KNOW

ALCOHOL

Drinking Patterns

It’s not just how much or how often you drink, but how you drink that matters.

Alcohol Intoxication

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After a few drinks, you might feel and act a little differently. However, drinking a lot of alcohol in a short period of time can lead to intoxication (i.e., when you feel or appear drunk), impairment (i.e., unable to function as normal), or alcohol poisoning.

Do you know the signs?

  • Slurred speech
  • Confusion
  • Loss of coordination
  • Delayed reaction time
  • Vomiting
  • Pale skin or blue lips
  • Loss of consciousness
  • Blackouts (i.e., gaps in or loss of memory about events that happened while awake)
  • Seizures
  • Irregular heart rate
  • Shallow breathing

These symptoms often occur in stages and require immediate medical attention to prevent serious health problems or death. Mixing alcohol with other drugs can increase these risks.

Did you know? When you drink, ethanol (the psychoactive ingredient in alcohol) enters your bloodstream and increases your blood alcohol content (BAC). An increased BAC is what leads to impairment and intoxication. Explore our safe drinking tips to help prevent alcohol intoxication, poisoning, and related problems.

Binge Drinking

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How much you drink per occasion (or in one sitting) is oftentimes more important than how much you drink per week.

Binge drinking is defined as consuming 5 or more drinks for men and 4 or more drinks for women per drinking occasion. This pattern of drinking increases your risk of alcohol intoxication and physical health and mental health problems.

Did you know? Binge drinking is common, causes most first- and second-hand harms from alcohol, and often precedes the development of an alcohol use disorder.

If you drink alcohol frequently and heavily, you have the most to gain from drinking less. Use our calculator to see how alcohol is impacting your life and calculate your benefits from drinking less.

Alcohol Use Disorder

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Alcohol use disorder (AUD), formerly known as alcoholism, is a pattern of alcohol use where a person has problems controlling their alcohol use, spends a lot of time thinking about or getting alcohol, and continues to drink despite it causing problems in their life (e.g., health, interpersonal, financial, legal).

AUD also involves having to drink more alcohol to get the same effect (i.e., tolerance) and withdrawal symptoms (e.g., sweating, increased heart rate, restlessness, irritability, sleep problems, nausea, seizures) when reducing or stopping drinking. A high tolerance to alcohol can make you feel less drunk than you are, which increases your risk of harm.

Did you know? The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) consists of 10 questions that assess for an alcohol use disorder and related harms. It also provides a rating of AUD severity on a scale from none to severe. Speak with your healthcare provider if you take the AUDIT and are concerned about your results.

Are you concerned about your own or someone else’s alcohol use? Help is available. See our resources for support.

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