In auto brewery syndrome, your body makes "brews" alcohol (ethanol) out of the carbohydrates you eat. This happens inside the gut or intestines. It may be caused by too much yeast in the gut.
Yeast is a type of fungus.
Some kinds of yeast that might cause auto brewery syndrome are:
Who can get it?
Adults and children can have auto brewery syndrome.
Signs and symptoms are similar in both.
Auto brewery syndrome is usually a complication of another disease,
imbalance, or infection in the body.
You can't be born with this rare syndrome.
However, you may be born with or get another condition that triggers auto brewery syndrome.
For example, in adults, too much yeast in the gut may be caused by Crohn's disease.
This can set off auto brewery syndrome.
In some people liver problems may cause auto brewery syndrome.
In these cases, the liver isn't able to clear out alcohol fast enough.
Even a small amount of alcohol made by gut yeast leads to symptoms.
Toddlers and children with a condition called short bowel syndrome have a higher chance of getting auto brewery syndrome.
A medical case reported that a 3-year-old girlTrusted Source with short bowel syndrome
would get "drunk" after drinking fruit juice, which is naturally high in carbohydrates.