A link between glucose homeostasis and alcohol seeking behaviour has been proposed. For example, Connelly et al. (1983) demonstrated that C57BL mice which are hyperglycemic show a preference for ethanol. Similarly, Wistar rats with glucose intolerance have shown a preference for ethanol, consuming approximately three times more ethanol than control animals (Zito et al., 1984). In humans, Blum et al. (2007) developed a model named “Reward deficiency syndrome” (RDS), suggesting that subjects with an addiction disorder (i.e., alcohol dependence, binge eating) have genetic alterations of the dopamine brain system and that the dopamine-glucose link plays a key role in the RDS. The RDS model is consistent with the evidence that glucose modulates dopamine neuronal activity (Levin, 2001) and that blood glucose concentration significantly correlates with cerebrospinal fluid concentrations of the dopamine metabolite, homovanillic acid (Umhau et al., 2003).
