Additional Alcohol Resources

Alcohol depresses nerves that control involuntary actions such as breathing and the gag reflex, which prevents choking.  Vomiting is another common symptom of excessive drinking as alcohol irritates the stomach. Someone who drinks a fatal dose of alcohol will eventually stop breathing. Choking caused by vomit also leads to an increased risk of death by asphyxiation in a person who is not conscious due to alcohol consumption.

Even if someone survives an alcohol overdose, he or she can suffer irreversible brain damage. Rapid binge drinking (which often happens on a bet or a dare) is especially dangerous because the victim can drink a fatal dose before losing consciousness.

You should know that a person’s blood alcohol concentration (BAC) can continue to rise even while he or she is passed out. Even after a person stops drinking, alcohol in the stomach and intestine continues to enter the bloodstream and circulate throughout the body. A person who appears to be "sleeping it off"  may be in real danger.

Critical signs of alcohol poisoning include:

• Cannot be roused and are unresponsive to your voice, shaking, or pinching their skin
• Skin is cold, clammy, pale, bluish, and/or blotchy
• Breathing is slow – eight or fewer breaths per minute
• Experience lapses in breathing – more than 10 seconds between breaths
• Exhibit mental confusion, stupor, or coma
• Have seizures, convulsions, or rigid spasms
• Vomits while asleep or unconscious and does not awaken
• Hypothermia (low body temperature)

Call 911. If you suspect someone has alcohol poisoning, don’t wait for all of the critical signs to be present. Be aware that a person who has passed out may die. If you suspect an alcohol overdose, call 911 immediately for help. Don’t try to guess the level of intoxication.

If the person is unconscious, semi-conscious, or unresponsive, check for these symptoms of alcohol or drug overdose:

• Cannot be roused and are unresponsive to your voice, shaking, or pinching their skin.
• Skin is cold, clammy, pale, bluish, and/or blotchy.
• Breathing is slow – eight or fewer breaths per minute.
• Experience lapses in breathing – more than 10 seconds between breaths.
• Exhibit mental confusion, stupor, or coma.
• Have seizures, convulsions, or rigid spasms.
• Vomits while asleep or unconscious and does not awaken.

If they are conscious and responsive:

• Stay with them. Check often to make sure they are still conscious and responsive.
• Make certain that they stay on their side, not their back. See The Bacchus Maneuver
• Before you touch them, tell them exactly what you are going to do. Be aware of any signs of aggression. Do not ridicule, judge, threaten, or try to counsel them.
• Remain calm and be firm. Avoid communicating feelings of anxiety or anger.
• Keep them quiet and comfortable. If they are in the sun, move them to the shade. If cold, move them to a warm place and offer a blanket.
• Do not give them food, drink, or medication of any kind.
• Remember that only time will sober up a drunk person. Walking, showering, or drinking coffee will not help and may actually cause harm.

• The victim may choke on his or her own vomit
• Breathing slows, becomes irregular, or stops
• The heart beats irregularly or stops
• Hypothermia (low body temperature) may set it
• Hypoglycemia (too little blood sugar) may lead to seizures
• Untreated severe dehydration from vomiting can also cause seizures, permanent brain damage, or death.

There is no minimum amount of alcohol that could cause alcohol poisoning.

Estimate the length of time you will be drinking and figure out how many drinks you can safely have per hour. Some safer-drinking strategies include:

• Set a limit for the night. Keep your bottle caps or move coins from one pocket to the other to track the number of drinks you consume.
• Keep your stomach full. 
• Make your own drinks and use less alcohol when mixing.
• Alternate between alcohol and water (or another alcohol-free drink).
• Keep it to one drink per hour. The liver can only break down alcohol at a rate of about one drink per hour. This is true for everyone. When you consume more than one drink per hour you risk damaging your liver.

Make it a goal to keep your BAC in the blue zone (.06 and below). At this level, individuals report feeling more relaxed, talkative, and slightly euphoric, but are still largely in control of their reasoning and actions. 

Several factors influence your BAC level including your birth/biological sex, your body weight, the percentage of alcohol in your drink, your rate of drinking (how much alcohol you consume over time), and how much food is in your stomach before you start drinking.  

Mixing alcohol with other drugs will increase the effects of the substance and will lead to a more intoxicated state.  Learn more about why mixing alcohol with other drugs is harmful to your health.