What is Alcohol Poisoning?

Alcohol poisoning – otherwise known as alcohol intoxication – occurs when more alcohol is ingested than the body can safely process.

This can lead to serious and dangerous health-related consequences.

This is the leading cause of poisoning in the UK, and represents a major concern to public health.

It is also indicative of other issues, like an unhealthy relationship with alcohol, and can be linked with disorders like alcohol abuse and alcohol addiction.

How does alcohol intoxication occur?

Every time alcohol is ingested, after it has entered the bloodstream via the digestive system, it is filtered by the liver.

The liver can only handle so much alcohol at a time, and if you drink a lot within a short space of time, the body is unable to process it all.

This has some very dangerous risks, and can be life threatening if too much alcohol has been ingested too quickly.

Therefore, it is important to know the signs and symptoms of alcohol intoxication so that you can act and call assistance if required.

At Rehab 4 Alcoholism, we offer free advice from a team of non-judgemental professionals, many of whom are in recovery and understand how hard can be to change your relationship with addiction.

For more information, simply reach out to our 24/7, confidential hotline on 0800 111 4108.

How much alcohol does it take for alcohol poisoning to occur?

While there are some factors that influence this, the body can typically only process one unit of alcohol per hour.

One unit is 10ml of pure alcohol, and to put that into context, one 500ml bottle of cider can contain around 2.3 units of alcohol.

What are the signs and symptoms?

Alcohol poisoning has a wide variety of symptoms, and they are impacted by the quantity of alcohol that has been consumed, as well as the timeframe in which it has been consumed.

Some of the very first indicators are: general feelings of confusion, pale skin, nausea and vomiting.

However, when alcohol intoxication  progresses it can become more dangerous, and even life threatening.

Some of the more serious signs and symptoms are:

• Falling unconscious
• Unresponsiveness
• Rapid breathing
• Speaking completely incoherently
• Comatose
• Seizures

The dangers

If alcohol has been consumed to such an extent that the blood alcohol concentration exceeds 0.4%, alcohol poisoning can carry the risk of organ failure, brain damage, and fatality.

These dangers pose a genuine threat to life, and are treated extremely seriously.

The current NHS advice is that if you see someone with alcohol intoxication, you should call 111 immediately to seek out professional advice.

At Rehab 4 Alcoholism, we offer free advice from a team of non-judgemental professionals, many of whom are in recovery and understand how hard can be to change your relationship with addiction.

For more information, simply reach out to our 24/7, confidential hotline on 0800 111 4108.

What are the indirect risks?

Alcohol poisoning doesn’t just place you at risk because of the negative impact on the health of the body and brain. It also places you at risk indirectly.

Drinking too much alcohol can impair the part of your brain that deals with decision making.

This can make you more likely to indulge in risky behaviour, and less able to judge rationally.

Therefore, you may be more likely to do things that are uncharacteristic of your typical behaviour, like getting into a fight or having unprotected sex.

Getting into a fight obviously poses a risk to your imminent physical safety, and one misplaced punch can be enough to knock someone out.

Having unprotected sex increases the likelihood that you will either pass on a sexually transmitted disease or sexually transmitted infection, or will acquire one.

Excessive alcohol consumption also impacts your coordination coordination, making accidents (such as tripping and falling over) much more likely.

These can be harmless and you can just be left with a mysterious bruise, but if you’re unlucky, falling over could mean that you hit the back of your head and crack your skull, risking long term brain injuries.

Drinking to the point where you fall unconscious, or even become unresponsive, also carries the risk that you will throw up while you are unconscious and suffocate by choking on your own vomit.

The links to binge drinking

In the UK, there are guidelines set on alcohol use based on the research that has been conducted into what amount of alcohol is generally safe for consumption.

The current guidance is that adults should drink no more than 14 units of alcohol a week.

The advice also suggests that these 14 units should be spread out over the course of three days or more.

This is designed to reduce binge drinking, which is classified as the consumption of 8 units or more in a single sitting for men, and 6 units or more in a single sitting for women.

Binge drinking is one of the key risk factors, because it is an indicator that more alcohol is being consumed than the body might be able to handle.

Binge drinking doesn’t always result in alcohol poisoning, but almost by definition, poisoning almost always occurs due to binge drinking.

At Rehab 4 Alcoholism, we offer free advice from a team of non-judgemental professionals, many of whom are in recovery and understand how hard can be to change your relationship with addiction.

For more information, simply reach out to our 24/7, confidential hotline on 0800 111 4108.

The links to alcoholism

Alcohol intoxication results from the ingestion of too much alcohol, over too short a period of time.

People with alcohol dependence and alcohol addiction are more likely to drink excessively than people without it, meaning they are at risk of developing alcohol poisoning.

This isn’t always the case, however, and while someone living with alcoholism may struggle to control their alcohol intake, they might stop drinking at around 8 units which will usually avoid poisoning.

A person who drinks 8 units every day or every other day is likely to be suffering from alcoholism, but probably won’t induce alcohol intoxication.

The long-term health risks

The short-term health risks linked with alcohol poisoning are clear. They can be dehydration, falling unconscious, and seizures.

However, there are long-term risks to consider too.

Alcohol intoxication means that you have been drinking excessively, and if this continues over a long period of time, it can have very serious consequences on your long-term health and wellbeing.

The long-term excessive consumption of alcohol is linked with many serious health conditions which people will want to avoid, including:

• Various types of cancer
• Heart disease
• High blood pressure
• Stroke
• Liver disease
• Weakening of the immune system

At Rehab 4 Alcoholism, we offer free advice from a team of non-judgemental professionals, many of whom are in recovery and understand how hard can be to change your relationship with addiction.

For more information, simply reach out to our 24/7, confidential hotline on 0800 111 4108.

Risk factors: who is most at risk?

Alcohol poisoning will can affect any person from any demographic who has consumed more alcohol than their body can handle.

Nevertheless, there are certain demographics who are more likely to consume more alcohol, and binge drink than others. This means that they are more susceptible.

Middle aged adults, specifically men, are some of the people who are most afflicted by alcohol intoxication.

In fact, men in the UK are almost twice as likely to die from alcohol related illnesses than women.

This reflects general trends in drinking, where men are more likely to consume higher levels of alcohol more frequently than women.

The other core demographic that is impacted by alcohol intoxication is adolescents and young adults.

This is because as young people come out of childhood, and into sixth form and university, they are more likely to engage in social events with people of the same age.

At these events, drinking is often a big component of the activities, which include drinking games.

Adolescents and young adults are more likely to binge drink, and therefore experience alcohol intoxication, because of the impact of social pressure, as well as a lack of experience with alcohol.

A young person might be trying to test their tolerance levels, or completely overestimate them.

They can also get swept along with pressure, and can drink excessive amounts as a challenge or to prove that they can.

The effects of alcohol based on number of units consumed

The impact of alcohol on the body and brain, and the likelihood of alcohol intoxication, increases as the amount of alcohol units consumed increases too.

Here’s how alcohol effects the body, broken down by the number of units consumed:

Between 1 and 2 units

• An increase in heart rate
• Feelings of excitement
• Increased confidence, and sociableness

Between 3 and 6 units

• Your coordination and reaction time will start to be impaired, and this will affect the stability of your mobility
• Your judgement will become impaired, and you might take uncharacteristic risks as this combines with your reduced inhibitions
• You may feel lightheaded as your central nervous system starts to become impacted by the alcohol

Between 7 and 9 units

• You will start to feel confused
• You will find it hard to communicate as your speech starts to become slurred
• Your coordination and reaction times will be increasingly impacted, and you may find it difficult to walk
• Your vison will become blurry, and you may feel dizzy
• You may start to feel the effects of tiredness
• This is the point where it will become dangerous to continue drinking, and you will risk alcohol poisoning

Between 10 and 12 units

• You will have very little control over your movement and coordination, increasing your chances of a serious accident
• You may dip in and out of consciousness, as if you’re very tired
• You will be dehydrated
• The level of alcohol in your blood will start to reach toxic levels as your liver is unable to filter it all
• You will need to urinate much more frequently as your body attempts to expel the alcohol through urine

Over 12 units

• You may lose consciousness completely
• You may become unresponsive
• You are at a very high risk of developing alcohol poisoning
• You may lose control over the functions of you body, such as your bladder, and your gag reflex, and your heart rate and breathing pattern may become erratic

How to help someone with alcohol intoxication

If you suspect someone has alcohol intoxication, and they are exhibiting the signs that they have consumed over 12 units of alcohol, you should seek medical help.

Call 111, and they will likely tell you to call an ambulance based on your description of the situation.

Stay with the person, and try not to panic so you can think clearly.

This will help you to ensure that the person stays in an upright position, or lying on their side with an unobstructed airway so the risk of choking on vomit is reduced.

Try your best to keep the person awake and conscious, but don’t feed them coffee because this can increase the risk of dehydration, and don’t pour cold water over them because this might initiate a shock response.

Instead, try to get them to talk to you, even if their responses are incoherent.

At Rehab 4 Alcoholism, we offer free advice from a team of non-judgemental professionals, many of whom are in recovery and understand how hard can be to change your relationship with addiction.

For more information, simply reach out to our 24/7, confidential hotline on 0800 111 4108.

How is alcohol intoxication treated in hospital?

If a person has been taken to hospital for alcohol poisoning, they will be under close observation until they are no longer at risk.

Sometimes, medical treatment will be required. In this case, a tube might be inserted into the mouth to clear the airway and assist with breathing.

An intravenous drip can also be fitted, and this will feed water directly into the bloodstream to avoid dehydration, as well as other essential vitamins and sugars.

If it appears like the condition is life threatening, there is the option of a stomach pump which will remove most of the alcohol form the system.

How to prevent alcohol intoxication

The best way to prevent alcohol poisoning is to avoid drinking excessive amounts of alcohol.

Try to keep on top of what you’re drinking, and avoid going over 6 units if you’re a woman or 8 units if you’re a man.

You should also avoid drinking on an empty stomach, because this increases the rate of alcohol absorption into the bloodstream, making it more difficult for the liver to process the alcohol without the onset of alcohol intoxication.

Also try to make sure you stick to the 14 unit a week limit, and ensure that this is spread out over the course of the week instead of consumed all in one go – this is a sure-fire way to give yourself alcohol intoxication.

If you struggle to keep your alcohol intake inline with the guidelines, this could be an indicator that you are developing a form of alcohol use disorder, especially if you begin to feel cravings when you reduce your intake.

In this case, it is recommended that you seek out medical support and professional advice from a rehab clinic, and they can assess you and advise you on the way forward.

At Rehab 4 Alcoholism, we offer free advice from a team of non-judgemental professionals, many of whom are in recovery and understand how hard can be to change your relationship with addiction.

For more information about alcohol poisoning, simply reach out to our 24/7, confidential hotline on 0800 111 4108.

References:

[1] Drinking risk categories: binge drinking

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/delivering-better-oral-health-an-evidence-based-toolkit-for-prevention/chapter-12-alcohol#:~:text=Binge%20drinking%20really%20means%20drinking,an%20increased%20risk%20of%20injury.

[2] Alcohol-specific deaths in the UK

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/causesofdeath/bulletins/alcoholrelateddeathsintheunitedkingdom/registeredin2020#alcohol-specific-deaths-in-the-uk