Aperitif Effects on Gastric Emptying: A Crossover Study Using Continuous Real-Time ¹³C Breath Test (BreathID System)

The aim of this study was to determine whether there is a correlation between aperitif and gastric emptying. Ten healthy male volunteers participated in this randomized, two-way crossover study. Under two conditions (after drinking an aperitif versus not), the ¹³C breath test was performed for 4 h with a liquid meal (200 kcal/200 ml) containing 100 mg ¹³C acetate. We used 50 ml of umeshu as the aperitif. This is a traditional Japanese plum liqueur, and contains 7 ml alcohol (14%). In the aperitif group, T _1/2, T _lag, and T _peak were significantly delayed [T _1/2 (132: 113–174) versus (112: 92–134) (P = 0.0069); T _lag (80: 63–94) versus (55: 47–85) (P = 0.0069); and T _peak (81: 62–96) versus (54: 34–84) (P = 0.0069), (median: range, aperitif versus control, min)]. Gastric emptying was significantly delayed in the aperitif group as compared with the control group. This study revealed that even a small amount of alcohol such as an aperitif may contribute to delayed gastric emptying.