Karin Leeuwenhoek is a theologian, vinologist and communications scholar. She has ninety Italian olive trees, but mostly loves wine - and philosophising about it. See also her wine blog vinoblogy.co.uk She writes a column in every issue of Winelife Magazine. - TEXT KARIN LEEUWENHOEK | IMAGE PEXELS.COM
Hormones
Do menopausal women become more sensitive to alcohol? And does testosterone encourage drinking? Differences between men and women are a grateful popular science topic. Headlines of articles are all too happy to draw spectacular conclusions about the distinction between the two sexes. In 2020, physician Sharon Moalem - a man! - even provided 'scientific proof' of women's genetic superiority with his (I quote) 'intriguing theory of how women have an edge in everything from colour perception to coronavirus thanks to two X chromosomes.'
Who is the strong gender when it comes to dealing with alcohol?
Professor Guy T'Sjoen is an endocrinologist, or hormone specialist, at Ghent University Hospital. He believes, quite rightly, that we should pay much more attention to the many commonalities between women and men than to the differences. He also warns against jumping to conclusions based on specific scientific research. For instance, findings in mice are all too eagerly projected onto humans. That said, there are quite a few differences in how the two sexes respond to alcohol.
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