Auto-Brewery Syndrome: Meet The Man Who Gets Drunk From Eating Potatoes

Auto-Brewery Syndrome: Carbohydrates Ferment Into Alcohol Inside Nick 

Nick Has Got A Beer Factory Inside Of Him 

Nick Hess has rare auto-brewery syndrome, this means carbohydrates ferment into alcohol inside him.

The 35-year-old who gets drunk after eating potatoes tells BBC Two’s World’s Weirdest Events how his wife was convinced that he was a secret alcoholic.

Before he found out about his condition, worried wife Karen filmed his slurring and stumbling, which he did not recall.

“When she first accused me of being drunk, without drinking, I thought she was crazy.” Nick said. “But friends and family thought, ‘maybe he is over there, drinking by himself, a secret alcoholic’.” He added.

On watching the footage made of him by his wife, he said: “I looked into my eyes and could see I wasn’t there. It was terrifying, I couldn’t remember it.”

Doctors eventually discovered Nick has auto-brewery syndrome, plus yeast levels 400% higher than normal.

He now controls it with a carb-free diet and medication.