Alcohol as poison: a narrative review of social science scholarship relevant to methanol poisoning in low- and middle-income countries

Abstract

Aims: Methanol poisoning is a tragic and avoidable health emergency that threatens life and often leads to irreversible disability. It primarily occurs when people unwittingly consume beverages contaminated with the chemical compound under the guise of alcoholic spirits. Although reliable data on its burden are unavailable, methanol poisoning is thought to be increasing globally, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Current scholarship related to methanol poisoning draws almost exclusively from clinical and epidemiological research traditions. In this article, and in the absence of anthropological scholarship examining methanol poisoning specifically, we provide a narrative review of anthropological and social science literature that bears on this growing phenomenon. Methods: We bring key areas of anthropological thought and inquiry that coalesce around the social phenomenon of methanol poisoning in conversation with the clinical and epidemiological scholarship. Results: We begin with a biographical account of methanol, an unlikely character which has become omnipresent in the material world. We then turn to a social scientific examination of alcohol consumption, to which methanol poisoning is tethered. We pay special attention to alcohol consumption in Muslim-majority settings, where alcohol is often proscribed, but methanol-related incidents are common. Subsequently, we examine the scholarship related to health systems and technologies, which come to bear on diagnostic and treatment encounters for those who have consumed toxic alcohol. Conclusion: We argue that anthropological perspectives are urgently needed to contribute to a fuller understanding of methanol poisoning and to design socially sensitive clinical and public health responses to address this avertable scourge.