Scientist Says He’s Created Hangover-Free Booze

What if you could enjoy a few — or even a few too many — alcoholic beverages and wake up the next morning hangover-free?

It may sound too good to be true. But British scientist David Nutt says he’s created a new drink called “alcosynth” — a synthetic alcohol that mimics the buzz of drinking booze but doesn’t leave you with a nasty headache, nausea or a serious case of cotton mouth, British online newspaper the Independent reports.

Nutt, a neuropsychopharmacologist and professor with London’s Imperial College, says he’s already patented about 90 alcosynth drinks — two of which are currently undergoing tests for public consumption. Nutt is hopeful that the synthetic booze will replace conventional alcohol by 2050. Nutt tells the Independent:

“It will be there alongside the scotch and the gin, they’ll dispense the alcosynth into your cocktail and then you’ll have the pleasure without damaging your liver and your heart.”

Although the idea of hangover-free booze is enticing, some medical experts are skeptical of Nutt’s claims.

Dr. George Koob, director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, tells The Daily Beast that “hangover-free alcohol substitutes are kind of like the holy grail.” He adds that thinking you can take any drug, including alcosynth, with “no afterburn or reaction to that perturbation seems unlikely.”

According to the report in The Daily Beast, even if alcosynth testing is positive and the drink is approved for widespread use, it’s unlikely it will totally replace alcohol.

Nicole Austin, a chemical engineer and the director of the American Craft Spirits Association, says humans have been drinking alcohol “for about as long as we have been humans,” so she doesn’t foresee traditional alcohol being replaced or disappearing from store shelves anytime soon.

“There are already plenty of ways to consume alcohol today that don’t result in a hangover. The incentive to choose something that’s ‘hangover free’… is pretty low, unless you’re a binge drinker.”

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