Alcohol: Effects on the Body and Behavior

Sherri GarciaFull Circle Advertising: A Look at Teen Alcohol Use and

Fetal Alcohol SyndromeCDC’s 2005 Science Ambassador Program

Overview:• Definitions • Statistics on teen drinking• Short- and long-term effects of alcohol • Blood alcohol levels• Introduction to fetal alcohol syndrome

(FAS)

“Drinker” Definitions(1)

• Binge drinking: Four or more drinks fora female and five or more drinks for amale at one sitting

Click to see data on binge drinking in your state

“Drinker” Definitions(2)

• Chronic drinking: Daily or almost daily alcohol consumption (60 drinks per month)

Click here to see data on chronic drinking in your state

Statistics on Teen Drinking(3)

• Monitoring the Future (MTF) reported that in 2004, nearly one in five 8th graders, more than one in three 10th graders, and nearly one in two 12th graders had a drink in the past month.

Teen Statistics (cont.)(4)

From National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2003):

• 10.9 million users ages 12-20

• 7.2 million “binge drinkers”

Short-term Effects(5,6)

• Slower reaction times/reflexes• Heavy sweating• Blurry vision• Nausea and vomiting• Lowered reasoning ability

Short-term Effects (cont.)(5,6)• Poor motor coordination• Slower heart rate/breathing rate• Increased blood pressure• Anxiety/restlessness• Lower inhibition

• Mental confusion• Memory loss• Coma• Death from respiratory arrest

Short-term Effects (cont.)(5,6)

Long-term Effects(5,6)

• Nervous system• Muscles• Lungs• Liver

Long-term Effects (cont.)(5,6)

• Sexual organs• Brain• Heart• Esophagus/stomach

Studies on Teen Drinking

Studies on Teen Drinking

Blood Alcohol Level: What’s It All About?(6)

Blood alcohol level (BAL) depends on:• Weight• Amount of food and water in stomach• Carbonated alcoholic beverages• Gender

Blood Alcohol Level Calculations(7)

BAL = (150/body weight) x (%alcohol/50)x (ounces consumed) x (0.025)

Blood Alcohol Level Example

• 175 pound man drinks four 12-ouncecans of beer with 4% alcohol content• BAL = (150/175) x (4/50) x (48) x (0.025)

o =.86 x .08 x 48 x .025o = .08%

Blood Alcohol Levels: So What?(8)

• BAL = 0.03 to 0.12 (Euphoria) Self-confident/daring Short attention span Poor judgment Fine motor skills impaired

Blood Alcohol Levels(8)

• BAL = 0.09 to 0.25 (Excitement) Sleepy Memory loss Reaction time decreased Uncoordinated/loss of balance Blurry vision and impaired senses

Blood Alcohol Levels(8)• BAL = 0.18 to 0.30 (Confusion)

Confused/dizzy Highly emotional Cannot see/slurred speech Uncoordinated/sleepy May not feel pain as easily

Blood Alcohol Levels(8)• BAL = 0.25 to 0.40 (Stupor)

Can barely move at all Cannot respond to stimuli Cannot stand or walk Vomiting Lapse in and out of consciousness

Blood Alcohol Levels(8)• BAL = 0.35 to 0.50 (Coma)

Unconscious Reflexes depressed Decreased body temperature Decreased breathing rate Decreased heart rate Could die

Blood Alcohol Levels(8)

• BAL = Greater than 0.50 (Death) Breathing stops That says it all!

Driving Limits(6)

• Most states set the legal level ofintoxication at 0.08 to 0.10

Drinking is a Personal Choice but Who Else is Affected?

• Friends and family • Strangers• Unborn babies – Fetal alcohol syndrome

What is Fetal Alcohol Syndrome?

• When mother drinks, baby drinks

• Alcohol disrupts brain development

• Your turn to research!

Looking Back• Drinking has various definitions

o Binge and Chronic

• Drinking can have short- and long-term effects• Slower reaction times • Memory loss• Nervous system/liver problems

Looking Back (cont.)

• Blood alcohol levels are affected by weight and gender

• Drinking is a personal choice, but it can affect those around you

Works Cited• 1. Understanding Alcohol - Glossary [online]. 2003. [cited 2005 Jul 13].

Available from URL: http://science.education.nih.gov/supplements/nih3/alcohol/other/glossary.htm.

• 2. Alcohol Use: Chronic Drinking [online]. 1992. [cited 2005 Jul 13]. Available from URL: http://www.indicators.ak.org/indicators/alcoholusechronic98F.htm

• 3. Johnston LD, O'Malley PM, Bachman JG, Schulenberg JE. Overall teen use continues gradual decline; but use of inhalants rises. Ann Arbor (MI): University of Michigan News and Information Services; December 21, 2004. Table 3. [cited 2005 Jul 7). Available from URL: http://www.monitoringthefuture.org/data/04data.html#2004data-drugs.

• 4. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Overview of Findings from the 2003 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Rockville (MD): Office of Applied Studies; 2004. p. 14. [cited 7 July 2005].

Works Cited (cont.)• 5. Short-Term Effects of Alcohol . [cited 2005 July 22]. Available from

URL: http://www.hsc.wvu.edu/som/cmed/alcohol/short-term.htm.

• 6. Understanding Alcohol - Information about Alcohol. Teacher’s guide. [online]. [cited 20 June 2005]. Available from URL: http://science.education.nih.gov/supplements/nih3/alcohol/guide/info-alcohol.htm.

• 7. Neuroscience for Kids - Alcohol. Alcohol [online]. [cited 2005 Jun 20]. Available from URL: http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/alco.html.

• 8. HowStuffWorks. How Alcohol Works [online]. [cited 2005 Jun 20]. Available from URL: http://www.science.howstuffworks.com/alcohol5.htm.