Alcohol Effects Essay, Research Paper

Alcohol Effects The thin bottle freezes my fingers. I slowly tilt my head and bottle back simultaneously and take three deep gulps of the ice cold liquid. It tingles on my tongue on route to the back of my throat, and refreshes me. Leaning my head back into its natural position, I gaze at the label fixed on the clear, glass bottle: Budweiser. Then, I notice the statement at the top of the bottle: This is the famous Budweiser beer. We know of no brand produced by any other brewer which costs so much to brew and age. Our exclusive Beechwood Aging produces a taste, a smoothness and a drinkability you will find in no other beer at any price. When I drink beer, my body and mind relax, and the world around me usually does not bother me. Why does beer loosen me up so much? Every night when I have no homework or nothing important to do, it seems as if I drink alcohol, especially beer. Going to bars and clubs, I see hundreds of people a week who just lounge around, drinking a beer, and having a genuinely good time. Alcohol must play a role into all these good moods and lively people. So, how does a liquid that seems like any other get a person to this feeling, this sensation of being drunk? The bottle says that it is made from the finest grains. Grains make beer? Fermenting or distilling various fruits, vegetables, or grains makes alcohol. Beverage alcohol is known as ethyl alcohol or ethanol. Beer is made by fermenting malted barley and seasoned hops. The color of the beer in my hand is a yellowish color, and this must come from the diluents, additives, and by-products of fermentation. ( Facts about Alcohol ). This leads into the next point: what is being drunk. Right now, I am on my fourth or fifth Budweiser and I feel good; my mind feels somewhat different, but a good different. According to a reliable website, the effects of drinking do not depend on the type of alcoholic beverage but rather on the amount of alcohol consumed on a specific occasion. ( Alcohol and its Effects ) A person my size (6 0 ) and weight (185lbs.) will take longer to get inebriated then a girl who weighs 110 pounds. Plus, the amount taken at one time, the drinkers past use and sex, the type of food in the stomach, and the circumstances under which the drinking occurs will effect the potency of the alcohol. ( Facts about Alcohol ) If a person drinks frequently, they will build up a tolerance against the alcohol, just like any other drug. Also, if someone drinks 6 beers in fifteen minutes compared to someone who drinks six beers in two hours, the person who drank faster will feel the effects more suddenly and stronger. Being blitzed always seems to cause a different feeling throughout my mind and body. I always sense my body becoming warmer, my face gets flushed, my reflexes slow or basically stop, it is harder to do physical activity, my vision becomes blurred and speech slurred. ( Facts about Alcohol ) How does a liquid do this to my mind? According to a notable website, www.arf.org, they explain how alcohol affects the brain as follows:In your brain lies the cerebral cortex, which controls your use of reason and judgement. The nerves in these parts of the brain talk to each other by using impulses that travel through neurotransmitters. One of the most common neurotransmitters, gamma-aminobutyl acid (GABA) is inhibited when someone drinks alcohol. What this really means is that your brain cannot think as fast. And if this happens, someone could do things that they normally do not do because the alcohol affects the brain s logical thinking. Alcohol acts like a sedative, which means your feel soothing and relaxing effects. Alcohol blocks the messages going tot your brain, and alters your perceptions and emotions, vision, hearing and coordination.

All this happens by merely drinking a couple of beers? All of the people that I see at the bar are experiencing their brain functioning slower, at different levels of course. That is amazing to think that people who drink to get intoxicated, are drinking to slow their brain down. I am feeling really nice now; the alcohol in my beer is taking effect, and my brain is slowing down. All those times that I have drank and drove, which I have done sadly to admit, my brain was working way too slow for me to be on the roads. Now I understand. It is hard enough driving out there with different minds thinking different things behind the wheel to have one person functioning slower mentally and physically while driving. That is dangerous. Right now, according to the Police Notebook Online, my blood alcohol content (BAC) is 0.05, which is half of what my BAC level would have to be for me to be considered intoxicated while driving. BAC is the amount of alcohol in the blood that causes the effects. BAC is used by law enforcement in order to determine how drunk someone is. In the state of Nevada, the BAC must below 0.10 in order to not be drunk while driving. At that level, there is obvious intoxication in most people, with the signs of impaired judgement, inhibition, attention, and control, plus the slowing of reflexes. (Police Notebook Online) This kind of scares me now, to think that I drank and drove with such things happening to my body. I am feeling the alcohol, but am still cautious and aware of my actions. I am only 19 years old, but I am still drinking. Some people out there are attempting to curb college alcohol abuse. One of these people is former Secretary of Health and Human Services Dona Shalala, who strongly does not condone underage, irresponsible drinking. She gave a speech in which she brought up the ideas of no allowing drinking at tailgaters before football games, and not let university sponsor alcohol at any sporting events. How does this affect me? I know that I do everything that she does not want on college campuses, including drinking beer as I write this paper. The effects of drinking can be dangerous if not used responsibly, which include being intoxicated while using heavy machinery and binge drinking. Let me lean back again and just enjoy the moment. This is my moment of no worries, no hassles, just drinking a beer. Beer has bonded me together with many friends, which now I know why. Everyone s minds become slower and everyone learns to relax and have fun. I am not condoning drinking, I am just saying that beer gets a person drunk and I tend to enjoy it, just like the rest of the American population. It is really weird how the body acts when foreign substances are put into it, and how it affects everything else. Oh well, I am going to finish my cool beer and go to bed.