Alcohol and your health
Make the best use of your DrinkSense and learn about the impact alcohol can have on your health.
Alcohol hits differently
Your body absorbs, processes and eliminates alcohol differently from any other drink. The more you know about the effects, the better you can plan.
How alcohol is processed within your body:
It’s absorbed into your bloodstream via your stomach and intestines
When you drink, alcohol doesn’t stay in your stomach for long. It moves into your small intestine, where it’s absorbed directly into your bloodstream. Because this process happens quickly, the effects of alcohol can begin sooner than many people expect.
The alcohol travels to other parts of your body quickly
Your bloodstream acts like a delivery system, carrying alcohol to organs and tissues throughout your body. This includes your heart, liver, muscles and even your skin.
Your brain and nervous system feel the effects almost instantly
Even if you don’t feel the effects right away, your brain is already being affected. This can influence judgment, reaction time, and decision‑making long before you notice any outward signs.
Alcohol won’t leave your body until it’s processed, which takes time.
Your body can process approximately one standard drink per hour. Of that, 90 per cent of alcohol consumed is processed by your liver, five per cent by your lungs and five per cent by your kidneys.
With alcohol in your system, your brain and body will be impacted, changing things like: judgement, inhibitions, reaction time, coordination, vision and speech.
Can I gain weight from alcohol?
Every drink can add major calories to your diet, no matter if you’re feeling fit or trying to lose weight. The sugars add up: One wine bottle has around 750 calories, a six-pack of beer has around 900.
Will I develop alcohol dependence?
Drinking regularly can quickly lead to developing a tolerance for alcohol, the feeling of needing more booze to feel the effects, and dependency on alcohol where you need booze to feel ‘normal’ in more extreme cases.
Can alcohol affect my personality?
How alcohol will affect your mood and behaviour really depends on how you’re feeling that day, what you’ve eaten, your sleep the night before, and more. Worried you’ll be drunk crying and texting your ex? Just slow down before you have more than you can handle.
What are the dangers of alcohol?
Alcohol and pregnancy
Is it safe to drink alcohol when pregnant? Put simply, there is no known safe amount of alcohol for the fetus while pregnant. Studies show any amount, even low or moderate alcohol use, at any stage in your pregnancy poses the risk of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FASD).
FASD is a lifelong disability that can cause a range of issues including: difficulties with language and learning, impulse control, attention and judgement.
If you’re pregnant, you can:
- Find a support network to help you abstain from alcohol while pregnant or trying to become pregnant, start your own Dry9
- Help support your loved ones who are pregnant by joining in their Dry9
- Learn more about the dangers of FASD
- Stock up on fun and delicious mocktail recipes
Mixing medication with alcohol
When taking medications prescribed by your doctor, or even drugs for headaches, sleep aides and allergies, it’s important to understand what the effects of adding alcohol will be. Nearly half of all prescription medications interact with alcohol – even small amounts of alcohol can reduce the effects or cancel them out entirely. Plus, the drowsy, sedative effect of drugs and alcohol can compound to create greater levels of sleepiness and reduced coordination.
When you’re taking prescription or non-prescription drugs, it’s best to speak to your doctor or pharmacist about how they could interact with alcohol.
Remember that both alcohol and whatever medications you’re taking will be processed by your liver, so it’s best to not drink alcohol so your liver has the chance to work properly.
Chronic diseases and alcohol
The ways alcohol will impact you truly depends on your body, including whether you’re dealing with a chronic illness or disease. Adding alcohol to your system when fighting off a recent illness or a disease you’ve had for many years could cause unexpected reactions. Overall, research suggests the risk of heart disease and stroke rise with alcohol consumption.
Alcohol can increase the risk of illnesses such as cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, colon, liver and breast. As your weekly alcohol consumption goes up, so will the risk of these diseases. The bottom line: all drinking comes with risk.
To learn more about the risks of alcohol and chronic diseases, visit the Canadian Centre for Substance Use and Addiction.
Adding energy drinks to alcohol
Whether you’ve tried mixing energy drinks with your alcoholic drinks before or you’ve just heard of it, the simple truth is that it’s not a good idea. There are two main factors that make mixing energy drinks and alcohol dangerous. First, the addition of caffeine will make you stay up longer, reducing the depressive effects of drinking and allowing you to get more intoxicated. Plus, all that sugar and caffeine needs to be processed by your already-overworked liver. Give your body a break and skip the Jaggerbombs.