Responsible Drinking
Responsible Drinking
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What is alcohol?
What is alcohol?
We are discussing alcohol found in beverages like liquor, wine and beer. Alcohol is what can make a person drunk. This type of alcohol is ethanol (ethyl alcohol). Ethanol is made from using yeast to ferment the sugars in grains, fruits and vegetables. Two common examples are wine, which is made from grapes and vodka, which is made from potatoes (What is Alcohol).
Small amounts of alcohol can make a person feel more relaxed, happy, and unrepressed, but it can have several dangerous short term and long term impacts. Despite its common use alcohol is a dangerous substance.
Is alcohol a drug?
Is alcohol a drug?
Yes, alcohol is a drug. Like other drugs, alcohol affects the way your body works. It can also be toxic and addictive. Alcohol is categorized as a depressant, which is a type of substances that impact a person's nervous system by slowing down the messages between their brain and body.
Learn more about depressants here
Why do people drink alcohol?
Why do people drink alcohol?
Two motives for alcohol consumption have been found:
(a) people drink alcohol to cope with stress (this relationship is strongest in young adults)
(b) people drink alcohol because of social influences (NIH Abbey, Smith and Scott)
Some people like the way it makes them feel in the short-term, others like the way it tastes, and for some they enjoy the way it makes them act. For most people, the motivation is not to throw-up or "black-out" or to cause long-term damage to their body, which is why it is so important to understand how to drink responsibly and the impact of alcohol consumption.
Follow the link to understand more reasons why people drink
Heavy drinking has short term and long term effects on your body. It is also a major cause of preventable death in most countries.
Heavy drinking has short term and long term effects on your body. It is also a major cause of preventable death in most countries.
Alcohol and You: An Interactive Body by the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
Short-Term Risks
Short-Term Risks
When you're drinking, one of the first things to go is your judgment. So, celebrating or having fun with friends can quickly turn into embarrassing yourself, getting hurt, throwing up or nursing a hangover. These statistics show the very real risks of drinking in college:
70% of college students admit to engaging in unplanned sexual activity or having sex they wouldn't have had if sober
Alcohol is involved in over 90% of campus sexual assault incidents
Alcohol-related incidents account for 50% of non-academic disciplinary cases at Brown University
1 in 5 college students abandon safer sex practices when drunk
Heavy drinkers tend to have lower grades
One night of heavy drinking can impair abstract thinking for up to a month
Citation: Delgado Community College
Long-Term Risks
Long-Term Risks
Tips for Safe Alcohol Consumption
Tips for Safe Alcohol Consumption
Consume half of what you want to drink, then reassess - no undo button
Pour/open your own drinks
Track your drinking- both time and quantity
Prepare in advance: Eating, hydrating, rest
Not interested in drinking? Have a decoy (water bottle, juice, soda)
Measure what you’re pouring for mixed drinks
Get people help when they need it (Good Samaritan Policy)
Have people you trust around you
Experiment safely
Try not to be the person who needs help, but always be the person who helps
Over time, excessive alcohol use can lead to the development of chronic diseases and other serious problems including:
High blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, liver disease, and digestive problems
Cancer of the breast, mouth, throat, esophagus, voice box, liver, colon, and rectum.
Weakening of the immune system, increasing the chances of getting sick.
Learning and memory problems, including dementia and poor school performance.
Mental health problems, including depression and anxiety.
Social problems, including family problems, job-related problems, and unemployment.
Alcohol use disorders, or alcohol dependence.
By not drinking too much, you can reduce the risk of these short- and long-term health risks.
Citation: Delgado Community College
Tolerance
Tolerance
“Tolerance refers to a reduction in the effects of alcohol (or other drugs) over the course of repeated use. So, someone developing tolerance to alcohol must drink more to feel the same effect that had been achieved with fewer drinks.
Tolerance can be a warning sign for alcoholism. If a person can drink large amounts of alcohol and not feel the effects, they are at risk for becoming dependent on alcohol. Most people will look at the BAC chart and find that they feel the effects that are described at that blood alcohol concentration. If you don't feel those effects until much higher amounts of alcohol, you are developing tolerance.
The body's organs do not develop tolerance. They are damaged by the alcohol no matter how well a person can function. Tolerance does not protect you from lethal amounts of alcohol. Even if someone feels that they can "hold their liquor," they are still at risk for alcohol poisoning.
Tolerance is a complex physiological process, and the research literature defines several different types of tolerance, including acute tolerance, environment-dependent tolerance and learned tolerance. For an in-depth discussion, go to the National Institute on Alcohol and Alcoholism and search the site for research on tolerance” (UC Santa Cruz, Student Health Outreach & Promotion).
Myths
Myths
Let's debunk some common myths related to "sobering up."
MYTH: These actions sober you up
MYTH: These actions sober you up
Showering
Drinking water after drinking alcohol
Eating after drinking
Coffee
Taking a walk
Fresh air
These are commonly thought of because they give people the false sense of feeling more sober, but do not have any impact on the body's alcohol content or level of intoxication.
This can become dangerous because each of these actions when done by someone who is intoxicated may lead to personal, sometimes life-threatening, injury.
FACT: Only time can get you sober
FACT: Only time can get you sober
Your liver has to complete its job of processing the alcohol in your system and breaking it down for you to be sober.
There are no methods to make your liver do that faster! That is why time is the only scientifically proven method of sobering up.
It takes approximately an hour for the liver to break down the alcohol of a standard alcoholic drink. Taking shortcuts that don’t make you sober can lead to serious consequences, including alcohol poisoning if you continue to drink.
Learn more about “Sobering Up Myths” and Alcohol Myths check out the links!
Drinking Alcohol Responsibly
Drinking Alcohol Responsibly
Blood Alcohol Content (BAC): What is Blood Alcohol Content?
Blood Alcohol Content (BAC): What is Blood Alcohol Content?
Blood Alcohol Concentration (sometimes also referred to as Blood Alcohol Content, or Blood Alcohol Level) is the amount of alcohol present in someone’s bloodstream. BAC can be determined by blood, breath or urine. In short, BAC measures intoxication levels. The legal BAC limit for driving is 0.08%
How is BAC determined?
How is BAC determined?
BAC is the percentage of your blood by volume that is alcohol based on 100ml of blood. The equation is:
BAC = [Alcohol consumed in grams / (Body weight in grams x r)] x 100
“r” is the sex assigned at birth:
r = 0.55 for AFAB (Assigned Female At Birth)
r= 0.68 for AMAB (Assigned Male At Birth)
and accounts for the standardized rate at which our livers process alcohol.
Learn about BAC with this video from Healthy McGill
Unfortunately, there is very limited research about how Transgender and intersex people's bodies are impacted by alcohol as compared to their cisgender counterparts.
What impacts BAC?
What impacts BAC?
BAC is impacted by
BAC is impacted by
Sex (assigned at birth) and hormone levels*
Body weight
Levels of enzymes responsible for metabolizing alcohol
Time (duration of time drinking, between drinks, and after drinking)
Alcohol Content/Proof
Food & Hydration
Prescription medicines
Please note:
Due to the unfortunate lack of research and verified equations regarding BAC and Transgender and Intersex individuals, the BAC formula is determined using cisgender men and women. This means that there is limited understanding of how medical interventions, such as Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT), impact a person's processing of alcohol, if at all. While HRT can change a person's experience of intoxication it does not impact some of the other elements that impact BAC. One way to get a more accurate answer is to take the average of the results for cis-men and cis-women based on the number of drinks you've had in a given period of time.
Ultimately, BAC has more to do with a person's fat and muscle than a person's gender and hormones, but many calculators still use sex as a factor. We encourage all students to make informed and responsible decisions regarding alcohol consumption.
What is a “Standard Drink”?
What is a “Standard Drink”?
The human body can metabolize, or process, approximately one standard drink per hour. It's essential to consider both the strength and size of the drinks you consume. In the United States, a standard drink typically contains around 14 grams of pure alcohol.
For example, all three of the following drinks have the same amount of “pure alcohol” in them and will take your body the same amount of time to process:
One 5-ounce glass of wine with a 12% ABV
One 12-ounce beer with a 5% ABV
One 1.5-ounce shot with a 40% ABV
However, it's important to note that many drinks served at bars/restaurants or poured without measuring often contain more than a standard drink.
Measure your drink here (ounces and milliliters)
Outside of the United States...
Standard Drinks are measured differently. Alcoholic drinks can have a different amount of pure alcohol and be sold and/or poured in a variety of sizes. Below are some basic conversions to remember when thinking about any alcoholic drink. Of the countries with a standardized size, there is a range between 8 grams and 20 grams.
Ounces (oz) and milliliters (ml)
1oz = 29.6ml | 1.5oz = 44.4ml | 5oz = 147.9ml | 8oz = 236.59ml | 12oz = 354.9ml
Ounces (oz) and grams (gm)
1oz = 28.3gm | 1.5oz = 42.5gm | 5oz = 141.7gm | 8oz = 226.8gm | 12oz = 340.2gm
If a country has a designated standard drink size it can be found here.
Alcohol by Volume
Alcohol by Volume
Alcohol by Volume is the percentage (%) of alcohol in any drink. For example the alcohol by volume (ABV) of water is 0%, while ABV of wine is 12%, meaning “12% of liquid in a bottle of wine is pure alcohol.” Not all alcoholic drinks have the same ABV, even if they are the same type of alcohol. ABV is sometimes thought about as the “strength” of the drink. A higher ABV can equate to more than “one drink” in terms of your body’s process.
Most alcoholic drinks that can be bought off the shelf have labels that indicate what their ABV is.
What is Proof?
What is Proof?
Proof is another term used to describe the strength of alcohol. Proof is 2x the ABV of a drink.
Examples: Vodka with 40% ABV = 80 Proof
Rum with 50% ABV = 100 Proof
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