In a modest laboratory space on the outskirts of London, scientists are probing a question that sits at the intersection of neuroscience, culture, and public health: why do humans drink alcohol in the first place?
At the centre of that inquiry is Professor David Nutt, one of the world’s most influential neuropsychopharmacologists. Over a career spanning decades—from research institutes in Washington D.C. to advisory roles in Whitehall, and most recently his own drinks company SENTIA—Nutt has built a reputation for asking uncomfortable questions about drugs, policy, and the brain. His work has shaped debates on addiction, psychedelics, mental health, and, increasingly, the role alcohol plays in human society.
Nutt currently holds the Edmond J. Safra Chair in Neuropsychopharmacology at Imperial College London and has authored more than 500 peer-reviewed scientific papers. Earlier in his career, he worked at the National Institute of Mental Health in the United States before returning to the UK, where he later served as chair of the government’s Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs.
In 2009, he was dismissed from that role by the Labour government after publicly criticising the political handling of drug classification. The episode made headlines worldwide and cemented Nutt’s reputation as a scientist willing to challenge policy when it diverges from evidence.
For Nutt, the dispute reflected a broader problem: the persistent gap between scientific understanding and public discourse on drugs. Alcohol, he argues, is perhaps the clearest example.
“Alcohol is by far the most prevalent drug used by humans,” Nutt has written. Yet discussions about it often ignore the reasons people use it in the first place.
In his book Drink? In The New Science of Alcohol and Your Health, Nutt explores alcohol’s neurological effects and the cultural role it has played in human society. Unlike many drugs, alcohol has long been embedded in rituals of social bonding—from shared meals to celebrations—despite its well-documented health risks.
Understanding that duality has been a recurring theme in his research.
A decade ago, when he served as president of the British Neuroscience Association, Nutt reflected on the remarkable complexity of the human brain. But more recently, he has come to see a larger system at work.
“The human brain is extraordinary,” he wrote, “but it is dwarfed by a much more powerful system—human society—which has accumulated inputs from over billions of brains.”
From that perspective, alcohol can be understood not simply as a drug, but as a chemical tool that has historically helped humans overcome social barriers.
“For many people, meeting strangers creates anxiety and tension,” Nutt explains. “Alcohol dissolves that tension, letting conversations flow and laughter develop.”
Anthropologists have even argued that fermented drinks may have played a role in early social organisation. The historian Edward Slingerland, for example, has suggested that cereal crops may have been cultivated as much for brewing beer as for baking bread—an idea that highlights alcohol’s longstanding connection to communal life.
Health Consequences
Yet alcohol’s health consequences are equally clear. It is associated with liver disease, cardiovascular problems, cognitive impairment, and an elevated risk of several cancers. The World Health Organization continues to classify alcohol as a leading global risk factor for disease and mortality.
For Nutt, this tension raises an obvious question: if alcohol serves a social purpose but carries significant harms, could science design safer alternatives?
That question has led him into a new line of research in recent years through his start-up GABA Labs, a research company exploring compounds that interact with the brain’s GABA system. GABA—gamma-aminobutyric acid—is the brain’s primary inhibitory neurotransmitter and plays a key role in regulating anxiety, relaxation, and sociability.
Alcohol’s calming effects arise partly because it enhances signalling through GABA receptors. But it also affects numerous other neural systems, producing intoxication and impairing cognition.
Researchers working with Nutt are investigating whether certain botanical compounds might influence GABA signalling more selectively. Experimental work with UK universities is examining how these formulations affect neural activity, receptor behaviour, and even gut-brain interactions. Early EEG studies suggest that some formulations increase alpha-band brain activity—a neural rhythm associated with relaxed states—without the widespread suppression of brain function typical of alcohol.
Laboratory studies are also exploring receptor-level mechanisms. At the University of Portsmouth, scientists are using frog oocytes engineered to express human GABA-A receptors, allowing researchers to observe how compounds interact with the same receptor systems targeted by alcohol.
Rethinking Alcohol
The research forms part of a broader scientific interest in understanding how brain chemistry influences social behaviour. Recent academic publications involving Nutt have examined topics ranging from alcohol alternatives to nutritional and neurochemical pathways and behaviour.
For Nutt, however, the motivation behind this work is as much societal as it is pharmacological.
During his research journey, he says he has often been asked why society needs alternatives to alcohol at all. Why not simply encourage abstinence?
“It’s a fair question,” he acknowledges. “But I believe the better approach is to find a drink that replicates the positive prosocial benefits of alcohol without the harms.”
Historical attempts to ban alcohol outright suggest how difficult that strategy can be. The United States ’experiment with Prohibition in the 1920s, for example, led to widespread illegal markets and organised crime before eventually being repealed.
Instead, Nutt sees the future as one of expanded choice—where science offers new ways to achieve familiar social experiences with fewer risks.
His perspective reflects a broader shift in how neuroscientists approach psychoactive substances. Rather than focusing solely on prohibition or harm reduction, many researchers are now asking a different question: how can understanding brain chemistry help design safer tools for human wellbeing?
“The key insight for me,” Nutt has written, “is that it’s the human tribe—not the individual brain—that powers our species.”
Whether studying psychedelics, addiction, or the social neuroscience of drinking, his career has consistently returned to that idea: that understanding the brain ultimately means understanding how humans connect with one another.
And in that sense, the quest to rethink alcohol may be less about replacing a drink than about understanding a fundamental feature of human society itself.
This article was written for WHN by Giorgiana Roberts, press outreach at Sentia Spirits, pioneers in functional social drinks designed to give you the positive effects of alcohol without the alcohol.
As with anything you read on the internet, this article should not be construed as medical advice; please talk to your doctor or primary care provider before changing your wellness routine. WHN neither agrees nor disagrees with any of the materials posted. This article is not intended to provide a medical diagnosis, recommendation, treatment, or endorsement.
Opinion Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy of WHN. Any content provided by guest authors is of their own opinion and is not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company, individual, or anyone or anything else. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.
