Common myths and truth about alcohol

There are lots of misconceptions and myths about alcohol consumption, which sometimes prompt us to go for a drink. Following is a list of a few of those common myths: -

• Everyone drinks, so I will have to drink. But the truth is nearly 70% of the population do not drink at all.
• Alcohol provides energy, so drinking will give us energy to do the work. The truth is, alcohol acts as a depressant and will make you somewhat feeling sleepy. Moreover, as it reduces the rate and way you think or react to certain situation as well as your speaking and moving capacity. So it is quite clear that it will not energize you in any sense.

• There is an old myth that having a beer before a stronger drink will make you stay sober, but not if you chose the other way round. But the truth is that the total alcohol level in your blood (i.e. percentage of alcohol in your blood) will determine whether you are drunk or not and not on the source of alcohol. The amount of alcohol, which will make you sick will definitely depend on your body type and genetic makeup.
• When needed you can get back to sober quickly, even after getting drunk heavily. But, this is not true. Even if you try to do it by taking a shower, drinking coffee or eating some bread, the thing your body needs is time and nothing else. It generally takes nearly three hours for every two drinks to get eliminated from your body (depending on body type).
• Drink and drive are safe as drunken people drive extra carefully due to the fear of getting pulled over. But again drink and drive is extremely dangerous as alcohol slows down the reaction time considerably. Driving a car even if you had only a small amount of drink will be a worst decision possible at any circumstances.
• Every drunken people will have similar type of reaction. Several factors determine the body’s reaction to alcohol such as genetics, body weight, amount of food taken, body chemistry and the amount of alcohol consumed and various other things. So, every person after having the same amount of alcohol will react completely differently and it is impossible to predict it in advance.
• You will have better sex after consumption of alcohol. This myth is also wrong as alcohol actually lowers the sex drive in women and makes it difficult for men to have an erection. The worst thing is alcohol seriously hampers your decision making capacity, thus putting you in a compromised position during sex (forgetting condom, getting pregnant or having sexually transmitted diseases).
• Too much drinking will not have any immediate fatal effect and the worst condition is to get your stomach pumped. In reality, too much alcohol can be toxic and can be fatal, causing death. Moreover, vomiting due to excessive alcohol can choke a person (as he/she is unconscious because of heavy drinking), resulting in death by asphyxiation. And long term use of alcohol can lead to problem drinking and alcoholism thereby causing hepatic and heart disorders.
• Use of drugs is more harmful and alcohol is not that injurious to your body. The actual fact is alcohol is equally bad and kills people as done by illegal drugs. And alcohol has serious detrimental effects on your body (as discussed above).
• Everybody will think you are odd if you do not drink. It is not at all true. It is a misconception we all suffer from. People are too busy to think so hard for others and true friends will not break a friendship over a drink.
• Your parents drink, so you will also drink. But, it is proven that consuming alcohol from a young age can be much more detrimental and can seriously hamper your brain development. Further, it can lead to problem drinking and alcoholism.