The attempted enrichment of beer with thiamine alkyl disulphides

The Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome, commonplace in Australia, might be prevented by the enrichment of alcoholic beverages with thiamine. The use of the well absorbed thiamine alkyl disulphides for the enrichment of the most relevant Australian beverage, namely beer, is examined. A liquid chromatographic method is described whereby thiamine tetrahydrofurfuryl disulphide and thiamine propyl disulphide can be detected in beer in concentrations down to 125 ng/ml. It is concluded that the thiamine alkyl disulphides offer no special advantage because their disulphide bonds are reduced by substances in beer, yielding free thiamine.