Alcohol as a Drug - potentially fatal to underage drinkers.

ETHYL ALCOHOL: (or grain alcohol, or ethanol, or simply "alcohol") is found in beer (about 4.5% by volume), in whiskey (about 43%), in table wines (10-14%), tequila (40%), gin (40%). Since the "proof" is twice the percentage of alcohol content, most whiskies are about 86 proof.

THE PHARMACOLOGY OF ETHYL (OR DRINKING) ALCOHOL:
Alcohol is a CNS depressant. (CNS stands for the central nervous system, or brain and spinal cord.) Repeat: it is a depressant, not a stimulant.

The highest centers of the brain - speech, thought, cognition, restraint, and judgment - are depressed first.

We can see a remarkable correlation between BLOOD ALCOHOL CONCENTRATION (BAC), and CNS depression.
BAC is measured in percentages, with 0.1% meaning 100 mg of ethanol per 100 ml of blood. A BAC of only 0.03% can give powerful changes in mental and physical behavior At 0.05% normal inhibitions are almost eliminated.

Most U.S. states consider 0.08% legal evidence of DWI. Half of those people arrested for DWI in New Mexico, have BACs greater than twice the legal limit! Death from acute alcohol intoxication typically is due to depression of respiration or the person drowning in his or her own vomit.

Alcohol dilates blood vessels in the skin, producing a skin flush and feelings of warmth, as body heat is lost.
Alcohol can irritate the stomach, producing nausea and vomiting.
Alcohol is a strong diuretic.

ALCOHOLISM: i.e., tolerance to and dependence on alcohol can develop after lengthy use. Progressively larger doses are required to give the same effect. Consuming a fifth of whiskey a day is not rare. Remarkably, because of tolerance, some alcoholics can accomplish difficult tasks even when their BACs are above 0.2%. More than a few drivers have been pulled over who have BACs exceeding 0.4%! In the addict, abrupt withdrawal from alcohol can lead to a serious withdrawal syndrome (shaking, profuse sweating, nausea, anxiety, diarrhea, hallucinations, and disorientation).

ALCOHOL IS METABOLIZED: (broken down chemically) in the liver to acetaldehyde and then to acetate, with the production of heat and energy. Roughly, a 150-lb person can metabolize two-thirds of an ounce of straight whiskey or 8 ounces of beer per hour. Consumption of fatty foods before drinking can slow down absorption of alcohol into the blood stream. Heavy binge drinking can be fatal.

ALCOHOL - DRUG INTERACTIONS are many and well known.
They occur when alcohol either interferes with the desired action of a drug, or potentates the action of another drug. Some of these interactions are potentially fatal. For example, if you are taking a CNS depressant to get to sleep, and ingest significant alcohol simultaneously, the alcohol can potentate the drug's CNS depressant action to a dangerous degree.

Teen Drinking and Thinking don't mix.

Our greatest alcohol-related health challenge today is underage drinking. This leads our next generation on a possible path of self-destruction. One out of four kids, who begin drinking at age 12 or less, will eventually develop an alcohol-related dependency problem, versus one out of ten kids, who wait until age 18 or more.

Teenagers, who drink heavily, face unnecessary hazards, ranging from accidental injuries to death by alcohol poisoning. By far the most damage comes from irreversible BRAIN DAMAGE, another devastating consequence of teen alcohol abuse.

Brain scans of teenagers, who abuse alcohol by either drinking frequently, or drinking too much, show visible damage to the brain's hippocampus area (the region involved in learning and memory). On average, this essential area of the brain in young drinkers was 10% smaller than that of their peers. Brain scans of young women, who drank heavily as teens, show regions of irreversible sluggish brain activity.

The charts and scans below show that teenagers, who drink, may lose as much as 10% of their brainpower - the difference between passing and failing in school, and IN LIFE ITSELF!