Alcohol & Binge

Drinking 101
By: Linda Li

What is Alcohol?

Alcohol is an intoxicating ingredient that is found in beer,

wine, rum and liquor. Alcohol is produced by
fermentation of yeast, sugar and starch.

What is binge drinking?

Binge drinking is consuming four (in women) and
five (in men) or more alcoholic drinks in one night
(usually within two hours.)

What is one drink?

One standard drink in the United States is 14.0
grams or 0.6 ounces of pure alcohol. Some
examples include
-

12 ounces of beer (contains 5% alcohol content)

8 ounces of malt liquor (contains 7% alcohol

content)

5 ounces of wine (contains 12% alcohol content)

1.5 ounces or a shot of 80- proof distilled liquor

(contains 40% alcohol content) Ex: gin, whiskey,
vodka

How does alcohol affect

you?
Alcohol goes into the blood stream fairly quickly.
Alcohol is metabolized by enzyme (acetaldehyde) in
the liver. However the liver can only metabolize a
small amount of alcohol at a time. A standard drink
of alcohol can stay in the body for two hours after
consumption. The excess alcohol will circulate
throughout the body. The intensity of the effects is
directly related to the amount of alcohol consumed.

How does alcohol leave

the body?
-

Urine

Breath

Breath analyzers are used by police to measure the

blood alcohol content in one breath. Having 80
mg/dL is the legal limit to operate a motor vehicle for
drivers over 21.

Factors that affect

elimination rates
-

Gender

Persons weight

Tolerance

Age

Amount of food consumed before drinking

Short term effects

Slurred speech

Drowsiness
Vomiting
Diarrhea
Headaches
Difficulty breathing
Impaired judgment and coordination
Distorted vision
Slowed reaction time
Impulsive behavior
Memory relapses

Long term effects

Long term drinkers continue to binge drink and abuse
alcohol.

Unintentional injuries (car crashes, falls, burns)

Intentional injuries (sexual assault, firearm injuries,
domestic violence)

Loss of productivity
Increased family problems and broken relationships
Alcohol poisoning
High blood pressure
Permanent brain damage

Long term effects Diseases

Liver cirrhosis (damage of liver cells)
Pancreatitis (inflammation of pancreas)
Liver, mouth, throat, larynx, esophagus cancer
Vitamin B1 deficiency

Gastritis (inflammation of stomach walls)

Hepatic encephalopathy (damage of brain cells)

Hepatic encephalopathy
Caused by an increase in toxic levels of
ammonia and manganese that can harm brain
cells
Symptoms: anxiety, depression, shorten attention
span, asterixis (shaking or flapping of hands) and
coma
Treatments:
-

L-ornithine L- aspartate (lowers blood ammonia

levels)

Liver transplant (treatment for liver failure)

Statistics
According to the National Household Survey of 1999
105 million Americans age 12 and older reported
current use of alcohol
45 million of these are engaged in binge drinking

12.4 million of these are heavy drinkers (5 or

more drinks in one day and 5 or more days in the
past 30 days)

Statistics continued
88,000 alcohol related deaths annually
10,322 deaths due to impaired driving accidents
in 2012
87.6% of people age 18+ reported they drank
alcohol at some point
71% of these reported they drank in the past
year
56.3% of these reported they drank in the past
month

Statistics for college

students
In 2012, 60.3% of college students ages 18-22 drank alcohol in the
past month
40.1% of these college students are engaged in binge drinking in the
past month
14.4% of these college students are engaged in heavy drinking
1,825 college students die from alcohol related unintentional injuries
696,000 college students are assaulted by other intoxicated students
97,000 college students reported being sexually assaulted
About 20% of college students meet criteria for Alcohol Use
Disorders (AUDs)

1 in 4 college students report academic consequences from drinking

(missing class, falling behind, poor performance on exams and
papers)

How to drink responsibly

Drink with a group of friends
Create a buddy system

Know your limits

Do not go over your limits
Know how youre getting home
Do not drink on an empty stomach
Do not consume alcohol while on medication

Know what you are drinking

Have no more than one drink per four

How to drink responsibly

continued
Pace yourself

Avoid peer pressure

Stop drinking if you feel drunk or start developing
symptoms of intoxication

Stop drinking if you vomit

Lie on your side if youre feeling sick
Do not accept a drink from a stranger
Do not leave your drink unattended

For more information

please visit
http://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/faqs.htm#drinkDrive
http://www.drugfreeworld.org/drugfacts/alcohol/s
hort-term-long-term-effects.html
http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcoholhealth/overview-alcohol-consumption/alcoholfacts-and-statistics
http://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/fact-sheets/bingedrinking.htm
http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/aa63/aa63.
htm

Citations for Pictures

Http://entheozen.com/wpcontent/uploads/2014/08/beer_alcohol_binge_drinking_silhouette_2_3_4_N2.j
pg. N.p., n.d. Web.
N.p., n.d. Web. <http://cdnph.upi.com/sv/b/i/UPI87911388639262/2014/1/13693138382910/Alcohol-tobacco-drug-use-muchhigher-among-mentally-ill.jpg>.
Http://d3cnx4g7vdwmzl.cloudfront.net/Images/car-crash.jpg. N.p., n.d. Web.
N.p., n.d. Web. <http://bar13.co.uk/img/friends-drinking.jpg>.

N.p., n.d. Web.

<http%3A%2F%2Fimages.fanpop.com%2Fimages%2Fsoapbox%2Fadvice_1
611_top.jpg%3Fcache%3D1200950452>.
N.p., n.d. Web. <http://www.liquid-iv.com/wpcontent/uploads/2014/02/hangover-headache.jpg>.

N.p., n.d. Web. <http://www.ramagazine.com/issue/09/images/RAMag9Definitionbingedrinking.jpg>.