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Nutrients, Stress, and Medical Disorders pp 165–183Cite as

Stress, Alcohol Consumption, and the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis

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Part of the book series: Nutrition and Health ((NH))

Abstract

It is a widely held belief that alcohol consumption can reduce stress, and individuals commonly use, or say they use, alcohol for this purpose. Stress is therefore thought to be a strong factor in the initiation and maintenance of alcohol consumption, and is considered to be a major contributor to alcohol dependence (Brady & Sonne, 1999; Pohorecky, 1981; Powers & Kutash, 1985). Consequently, the interaction between alcohol and stress has received much attention and interest from the scientific community and the literature on stress and alcohol interactions is extensive (Brady & Sonne, 1999; Pohorecky, 1981, Pohorecky, 1990, Phorecky, 1991; Powers & Kutash, 1985). However, the interaction of alcohol and stress is complex. The effectiveness of alcohol in actually reducing stress appears to depend on both genetic and environmental factors. In addition, alcohol alters the activity of the hormonal stress response system, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis.

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  1. Department of Cellular and Physiological Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

    Maria M. Glavas & Joanne Weinberg

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  1. Psychopharmacology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, and The Gonda Research Center, Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel

    Shlomo Yehuda PhD

  2. Department of Psychology, Boston University, Boston, MA

    David I. Mostofsky PhD

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Glavas, M.M., Weinberg, J. (2006). Stress, Alcohol Consumption, and the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis. In: Yehuda, S., Mostofsky, D.I. (eds) Nutrients, Stress, and Medical Disorders. Nutrition and Health. Humana Press. https://doi.org/10.1385/1-59259-952-4:165

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