Moderate alcohol intake is defined as an average of one to two drinks per day for men and one drink per day for women. A drink is considered 12 oz beer, 5 oz of wine, 1.5 oz of 80-proof spirits, or 1 oz of 100-proof spirits, all of which contain approximately 13 to 15 grams of ethanol.
Consumption of alcohol is akin to a double-edged knife when we consider its health effects. Depending upon how it is used, alcohol can cause damage in either direction than perhaps any other single aspect of lifestyle. Cardio-protective benefits are seen in mild to moderate consumption of alcohol, while increasingly excessive consumption results in negative outcomes on health.
Moderate consumption= 1- 2 drinks/day for males and 1 drink/day for females.
A drink= 12 oz of beer, 5 oz of wine, 1.5 oz of 80-proof spirits, or 1 oz of 100-proof spirits i.e. approximately 13-15 grams of ethanol
Archive for the ‘Alcohol’ Category
Benefits of Moderate Alcohol Consumption
Thursday, February 7th, 2008The Path of Alcohol in the body
Friday, August 11th, 2006
1) Mouth: alcohol enters the body.
2) Stomach: some alcohol gets into the bloodstream in the stomach, but most goes on to the small intestine.
3) Small Intestine: alcohol enters the bloodstream through the walls of the small intestine.
4) Heart: pumps alcohol throughout the body.
5) Brain: alcohol reaches the brain.
6) Liver: alcohol is oxidized by the liver at a rate of about 0.5 oz per hour.
7) Alcohol is converted into water, carbon dioxide and energy.
Alcohol Impairment Chart for Men
Friday, August 11th, 2006
Alcohol Impairment Chart for Women
Friday, August 11th, 2006
Effects of Alcohol on Woman
Friday, August 11th, 2006Womens are more sensitive to the effects of alcohol than men, and experience its harmful medical complications in a shorter period of time.
Women who consume as few as two drinks per day evan have a risk of developing high blood pressure. With as few as two or three drinks a day, a woman is at increased risk of dying from liver disease, cancer or injury. Consumption of as many as four drinks per day increases the risk of stroke among women. Women who drink heavily tend to develop liver or heart disease after fewer years of heavy drinking than men. These women also experience greater damage to their brain structure after fewer years of heavy drinking than men who are heavy drinkers. Higher levels of alcohol consumption may have negative effects on a woman’s menstrual cycle. She may have more painful, heavy, or irregular periods as a result. Heavy alcohol consumption may also lead to the deterioration of female reproductive health. Ovarian wasting or abnormal function, endometriosis, infertility and sexual dysfunction have all been observed in alcoholic women.
Affects of Alcohol
Wednesday, August 9th, 2006Alcohol is a toxin – a mind-altering, behaviour changing drug. It also works as a depressant on the central nervous system and lowers inhibitions so that you may be likely to take risks or behave in a way that you wouldn’t if sober. See the detailed analysis below of how it affects you:
Alcohol affects your brain: Drinking alcohol leads to a loss of coordination, poor judgment, slowed reflexes, distorted vision, memory lapses, and even blackouts.
Alcohol affects your body: Alcohol can damage every organ in your body. It is absorbed directly into your bloodstream and can increase your risk for a variety of life-threatening diseases, including cancer.
Alcohol affects your self-control: Alcohol depresses your central nervous system, lowers your inhibitions, and impairs your judgment. Drinking can lead to risky behaviors, such as driving when you shouldn’t, or having unprotected sex.
Alcohol can kill you: Drinking large amounts of alcohol at one time or very rapidly can cause alcohol poisoning, which can lead to coma or even death. Driving and drinking also can be deadly. In 2003, 31 percent of drivers age 15 to 20 who died in traffic accidents had been drinking alcohol.1
Alcohol can hurt you even if you’re not the one drinking: If you’re around people who are drinking, you have an increased risk of being seriously injured, involved in car crashes, or affected by violence. At the very least, you may have to deal with people who are sick, out of control, or unable to take care of themselves.
How Alcohol Travels Through the Body
Tuesday, August 8th, 2006Alcohol is metabolized extremely quickly by the body. Unlike foods, which require time for digestion, alcohol needs no digestion and is quickly absorbed. Alcohol gets “VIP” treatment in the body – absorbing and metabolizing before most other nutrients. About 20 percent is absorbed directly across the walls of an empty stomach and can reach the brain within one minute.
Once alcohol reaches the stomach, it begins to break down with the alcohol dehydrogenase enzyme. This process reduces the amount of alcohol entering the blood by approximately 20%. (Women produce less of this enzyme, which may help to partially explain why women become more intoxicated on less alcohol than men.). In addition, about 10% of the alcohol is expelled in the breath and urine.
Alcohol is rapidly absorbed in the upper portion of the small intestine. The alcohol-laden blood then travels to the liver via the veins and capillaries of the digestive tract, which affects nearly every liver cell. The liver cells are the only cells in our body that can produce enough of the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase to oxidize alcohol at an appreciable rate.
Though alcohol affects every organ of the body, it’s most dramatic impact is upon the liver. The liver cells normally prefer fatty acids as fuel, and package excess fatty acids as triglycerides, which they then route to other tissues of the body. However, when alcohol is present, the liver cells are forced to first metabolize the alcohol, letting the fatty acids accumulate, sometimes in huge amounts. Alcohol metabolism permanently changes liver cell structure, which impairs the liver’s ability to metabolize fats. This explains why heavy drinkers tend to develop fatty livers.
The liver is able to metabolize about ½ ounce of ethanol per hour (approximately one drink, depending on a person’s body size, food intake, etc.). If more alcohol arrives in the liver than the enzymes can handle, the excess alcohol travels to all parts of the body, circulating until the liver enzymes are finally able to process it. (Which is another good reason not to consume more than one drink per hour.).
