Alcohol - Fact or Fiction

There are many common misconceptions about alcohol and drinking. The following are common myths and the corrections / actual facts associated with them!

To help sober a person up, take a cold shower, get some fresh air or drink hot coffee.

Time is the only thing that can remove alcohol from a person’s system. Your body takes approximately one hour to eliminate the alcohol from one drink.

Eating a big meal before you drink alcohol will help you to stay sober.

Eating before you drink will only help you to absorb the alcohol into your body, it doesn’t prevent it. It will not be an effective way to stop yourself from becoming drunk.

Alcohol destroys your brain cells.

The moderate consumption of alcohol does not destroy brain cells. It has in fact been associated with improved cognitive ability.

Men and women of the same weight and height can drink equal amounts of alcohol and be affected to the same degree.

Women are affected more rapidly than men because they generally have a higher proportion of fat to lean muscle tissue, meaning they have a lower percentage of body water; therefore alcohol is more concentrated in their bodies. Women’s monthly hormonal changes can also affect their alcohol absorption. Women also naturally have less of the dehydrogenise enzyme which metabolizes alcohol. All of these factors change the affects of alcohol on women in comparison to men.

People who never drink alcohol are 100 % alcohol-free.

Everyone produces alcohol in their bodies from the moment they are born to the moment of their death, so we constantly have alcohol in our bodies.

There are worms in bottles of tequila.

There are not worms in bottles of tequila. They are not worms; they are a type of butterfly caterpillar. Additionally they are in Mescal, a distilled spirit from a completely different plant then tequila.

People in the USA are heavy consumers of alcohol on average.

The US population is not in the top ten alcohol consuming countries. Alcohol consumption is calculated based on a per capita consumption of pure alcohol. The USA has a 1.74 units consumption rate per person, which makes them 32nd on the list.

Drinking alcohol can cause you to gain weight.

This is a statement that is very commonly heard because alcohol does contain calories. But consuming alcohol does not cause weight gain. Exceeding your healthy daily calorie intake level does.