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Researchers at Wageningen University have studied exactly what happens in the brain when we drink beer with or without alcohol. And the results are striking: non-alcoholic beer is a great alternative to regular beer.
Previous research has shown that people drink more when they believe that it contains alcohol. "We know that alcohol has an effect on reward areas of the brain and we wanted to know if only the taste of beer could do the same," says a researcher.
"Taste determines the experience"
21 men aged 18 to 35 who regularly drink beer. Lying in an MRI scanner, they were given a sip of beer or sparkling water. Participants did not know that they were sometimes served non-alcoholic beer
. The MRI scanner captured the reaction of reward areas in their brains. The researchers found no difference in the response of the reward zones when tasting beer with or without alcohol. "This suggests that the taste of beer, not alcohol, determines the experience," said the researcher. So we would feel as good after a beer without alcohol as with a regular beer. It is important that the taste is close to the taste of ordinary beer.
According to the researchers, this would be beneficial for people who want to drink less. "It has yet to be studied in a setting where people know what kind of beer they drink."
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