Oestrogen may be the cause of binge drinking in women

The pattern of drinking enhances alcohol's harmful effects, say scientists

Ladies, blame your levels of oestrogen – female sex hormone – for making you binge on alcohol, or so says a preclinical study in mice. Scientists at Weill Cornell Medicine showed that the hormone oestrogen regulates binge drinking in females, causing them to "pregame" or binge.

The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, establishes that circulating oestrogen increases binge alcohol consumption in females and contributes to known sex differences in this behaviour.