What is its effect on the body?

Each time someone has a drink, whether it is beer, wine, or liquor, he or she is consuming alcohol. Alcohol is a drug that is absorbed into the bloodstream from the stomach and small intestine. It is broken down by the liver and then eliminated from the body.

There are limits to how fast the liver can break down alcohol and this process cannot be sped up. Until the liver has time to break down all of the alcohol, the alcohol continues to circulate in the bloodstream, affecting all of the body's organs, including the brain. In general, the liver can break down the equivalent of about one drink per hour and nothing can speed this up--including black coffee.

As alcohol reaches the brain, the person begins to "feel" drunk. The exact nature of this feeling can vary considerably from individual to individual and even within the same individual from situation to situation. What is common to all individuals and all situations is that alcohol depresses the brain and slows down its ability to control the body and the mind. This is one reason why alcohol is so dangerous. Alcohol acts like a sedative and slows down muscle coordination, reflexes, movement, and speech. If an individual drinks too much alcohol, his or her breathing or heart rate can reach dangerously low levels or even stop.
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