise too high. In industrial production, methanol is
produced from distillation of alcohol produced by fermenting wood. Ethanol has many problems itself, but rarely causes
mass deaths like those recently witnessed in the Indian states of Gujarat and West Bengal. The substance in question is
called methanol. The presence of methanol in hooch is usually unintended result of carelessness because the makers of
the illicit alcohol will lose customers if it is known they produce tainted product. For industrial purposes, methanol
is used in antifreezes, fuels, and solvents. It is also known as wood alcohol because in the past, it was produced
almost exclusively as a byproduct of wood distillation. Methanol is difficult to distinguish from ethanol because it
smells and tastes similar to ethanol, but is actually a little bit sweeter. Consuming methanol however can have
devastating consequences.
Initially, a person who has consumed methanol may feel effects similar to ethanol inebriation. These effects however,
will likely be accompanied with nausea, vomiting, abdominal pains, and nervous system depression that manifest in the
form of decreased body temperature as well as slower breathing and heart rates. While these effects are unpleasant and
potentially life-threatening, they are similar to what one would experience after drinking too much ethanol. If these
symptoms occur to you or someone near you professional health-care assistance should be sought out. Methanol poisoning
is very treatable at this stage.
After the initial acute effects of methanol, there is a period of quiescence that can last anywhere between 10 and 30
hours. It may seem as though the danger is passed, but this is actually when the most deadly aspect of methanol
poisoning is beginning. The metabolism of a person who has consumed methanol is breaking down the alcohol during this
period. The products of this metabolism are formaldehyde and eventually formic acid, also known as formate. It is formic
acid that proves particularly toxic to the human body. Increased acid levels in the blood and other body tissues can
cause severe symptoms anywhere in the spectrum of temporary or permanent blindness, neurological disorders, including
Parkinson’s-like symptoms and even death. The length and levels of this acid product strongly correlate with lethality
of methanol poisoning.
It is very important to recognize these symptoms of methanol poisoning and seek treatment as soon as possible. If the
treatment begins in time before high levels of acid are reached, the metabolism of methanol can be blocked by simply the
administration of ethanol, the edible alcohol. The same enzymes are used to metabolize both alcohols and this
competitive inhibition causes the more toxic methanol to be rather harmlessly eliminated through the kidneys. Once acid
levels in the blood are elevated, more drastic measures are needed to purify the blood such as hemodialysis.
If caught in time, methanol poisoning is quite treatable and many lives can be saved from recognition. This, however, is
assuming that adequate medical facilities are within reach. Unfortunately this is often not the case in the rural sector
where healthcare can be nonexistent or lacking vital diagnostic and treatment apparatuses. However, arming the public
with the knowledge about methanol poisoning, hundreds of lives can potentially be saved each year across India. After
all with an incompetent government the buck really stops with the private citizen.
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Dr. Sukant Khurana is a New York based scientist who is working on both basic and applied side of many health issues. In collaboration
with Brooks Robinson, a neuroscientist working on addiction, learning and memory, Dr. Khurana is exploring issues of alcohol and addiction.
Their public outreach writings relevant to alcoholism are available at: https://sites.google.com/site/sukantkhurana2/
ENDS