US man who didn't drink arrested; turns out his body's a microbrewery

A citizen of the United States who was charged by the police for being drunk while driving has been found to have a rare and bizarre medical condition. The unnamed 46-year-old man was taken to the hospital under arrest after telling the police in North Carolina that he had not been drinking. The driver was eventually discovered to have a medical condition wherein his stomach 'brews his own beer'. 

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The man had refused to take a breathalyser test

The man had refused to take a breathalyser test. The test conducted by the police showed he had consumed the equivalent of 10 alcoholic beverages. The man accused of drunk driving had told the medical personnel that he had been experiencing uncharacteristic personality changes for the past three years, including depression, confusion, memory loss and aggressive behaviour. 

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Auto-brewery syndrome 

The man, who is a builder by profession, after seeing a specialist at Richmond University Medical Center in New York had been diagnosed with the auto-brewery syndrome (ABS) whereby the stomach contains an abundance of yeast to the degree that his stomach was capable of brewing its own beer. Researchers from the University who detailed his case in BMJ Open Gastroenterology said that the hospital personnel and police had refused to believe the man when he had continuously denied that he had consumed any form of alcohol.

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The man is now finally able to get on his with his life

The breakthrough in his diagnosis came after the man’s aunt said she had heard about another similar case in Ohio and persuaded him to visit the clinic there for treatment. Auto-brewery syndrome, also known as gut fermentation syndrome, is caused when ingested carbohydrates are converted to alcohol by fungi in the gastrointestinal tract. Dr. Fahad Malik, a gastroenterologist at Richmond University who treated the man, said that it's thought a course of antibiotics triggered his ABS he was prescribed at the time, as per local reports. Dr. Malik stated that the man was extremely happy especially when he started to recover because for years no one believed him. Dr. Malik further added that no one including his family believed him and thought that he must have been one of that hides and drinks on his own. He further added that the man is now off antidepressants and he’s back to work and finally being able to get on with his life. 

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(With Agency Inputs)