Alcohol in toxic congestive cardiomyopathy

Though ethyl alcohol is known to be one of the exogenous toxins that can directly damage the myocardium, nonalcoholic additives to alcoholic beverages (as well as poor nutrition or viral infection) may also play a role in cardiomyopathy. The authors note the interesting fact that, unlike the liver, the heart does not contain an alcohol dehydrogenase and thus lacks a possible protective mechanism against alcohol's toxicity.