Alcohol Poisoning: Separating Fact from Fiction

Issue:
According to a federal survey, 2.6 million teenagers don't know that a person can die from an alcohol overdose. (Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, 1996) What do students in your school know about alcohol poisoning?

Extra Credit:
Ask a sample of students to take a quiz about some common myths concerning alcohol use. (You can use our quiz or design your own.) How did the students do? Talk to a doctor or substance abuse counselor about the students’ perceptions.

Facts:

  • The Internet site for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Safe and Sober program includes a section on alcohol poisoning.
  • B.R.A.D. 21 was founded by the family and friends of Bradley McCue, a Michigan State University Junior who died of alcohol poisoning after celebrating his 21st birthday.
  • Mothers Against Drunk Driving helps separate fact from fiction in Myths About Alcohol For Teens.

Interview candidates:

  • Interview a local doctor or emergency room worker. What should students know about alcohol use?
  • Contact the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission office closest to you.
  • Talk to a counselor at a substance abuse treatment center for youths. How did the young people in treatment start drinking?
Drugs and Alcohol 101
  1. Most teens who died in passenger vehicle crashes were wearing seat belts. TRUEFALSE
  2. Which substance kills more young people every year?
    ___ A. Cocaine
    ___ B. Alcohol
    ___ C. Ecstasy
  3. Alcohol poisoning can lead to death. TRUEFALSE
  4. Eating something or drinking coffee can help you sober up more quickly. TRUEFALSE
  5. A typical margarita contains enough alcohol to kill 10,000 brain cells. TRUEFALSE
  6. Which of the following can result from too much drinking?
    ___ A. Victim chokes on own vomit
    ___ B. Hypothermia (low body temperature) leads to cardiac arrest
    ___ C. Hypoglycemia (too little blood sugar) leads to seizures
    ___ D. All of the above
    ___ E. None of the above

Answers:

  1. False. In 1999, 63 percent of youths ages 15 to 20 who died in passenger vehicle crashes were not wearing safety belts, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Fatally injured drivers who had been drinking were least likely to have been wearing safety belts.
  2. B. In 1999, alcohol was blamed in the deaths of 586 Texans under the age of 21, almost five times the number of deaths due to all illicit drugs combined.
  3. True. When you drink too much, that's the same thing as overdosing on alcohol. A dangerously high blood alcohol level can cause your heartbeat and breathing to stop altogether, which means you can die from drinking too much.
  4. False. The liver can break down alcohol at a rate of about 0.5 ounces per hour, or about half the alcohol in an average drink. Nothing can speed this rate. Not caffeine. Not food. Not water. You might be full, but you won't be any less drunk.
  5. False. It's unlikely that one margarita will kill brain cells. However, long-term, chronic drinking can cause permanent memory loss and brain damage. Almost 70 percent of people in treatment for alcohol-related problems suffer impairment of memory formation, abstract thinking, problem solving and ability to concentrate.
  6. D. Drinking a high concentration of alcohol in a short period of time can suppress, or even “turn off,” the parts of the brain that control breathing and heart rate. This can cause a person to pass out or even die. Vomiting is the body’s way of preventing more alcohol from being absorbed. When people pass out, their bodies continue to absorb alcohol. The amount of alcohol in the blood can reach dangerous levels, and they can die in their sleep. If someone passes out and does not respond to attempts to wake them, it’s time to call 911.

© 2004 TooYoungToDrink.com and The Alliance Against Underage Drinking.