Alcohol consumption disrupts hormonal cascades and the ovarian milieu, impacting GnRH secretion and pituitary function.

“Ah! But if you remember the biology we talked about earlier specifically, there is a subset of follicles and eggs that leave that ovarian reserve quite a bit before that one egg is selected for and ovulates. And of course, there are all the different hormonal cascades and the general milieu of the ovary which are important and are being regulated by different hormones. And yes, indeed, the regulation of those hormones is strongly impacted by alcohol through a number of different pathways, through the regulation of the neurotransmitter GABA up in the brain-- it's actually a lot of GABA and GABA receptors in the hypothalamus, the very region from which gonadotropin-releasing hormone, our old friend from a couple hours ago in this discussion, going to disrupt GnRH secretion. You can disrupt pituitary function with alcohol.”