1. Alcohol
Chapter 15

2. Bellwork Why is alcohol considered a drug?
What is the difference between a stimulant and a depressant?
Which one is alcohol?
What is the process in which alcohol is made?
Why would a mug of beer, a glass of wine, and a shot of liquor have the same amount of alcohol?

3. Statistics Game
Take 5 minutes to match the percentages to the statistics on your paper.
All statistics have been taken from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

4. Statistic #1
What percent of 8th graders have tried an alcoholic beverage in the past year?
43%
1. F.
2. B.
3. C.
4. D.
5. A.
6. E.

5. Statistic #2
What percent of 8th graders have had one or more binge drinking episodes?
Binge drinking is consuming excessive amounts of alcohol in one setting.
15%
1. F.
2. B.
3. C.
4. D.
5. A.
6. E.

6. Statistic #3
What percent of 8th graders have tried alcohol at some point in their lives?
52%
1. F.
2. B.
3. C.
4. D.
5. A.
6. E.

7. Statistic #4
What percent of 10th graders have had an alcoholic drink in the past year?
64%
1. F.
2. B.
3. C.
4. D.
5. A.
6. E.

8. 71% What percent of 10th graders have tried alcohol? Statistic #5
2. B.
3. C.
4. D.
5. A.
6. E.

9. Statistic #6
What percent of 8th graders have reported feeling drunk at one point in their lives?
25%
1. F.
2. B.
3. C.
4. D.
5. A.
6. E.

10. Statistics Game
Were you surprised by any of the statistics?

11. Alcohol’s Effects on the Body
Alcohol travels through the body just like food does, but it does not have to be digested before it is absorbed into the bloodstream.
A person becomes intoxicated once they have consumed too much alcohol for the body to break down into harmless compounds.

12. Effects of Intoxication2 1 3 4 5

13. Cardiovascular System
Heart rate and blood pressure increase.
More blood flows to the skin’s surface.
Core body temperature decreases.

14. Nervous System Brain activity slows down.
Coordination becomes impaired.
Sensations and perception become less clear.
Reflexes become sluggish.

15. Digestive and Excretory Systems
Digestive System
Excretory System
Too much alcohol in the stomach can cause vomiting
Safety feature
Alcohol is also known to disrupt the digestive system by overriding stomach acids
Kidneys increase urine production
Drinking alcohol causes the body to lose more water than normal
What is the outcome?

16. Effects on Behavior Drinkers can lose judgment and self-control
Alcohol also decreases a person’s natural fears
Results in taking more risks
Leading to more unintentional injuries
A person who drinks a lot of alcohol may suffer a blackout
A blackout is a period of time that the drinker cannot recall
These can happen to first-time drinkers as well as experienced drinkers

17. Blood Alcohol Concentration
BAC is the amount of alcohol in a person’s blood, expressed as a percentage
What is the legal limit?
What is the lethal or deadly limit?
Factors affecting BAC
Rate of consumption
Gender
Body Size
Amount of food in the stomach

18. Rate of Consumption
Roughly one ounce of alcohol is metabolized by the liver per hour
This is the amount of alcohol in one can of beer, one shot of liquor, or one glass of wine
People who have a few drinks in one hour have a higher BAC than those who consume one drink per hour

19. Gender
At the same rate of consumption, males generally have a lower BAC than females
More metabolism in males tends to be done in the stomach before entering the bloodstream

20. Other Factors Food in the Stomach Body Size
Smaller people, by height and weight, feel the effects of alcohol more than larger people
Smaller individuals will have a higher BAC after consuming the same amount of drinks
Drinking on an empty stomach increases the rate of alcohol absorption into the bloodstream
A higher BAC will result

21. After Drinking
The BAC will begin to decrease while the effects of alcohol slowly diminish
Myths of “sobering up”:
Taking a cold shower
Exercise
Fresh air
Coffee
Nothing can change the speed of the liver’s ability to break down alcohol besides time

22. Hangover
A hangover is a term used to describe the after-effects of drinking
Symptoms include
Nausea
Upset stomach
Headache
Sensitivity to light and noise
The only way to avoid a hangover is to avoid alcohol altogether