After healthy persons, aged between 20 and 35 years, had consumed either ethanol or ethanol and fructose, triglycerides, free glycerol, FFA, phospholipids and total cholesterol were determined. After a basic dosage of 0.5 g ethanol/kg body weight, each person received a maeintenance dosage of 0.1 g ethanol/kg body weight and hour. Control experiments were carried out on persons receiving only fructose and on fasting persons who consumed no ethanol. After 8 hrs, triglycerides rose in the ethanol group by 107 %, in the ethanol-fructose group by 63 %. FFA exhibited in both ethanol and ethanol-fructose groups an initial decrease, with a secondary increase in the ethanol group. The initial decrease was greater in the ethanol-fructose group. A significant rise in free glycerol by 419 % was observed 30 min after the intake of combined ethanol/fructose. Free glycerol rose under ethanol alone by 144%. The ohospholipids exhibited a slight rise in the ethanol group; no significant changes occured in the cholesterol. The blood ethanol level was lower under ethanol-fructose than under ethanol alone. The addition of fructose diminishes the ethanol-induced hypertriglyceridemia. Our investigations give further proof that, under short-term ethanol load, the fatty acids necessary for the increased triglyceride synthesis in the liver, originate predominantly from a peripheral lipolysis, and that changes in liver metabolism depending on the oxidation of ethanol are not of less importance for the development of the acute ethanol-induced hyperlipidemia.