Whiskey Recovers Man's Vodka-Induced Blindness

We've heard of remedying the effects of alcohol with the hair of the dog, but we never expected something like this: a New Zealand man was cured from a vodka-induced blindness by (what else?) whiskey.

In a bizarre turn of events, Denis Duthie, 65, of New Zealand consumed vodka at an anniversary party for his parents in June when, suddenly, his sight vanished. Though he attempted to sleep away the problem, his blindness persisted. It was then that he and his wife rushed to the hospital, where Duthie was placed in the intensive care unit.

It seems that Duthie, who had been a diabetic for 20 years and was taking several types of medication, experienced a reaction of formaldehyde poisoning from consuming the methanol in vodka. The treatment? Ethanol, a type of alcohol found in whiskey. Without enough alcohol in the hospital to treat him, the hospital staff had to go to a local liquor store to purchase enough Johnnie Walker to drip into Duthie's stomach. Lucky for Duthie, it worked.

"It was good whiskey, yeah," said Duthie. "I woke up five days later and I could see as soon as I could open my eyes."

Duthie has since given up alcohol since his strange brush with tragedy, though we expect he has a bottle of Johnnie Walker stashed away somewhere – for emergencies.