Alcohol

What is Fermentation?

It’s a metabolic process which involves yeast or bacteria reacting and converting sugars in foods into alcohol.

What is Saccharomyces Cerevisiae and its role with fermentation?

It’s a species of yeast that converts glucose to CO2 and Ethanol by process of fermentation. It helps creates the products of fermentation.

What is Ethanol and its role with alcoholic beverages?

It’s a colorless and flammable alcohol and is also an active, intoxicating ingredient in alcoholic beverages.

What effect does Carbon Dioxide have on the absorption of alcohol in the blood?

It increases alcohol absorption into the blood by 50%.

What is intoxication?

A state in which a person’s mental and physical abilities are impaired by alcohol or another substance.

How does Alcohol affect an individual at low doses?

It increases their heart rate, aggression, impulsiveness, and talkativeness.

What happens to dopamine and serotonin when alcohol is taken at low doses?

Serotonin is released and gives a surge of dopamine which gives a Euphoric feeling also known as feeling “buzzed”.

What happens to Dopamine with continued use of alcohol?

The brain adapts to the dopamine overload. This causes the brain to produce less dopamine and reduces the number of dopamine receptors. Because your dopamine levels are getting lower, so does your mood.

What is Ataxia?

An irreversible degenerative disease of the nervous system.

What are 3 symptoms of Ataxia?

 Poor coordination, change in speech, and difficulty swallowing.

What does alcohol do to the “hippocampus” and brain cells?

It degenerates and shrinks the hippocampus. Because of the shrinkage, that equals the loss of brain cells.

What happens to Cortisol levels due to continuous alcohol consumption?

They raise

What does “BAC” stand for?

Blood Alcohol Consumption

What is BAC?

The amount of alcohol in a person’s blood (expressed as a percentage).

What are the 4 factors that can affect “BAC” Level?

Rate of consumption, body size, gender, and amount of food in the stomach.

How does rate of consumption contribute to the BAC in the blood?

The liver chemically breaks down or metabolizes alcohol at a constant rate. This causes individuals who have few drinks in a span of one hour to have a higher BAC than those who have the same amount over several hours.

How does body size contribute to the BAC in the blood?

The smaller the person, the more effects of alcohol they feel than larger people. Height and size play a role because there’s more space for alcohol to distribute or diffuse through.

At the same rate of alcohol consumption which gender will have higher BAC levels?

Females

Why does that gender have higher BAC levels at the same rate of alcohol consumption?

Two factors are body height/weight and the fact that the liver is more efficient at metabolizing alcohol in males.

What is Alcohol Dehydrogenase?

An enzyme that helps metabolize alcohol.

How does ADH differ in males and females?

ADH is higher in the male’s stomach and is more active in the liver while in females, ADH is not expressed in the stomach and the ADH in their liver does not work as efficiently.

How does “food in the stomach” affect Blood Alcohol Concentration in the blood?

Food in the stomach inhibits absorption of alcohol by obstructing alcohol from coming into contact with the stomach lining and entering the bloodstream. It also takes up space in the stomach