| MadSci Network: Neuroscience |
Dear Heather, You ask an intresting question. One first thing that should be remembered is that the idea of having a "creative" (right) brain and a more "rational" (left) brain mainly comes from observations on patients with brain lesions in which a part of the brain is destructed or severly impaired. In contrast, alcohol is distributed by the blood and may alter the activity of brain cells in both hemisphere when it is absorbed. The only way by which your theory can hold is to postulate that an anatomical asymetrie exist between the two hemispheres in such a way that one is more affected by alcohol than the other. I don't know if such data exists in the litterature. One other possible interpretation is that the short term effect of alcohol may act on brain regions, regardeless of the side in which they lies, that are implicated in the inhibition of some type of behavior. Patients with frontal lesions are often desinhibited (ex. trying to touch the nurse), just like some drunk men can be... I think that your hypothesis is interesting but we need some empirical data to support it. Try to find some! Best regards Eric
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