Women are NOT Affected by Alcohol in the same Way as Men Do (3 Studies)
Does alcohol affect muscle growth?
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Effects of heavy drinking on muscle growth
According to 6 studies on the topic, heavy drinking impairs muscle protein synthesis. However, these findings concern only men and extremely high amounts of alcohol. More specifically, in the study of Parr and co-workers in 2014, investigators asked participants to consume an amount of 6 drinks immediately and 4 hours post-training. That's 12 drinks post-training! Of course, it is no wonder why they did find a decrease in muscle protein synthesis (muscle growth) in the post-training measurements. Although these data add some knowledge to the literature, it easy clear that this is not a real-life scenario that concerns most of the population.
Effects of heavy drinking on men VS women
Surprisingly heavy drinking doesn't seem to affect muscle protein synthesis in women. In the study of Duplany and colleagues in 2017, high amounts of alcohol decreased muscle protein synthesis in men while it didn't affect women at all. the authors of this study suggested that this is probably due to the effect of alcohol specifically on testicular testosterone.
Effects of high amounts of alcohol on testosterone levels in men and women
In studies (Frias et al., 2002) that investigated the effects of high doses of alcohol in both men and women, the results were surprisingly diverse. Heavy drinking was found to decrease testosterone levels in men by 45% while it increased (yes increased) testosterone levels in women by fivefold times! So again, women not only don't seem to get affected by alcohol as men do, but it also looks like they even gain an advantage.
On the other hand in a study by Sarkola et al., 2003, light drinking (very low doses) was shown to boost testosterone levels in men by 17%. Of course, this is not testosterone that could possibly use as an advantage for muscle growth. However, these results show how different quantities of the same element can either boost or hinder the chemistry of our body.
These results draw some clear conclusions in relation to heavy drinking and factors that can interfere with building muscle. However, they don't provide much knowledge for light drinkers.
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