Average serum triglyceride concentration in relation to day of the week in Burton-on-Trent
- 1Department of Clinical Biochemistry, The Ipswich Hospital, Ipswich, Suffolk, UK
- 2Department of Clinical Chemistry, Queens Hospital, Burton-on-Trent, Staffordshire, UK
- P J Twomey, Department of Clinical Biochemistry, The Ipswich Hospital, Ipswich, Suffolk IP4 5PD, UK; ptwomey{at}nhs.net
- Accepted 2 March 2009
Quite dramatic elevations in serum triglycerides are seen following ethanol ingestion,1 with levels over 100 mmol/l reported in chronic alcoholics.2 In the UK, patterns of ethanol ingestion are somewhat predictable. Typically, more units are consumed on Friday and Saturday nights than other nights.3 Burton-on-Trent is known internationally as “the brewing capital of Great Britain”,4 and was once responsible for brewing a quarter of all beer in the UK. It is not known whether consumption levels are reflected in this statistic, but nevertheless we hypothesised that the effect of weekend binge may be reflected in subsequent measurement …
