5 Drinking Myths That Can Kill You

Like everything else in life, getting drunk is something worth learning how to do right. Unfortunately, a lot of what we know about drinking and drunkenness we learned from our friends, while everyone involved was, you guessed it, drunk.

Let’s all drink and get drunk the right way, or we’ll all end up getting a taste of the alcohol detox Florida facilities and other similar centers around the world would only be too willing to put us through.

5. “Let him sleep it off”

Most of us are under the impression that if someone drinks to the point of passing out, the best option is to toss them in bed and, like magic, they’ll be fine after a little sleep.

The Truth: Passing out and falling asleep aren’t the same thing. Someone who has passed out as a result of alcohol intoxication is unlikely to be awakened by the need to hurl. If they happen to be lying on their back when the spewing starts, the chunks have nowhere to go except into the lungs. Tell Hendrix we say hi!

What you actually should do: Lay them on their side and, between shots of tequila, try to check and make sure they haven’t stopped breathing at some point. If their breathing becomes irregular or they start vomiting without waking up, they have alcohol poisoning. Call for help!

4. Drinking Keeps You Warm

So you think you feel warmer after a shot of booze right? Wrong! Just like how that chick you brought home wasn’t nearly as hot as she was the previous night, the same goes for your core body temperature.

The Truth: Alcohol makes you feel warm and turn beet red because it causes your blood vessels to dilate. This brings the blood closer to the surface of your skin, which makes you feel warmer. Unfortunately, with the warmth now oozing off the surface of your skin instead of trapped in the core of your body, you’re losing precious body heat.

What you should do: If you’re stuck on a freezing mountain, ignore the booze and use each others body heat to stay warm.

3. Taking Aspirin Prior to Drinking Will Prevent Hangovers

Naturally, throughout the ages people have come up with all kinds of harebrained schemes to avoid that dreaded hangover. One of the more timeless techniques is popping an aspirin or two prior to drinking. Sort of makes sense, in theory.

The Truth: First of all, what kind of magical aspirin are you taking that has the tenacity to still be fighting a headache well into the morning? It’s not methamphetamine! Its powers would have run their course well before you needed help. But wait, it gets worse. A study by the American Medical Association found that ingesting aspirin actually slows the rate at which your body metabolizes alcohol. Not only does that increase blood alcohol levels, but it makes the effects of the alcohol last longer. So if you feel better than usual when you wake up in the morning, it probably means you’re still drunk.

What you should do: When it comes to a hangover, dehydration is the real enemy. Try drinking eight ounces of water between drinks. It won’t completely prevent a hangover, but it will make it a hell of a lot more manageable. Alternately, you could also just do what some do and drink indefinitely.

2. Drinking Coffee Will Make You Sober

When it comes to drinking myths, this one is a stone classic. How many movies have you seen where someone summons a cup of coffee to quell their drunken shenanigans? Ten minutes later, the drinker in question has calmed down and all is well. If only it was that easy.

The Truth: Coffee is a stimulant. Alcohol is a depressant. The thinking here is that, in the war for control over your bodily functions, stimulants kick all sorts of depressant ass. If this theory had any legs, mixing cocaine and heroin would result in full-on excitement instead of untimely death. Coffee won’t make you less drunk, but it will certainly make you a tad more alert.

What you should do: Pretend you’ve passed out. Since you’re joking, the risk of drowning in your own vomit is negligible. But your fellow drunken revelers won’t know that.

1. You Can Beat a Breathalyzer Test

Let’s be honest here: Driving drunk is an art. And when it comes to art, some people paint masterpieces while some others wrap their Geo around innocent civilians. No matter how adept your driving skills may be, if you get pulled over and blow above the legal limit, you’re going to jail. And rightfully so. You’re an adult, skip the risk and call a cab. Some people however think they can outsmart the breathalyzer. The methods vary wildly, ranging everywhere from sucking on pennies to eating your underwear.

The Truth: NOTHING works! Eat all the mustard you want, hyperventilate up a storm, belch, do whatever you like. But the fact is, that machine that you’re blowing is pretty much undefeatable.

What you should do: Let’s put it this way: About 10 000+ people die in car accidents every year in South Africa and a lot of these accidents where caused by drunk drivers. So seriously, just don’t get hammered and drive! We mean it.

Ultra Liquors promotes responsible drinking. Stay safe!

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