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How Alcohol Affects the Body
Posted by admin | Posted in Criminal Law | Posted on 01-10-2009
In every state the legal limit for Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) is under 0.08. There are a number of factors that can affect a person’s BAC, including weight, lung capacity and medical conditions.
How Alcohol is Absorbed
When you drink an alcoholic beverage, the alcohol is absorbed through your mouth, throat, stomach and intestines. About 20% of it will be absorbed from your stomach and much of the rest from your intestines. How fast your body absorbs the alcohol can vary depending on:
The concentration of alcohol compared to other liquids in the drink, the stronger the drink the faster it will be absorbed
If there is any food in your stomach, food slows alcohol absorption
The type of drink, for example carbonation will speed up absorption
Your BAC will be affected around 20 minutes after consuming a drink. The average person eliminates “one drink” of alcohol each hour.
Alcohol in Men and Women
In general men’s bodies consist of more muscle and women’s bodies have more fat. Muscle mass has more water content than fat does. The same amount of alcohol will be more diluted in a man than in a woman. Because of this, men and women of the same height and weight are affected differently by the same amount of alcohol. When it comes to a breath test, women also tend to have smaller lung capacity which can also skew their breath test results.
BAC Levels and Effects
While alcohol affects different people differently, below is a generalized list of what effects a certain BAC will produce:
BAC of 0.03 to 0.12:
More confident or daring
Flushed appearance
Shorter attention span
BAC of 0.09 to 0.25:
Difficulty understanding or remembering
Slowed reaction time
Uncoordinated body movements
Blurry vision
May become sleepy
BAC of 0.18 to 0.30:
Dizziness or staggering
Possibly highly emotional, either aggressive, withdrawn or affectionate
Slurred speech
BAC of 0.25 to 0.40:
Cannot stand or walk
May go in and out of consciousness
Doesn’t respond to stimulus
A BAC of 0.40 and higher can produce a coma, and most people will stop breathing and die with a BAC of 0.50 and higher.
There are many factors that come into play that can affect a person’s BAC. While body weight is the most important factor in determining BAC, others include gender, stomach contents, metabolism and the type of drink being consumed.
This article is for informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice. Please contact an attorney in your local area for more information about DUI/DWI Law.
Additional Legal Tools: Criminal Attorney Michael Lowe. Serving in Dallas, TX.
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