Why is there someone who doesn't get drunk easily? & bull; hello healthy

Watching a drunken friend on a weekly night can be a source of comedy or cause a cold sweat. Someone who is drunk sometimes acts very outspoken, sometimes gets angry and acts reckless. However, for some people, they can drink bottles of alcohol and still function properly like normal humans. Why do some people get drunk more easily, while there are also people who don't seem affected by alcohol - even though they have just had a glass? First, it's important to define what, exactly, alcohol tolerance is.

What is alcohol tolerance?

Alcohol tolerance is the body's resistance to alcohol which increases over time, wherein an alcoholic drinker will need to consume more liquor to achieve the heady effects he wants. Alcohol tolerance that results from long-term or heavy alcohol use can lead to two possibilities.

First, a heavy drinker can quickly recover from the intoxicating effects of alcohol due to the performance of the liver which speeds up the process of flushing alcohol from the body. Second, a chronically heavy drinker may show only one or two symptoms of hangovers even at very high blood alcohol concentrations, because the body is already immune to the effects of alcohol (which in ordinary people can be debilitating or even fatal).

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Because the drinker does not experience the dramatic reduction in behavior as a result of drinking, his tolerance of the body can facilitate an increasing amount of alcohol consumption. However, it should be noted that while a person's sensitivity to the effects of alcohol may decrease, the level of blood alcohol concentration will continue to increase.

What makes people's alcohol tolerance different?

There are many factors that influence a person's alcohol absorption rate. These factors can reduce or increase the natural absorption rate of alcohol and each individual. If you understand this, you can use it as an effective method of slowing down the effects of alcohol on the body and brain.

1. Weight loss

Blood alcohol level (BAC) is the ratio between the total alcohol content in the body system, and the total volume of blood. Since blood is basically water, a person's BAC rate is affected by his body fat percentage; the higher the body fat percentage, the lower the water content in the body and the higher the BAC number.

For people of the same weight, even of the same sex, individuals with a lower percentage of body fat (more muscular, for example) will still have lower BAC numbers than those with a higher percentage of body fat. So it is with people who are bigger and heavier - the heavier a person is, the higher the percentage of water in the body to balance the same alcohol content. In short, the lighter the number on the scale, the higher your BAC and the easier it will be to get drunk.

2. Gender

Most alcohol recommendations are based on the standard for an adult male weighing 70 kilograms. Typically, downing three 350 ml cans of beer at a time in less than an hour can get the average man drunk (blood alcohol levels can be as high as .045). The average human breaks down alcohol in one standard drink (17 ml of ethanol) per 90 minutes.

Women tend to have a higher percentage of body fat and less water content than men. At the same consumption portion, women on average will have a higher BAC than men and therefore will get drunk faster. In addition, women also have less alcohol-breaking enzymes in their liver. Hormones also affect the body's ability to process alcohol, so women will experience even higher BAC numbers if they drink a standard portion of alcohol right before menstruation.

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3. Food / digestive system

Eating more food is a surefire way to delay feeling drunk. For people who don't eat, the peak point of greatest alcohol intoxication usually occurs between 0.5-2 hours. For someone who drinks alcohol while eating, the peak of BAC usually doesn't occur until after 1-6 hours.

The body will automatically prioritize the digestion of food and prevent alcohol from entering the small intestine, where absorption is most effective. After the alcohol is finally absorbed and enters the blood, it can take at least 1 hour for the liver to break down to be excreted by the body again. But remember, this is not an excuse for you to drink more. You are not preventing alcohol absorption, you are simply delaying it so that your BAC does not peak rapidly.

3. Ethnic background

Certain ethnic groups may not drink as much and be affected less alcohol from other ethnic groups. Experts suspect that the enzymes that metabolize alcohol may be less abundant in some groups, or that they have a genetic mutation in the enzyme, leading to rosy cheeks and rapid heart rates, even with small amounts of alcohol.

For this reason, people of Chinese descent are much less likely to binge on alcohol than Koreans who have a stronger drinking culture - around seven percent, compared to 30 percent. These are the findings of a study published in the journal Psychology of Addictive Behaviors. Native Americans also metabolized alcohol much more slowly than many other ethnicities.

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4. The strength of the liquor consumed

The higher the alcohol concentration of your drink (10-30 percent), the faster the alcohol absorption process in the body.

When the alcohol content is less than 10%, the digestive tract is a little "lazy" to quickly process alcohol. Because of this, alcohol absorption is slower and it makes it easier for you to get drunk. However, alcohol concentrations that are too high (more than 30 percent) tend to irritate the mucous membranes of the digestive tract, thereby increasing mucus production which actually slows down the absorption of alcohol.

5. Time of consumption

The faster you drink successive drinks, the faster your BAC score will go up.

But over time, regular alcohol drinkers can drink more without feeling the slightest intoxicating effects. Even if you have stopped drinking for decades, you will still be able to drink the same amount before quitting without feeling any effect.

6. Age

Ironically, this robustness of tolerance will slowly collapse as you age, influenced by natural aging factors, such as illness, mood, and fitness levels.

7. Medicines

Although traditionally consumed in liquid form for recreation, eleven-twelfth alcohol with medical drugs should be treated no differently than taking two different prescriptions at the same time. It is important to know drug interactions and consult a doctor before mixing drugs with alcohol.

Potentially dangerous alcohol-drug interactions can occur in both light and chronic drinkers. If you are taking prescription or nonprescription medications, ask your doctor for advice about alcohol intake. Be aware that even herbal medicines and supplements can have adverse interactions when combined with alcohol.

8. Body condition

If you are sick and tired, there is a good chance that you will become dehydrated. Dehydration will result in a higher BAC number. Alcohol can compound symptoms of dehydration and fatigue. Fatigue and dehydration can also exacerbate the intoxicating effects of alcohol. When you are not fit, the liver is also not able to work optimally to process and / or remove alcohol from the body, which leads to an ever increasing concentration of alcohol in the blood.

You may also be taking medication to reduce symptoms, which can increase the effects of a hangover that can also cause other problems.