How Many Beers Before I Get Drunk?

Friday is approaching and that means people are having plans for a night out to grab some bottles of beer. This alcoholic beverage provides some health benefits, yet you need to drink moderately to avoid getting drunk.

Basically, people have different reactions to beer, meaning some get drunk easily, while others can finish 12 bottles and still be up. Either way, you need to be mindful of your drinking patterns or else you’ll be dependent on alcohol in the future.

What’s the average alcohol content of beers?

A regular beer typically has an alcohol by volume (ABV) content of 4% to 5%.A standard drink is equivalent to 12 ounces of 5% beer, which contains 0.6 ounces of alcohol.

Conversely, if you’ll be drinking 12 ounces of craft beer, its alcohol content is 0.9 ounces. The higher the alcohol content, the longer it takes for your liver to metabolize it, so your blood alcohol concentration will be high.

How many beers until you get drunk?

Based on US law, if your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is higher than 0.08, then you’re considered legally drunk.  typically, it takes an average drinker 4 to 5 beers to reach a .08 BAC.

However, various factors are influencing the rate of getting drunk for every individual. For example, heavier people get drunk more slowly than those with a lighter weight. For instance, a 100-lb individual is more likely to get drunk with fewer bottles of beer than a 200-lb person.

What are the factors affecting how fast you get drunk?

A while ago, we mentioned that certain variables are affecting how fast you get drunk, right? Well, below are those factors:

Body Weight

Generally, the lighter you are, the faster you’ll get drunk. For instance, a 100-lb person gets drunk after one or two drinks, while a 200-lb individual gets tipsy after drinking three or more glasses.

Sex

If all factors are constant, who gets drunk faster? Men or Women? The answer is “women”. This is true since women have more fats than water inside their bodies.

Take note, alcohol drinking causes dehydration, and the less water in your system, the faster you’ll get drunk.

Age

As your age increases, your alcohol tolerance decreases as well, and this happens because your muscle mass is depleting as well.

Height

Well, there’s a lesser scientific proof regarding the impact of height on drunkenness. However, in a general sense, taller people get drunk more slowly than those with shorter stature.

Consequently, this happens since the alcohol concentration in the blood for taller people is more distributed than shorter individuals.

Other Variables

If you want to lengthen the time that you get drunk, make sure you have a full meal before your drinking session. By doing this, your small intestine slowly absorbs alcohol due to the food particles inside your gut.

Additionally, you need to drink water at some point to avoid dehydration, which causes you to get drunk fast.

What are the different types of beer?

Technically, there are eleven types of beer in the industry and each type has varying alcohol content. Below are the various kinds with their brief description.

Ale

It’s the general type of brown beer you see in many stores and bars. If it’s a pale ale, then its alcohol content is 5%, whereas a dark brown ale is 6.5%.

Lager

Compared to ale, this one is fermented for a longer time using bottom-fermenting yeast. It has an alcohol concentration between 4.5%-13%.

Porter

It has an alcohol concentration of 5.5%, where its distinguishing trait is its dark black color. Moreover, you’ll smell some notes of roasted malt from it.

Stout

Like porter beers, a stout beer also has a dark color. In terms of taste, it’s less sweet and you’ll also feel some coffee flavor in it.

Blonde Ale

This is considered the favorite beer in the summer because of its aroma and slight malt sweetness. In terms of alcohol content, it’s around 3.8%-5.5%.

Brown Ale

Its alcohol concentration is lower than blonde ales, which is 3.3%-4.7%. Likewise, it’s also well-known for its citrus and caramel tastes, with some notes of nuts.

Pilsner

It’s considered as the modern pale lager with an alcohol content of 4.5%. Along with blonde ale, this is also a summer drink in most bars. It has a light golden brown color and minimal bitter taste.

What are the various levels of drunkenness?

Some people are easily drunk when they have one or two drinks, while others can drink as much as 10 glasses and still be up for another round. In relation, there are different levels of drunkenness and you need to know them so that you become vigilant on your drinking habits.

Here are the seven levels:

1. Sobriety: You feel relaxed at this level and your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is 0.01 to 0.05.
2. Blissfulness: At this level, your confidence grows higher and you become more talkative. However, as time passes, your reflexes slow down and you’ll have a difficult time focusing. Your BAC at this level is 0.03-0.12.
3. Excitement: You’ll feel nausea, vomiting, and inability to balance. Likewise, you’ll feel mood swings and an inability to speak well. The BAC at this level is 0.09-0.25.
4. Blurriness: At this level, you’re prone to injuries since you can barely walk and stand upright. Your pain sensitivity also decreases while feeling dizzy. The BAC at this level is 0.18-0.30.
5. Numbness: You’ll be completely helpless and endangered at this level. There is a high risk of injury and inability to control your toilet needs. BAC for this level is 0.25-0.40. Moreover, your body responses are bog down.
6. Coma: Alcohol poisoning can happen at this stage, where BAC is 0.35-45. Moreover, your body temperature drops below the normal range.
7. Death: Your BAC is higher than 0.45 which leads to multiple organ failure and damages. There will be depressed breathing and heartbeat irregularities for this stage as well.

Need Help Overcoming Alcohol Dependence?

Seek Medical Help

Grabbing one or two mugs of beer during the weekends is the start for binge drinking, and later alcoholism. To prevent that from happening, you need to drink moderately and know your limitations.

Conversely, if you’re already suffering from alcohol dependence, then you need to seek advice from a doctor or addiction specialist. They have the experience and expertise to give you a personalized treatment plan that’ll help you overcome alcoholism.