What Happens To Your Body When You Start Drinking Alcohol (Minute by Minute)

Here’s a sanitized version of the provided YouTube transcript:

—

It’s Friday night, the end of a long week, and you decide to have a drink… maybe two or three. We’ve all been there. But have you ever wondered what’s really happening to your body when you start drinking alcohol? Today on the channel, we’re exploring what happens to your body – minute by minute – when you drink alcohol. We’ll examine these concepts through the lens of our character, Sarah. We’ll follow her on her night out—and beyond—breaking down the changes in her body from the very first sip of her cocktail. Ready to see what happens? Let’s head to the bar.

It’s 10:06 p.m., and Sarah takes her first sip of a skinny margarita—her go-to drink after a long work week. That tangy, sweet flavor aside, what’s going on inside? The alcohol, called ethanol, is a small molecule absorbed rapidly. Within minutes, it’s traveling through her bloodstream. The vibrant bar atmosphere surrounds Sarah. The clinking of glasses, casual chatter, and upbeat music fill the air. This sensory overload usually feels a bit much for her, but as the alcohol starts to take effect, it blends into a pleasantly muted buzz.

A wave of warmth spreads through Sarah’s body. Alcohol acts as a vasodilator, expanding her blood vessels and leading to a feeling of warmth. However, this also means that her body loses heat more quickly, explaining why some people feel cold later in the night after drinking.

It’s 10:21 p.m. What’s going on inside Sarah’s body? Let’s zoom in! We see the alcohol molecules from Sarah’s margarita begin their journey. A small portion, about 20%, is absorbed directly through the lining of her mouth, entering her bloodstream almost immediately. The rest of the margarita travels down her esophagus and into her stomach. Here, another small portion, about 20%, of the alcohol enters the bloodstream through the stomach lining. Once in the bloodstream, alcohol takes a whirlwind tour of the body, impacting various organs, especially the brain. This initial absorption can explain why people feel the effects of alcohol so quickly.

The remaining alcohol continues to Sarah’s small intestine. The walls of the small intestine are lined with tiny, finger-like projections called villi. These villi provide a huge surface area to absorb nutrients… and alcohol. The alcohol rapidly passes through the villi and into the network of blood vessels surrounding the small intestine. Now it enters the portal vein, which acts like a highway transporting it directly to the liver. The liver is bathed in a surge of alcohol-rich blood. Keep in mind that while the liver is the powerhouse of detoxification and will work hard to break down the ethanol molecules, its capacity is limited. It can only process so much in any given time period. When the liver can’t keep up, the excess alcohol continues to circulate throughout Sarah’s body via her bloodstream. This is how alcohol ultimately reaches her brain and other organs, causing the changes we’ll witness as Sarah’s evening continues.

It’s 10:39 p.m., and with the first drink down, Sarah is feeling a slight buzz. Typically a pretty anxious person, Sarah finds herself a bit less stressed. Alcohol reduces activity in the amygdala, the part of the brain associated with fear and anxiety. But while this might feel good at the moment, chronic reliance on alcohol for stress relief can actually worsen anxiety over time. Sarah leans back into her chair and takes a deep breath. A sense of ease washes over her. The worries that were nagging in her mind seem to fade into the background. This isn’t just her imagination; there’s a biochemical reason behind the shift. Alcohol acts as a depressant, slowing down the activity of the central nervous system. This means that messages between Sarah’s brain cells are traveling a little slower than usual. It’s kind of like putting the brakes on her usual whirlwind of thoughts.

As her thoughts quiet down, so does the activity in her sympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for our “fight-or-flight” response. Her heart rate slows slightly, her breathing becomes easier, and any muscle tension she is holding eases. A subtle change has come over Sarah’s face. Her cheeks are slightly flushed, and her eyes have a slight sparkle. This is due to the blood vessel dilation we mentioned earlier. As Sarah catches a glimpse of herself in the mirror behind the bar, she feels a little more attractive. This boost in self-perception is a common effect of alcohol, as it lowers inhibitions and can temporarily increase self-confidence.

Alcohol affects the neurotransmitters in her brain. It boosts the release of dopamine – the “feel-good” chemical – making her feel happier and more relaxed. Simultaneously, alcohol suppresses glutamate, the brain’s primary excitatory neurotransmitter. This slowdown is starting to slightly impact her judgment and coordination. Sarah’s usual social inhibitions start to fade, and she starts talking to the guy next to her at the bar. Conversation feels easy. Alcohol, often known as a “social lubricant,” dampens the activity in the prefrontal cortex of the brain – the region responsible for judgment, planning, and impulse control. This makes it easier for Sarah to strike up conversations with strangers and feel more at ease in the social setting of the bar. But it’s a delicate balance. While the relaxation might feel nice at this point, if Sarah continues drinking, this effect will intensify, potentially leading to poor judgment and impaired decision-making further into her evening.

It’s 10:55 p.m., and with a second drink in hand and almost finished, the alcohol level in Sarah’s blood is rising pretty rapidly. The liver, our body’s chemical processing plant, is working hard to metabolize the alcohol. But the liver can only handle about one standard drink per hour. When it gets overwhelmed, excess alcohol continues to circulate in the bloodstream. Sarah swirls the remaining liquid in her glass. The ice cubes clink hollowly with each circle. She catches the bartender’s eye and orders a third cocktail. The bar, dim and tucked away, is starting to blur a little around the edges.

It’s 11:16 p.m., and Sarah has decided to buy a round of shots for a group of strangers. While the gesture feels generous at the moment, her impaired judgment is making her less aware of the potential financial strain of this decision. It also increases the pace of her alcohol consumption. Sarah is much more talkative than usual and feels more and more confident. This is because alcohol is further depressing the areas in the brain associated with social anxiety and judgment. However, her motor skills are also starting to become increasingly impaired.

As the drinks keep coming, Sarah feels more shifts. She senses a giddy lightness she hasn’t experienced in ages. Her words, normally measured and precise, tumble out in a stream, no longer carefully filtered. Sarah shares stories with the bartender about her demanding boss, her dating life, and various mishaps. It all comes spilling out, punctuated by bouts of laughter that are just a touch too loud for the subdued atmosphere of the bar. The buzz that had been a pleasant hum before is now a full-blown symphony in Sarah’s head. Her movements are becoming less deliberate, her glass sloshing a bit as she sets it down, a napkin fluttering to the floor unnoticed.

It’s 11:57 p.m. When getting up to use the restroom, Sarah accidentally bumps into a table, almost knocking over someone else’s drink. She laughs it off and attributes it to the dim lighting, but in reality, alcohol is subtly affecting her coordination and balance. Sarah’s blood alcohol concentration continues to rise, affecting her vision, speech, and balance. She’s continuing to experience blurred vision and slurred speech. All of this is due to the way alcohol continues to disrupt communication between her brain cells. The lights above the bar seem to pulse in rhythm with her heartbeat. As she sips her next cocktail, the world tilts just a touch. It seems funny now that there is this lack of coordination, as if someone else is in charge of her body. The bartender asks Sarah a question, which she barely hears. She tries to respond, but her words seem to trip over one another.

At 12:32 a.m., with multiple cocktails and a shot in her system, Sarah is definitely feeling drunk. Her phone slips out of her hand as she tries to take a selfie. It takes her several tries before she manages to catch it. Her slower reflexes make normally simple tasks slightly more difficult. Sarah’s appetite is starting to kick in. While alcohol can temporarily increase appetite, in the long run, it can disrupt hormones that regulate hunger and fullness, potentially leading to unhealthy eating habits. She clumsily calls the bartender over and orders food, but he informs her that the kitchen is closed. She starts to search on her phone for restaurants still serving food and asks some of the other patrons at the bar for recommendations. Then, she stumbles next door to a slightly livelier bar, where she orders another cocktail.

It’s 1:12 a.m., and Sarah has tried to maintain her confident buzz and relaxed demeanor, but she’s not feeling so well. After drinking more than her liver can handle, she’s reeling from the effects. The upbeat music she usually enjoys now feels too loud and chaotic. She also misinterprets a friendly smile from another bar patron as a flirtatious gesture. Alcohol has altered her perception of sound and social cues. When she tries to flirt back and the stranger walks away, Sarah feels a sweeping sense of rejection. Coupled with an exaggerated emotional state is a physical feeling of nausea, and Sarah runs to the bathroom to vomit. Throwing up is the body’s defense mechanism for a variety of reasons. First, when the body recognizes alcohol as a toxin and wants to get rid of it as quickly as possible, vomiting is one way to expel the excess alcohol. Additionally, when your liver breaks down alcohol, it produces a toxic byproduct. If you drink too much, your liver can’t process it fast enough, leading to a buildup that makes you feel sick. Vomiting helps your body get rid of some of this byproduct. Finally, alcohol directly irritates your stomach lining. This irritation can lead to nausea and vomiting, especially if you drink a lot in a short period.

After a fellow patron helps hold Sarah’s hair back as she throws up in the bathroom, Sarah knows it’s time to go. She gets a cab and heads home, falling asleep in her clothes and makeup on top of her comforter.

It’s 7:02 a.m., and Sarah wakes up with a pounding headache and a hazy memory of last night. That headache? It’s partly due to dehydration caused by alcohol, which also greatly disrupted her sleep. After a night of strange dreams and sweating, her body is still working to clear the remaining alcohol from her system. Alcohol’s sleep disruption is a double-edged sword. While drinking may help you fall asleep initially, the quality of sleep is severely compromised. REM sleep – crucial for memory and emotional processing – is suppressed, leaving you feeling groggy and unrested.

Sunlight pierces through a sliver in Sarah’s blackout curtains, causing pain across her throbbing skull. She groans, her head feeling as though it were filled with discomfort. Each movement sends fresh waves of nausea through her body. Her stomach churns, and her mouth feels dry. Dehydration is a major hangover culprit. Alcohol acts as a diuretic, increasing urination and potentially leaving you dehydrated. Fragments of the previous night flicker back in painful flashes: the laughter that turned too loud, the spilled drinks, the bartender’s worried frown. A wave of shame washes over Sarah. How much had she drunk? What had she said?

Alcohol-induced memory blackouts are common. As blood alcohol concentration rises, the brain’s memory center is impaired. Long-term memory formation can be blocked, leaving you with frustrating gaps in your recollection. Sarah presses a shaking hand to her temple. She would need to piece together the night and retrace her steps—a daunting task considering the state of her brain. There was the lingering sense of having done something reckless. She vaguely remembers falling onto a table, and was that a stranger holding her hair back while she vomited? Everything is just a little too foggy for her liking.

It’s 8:14 a.m., and after tossing and turning in bed for a while, Sarah stumbles towards the kitchen, each step a battle against the persistent nausea. Her goal sits on the countertop – a tall, frosted glass left out since the night before. She fills it to the brim with icy water. Rehydration is crucial to hangover recovery. Alcohol’s diuretic effect leaves you depleted, throwing your electrolyte balance off-kilter. Replenishing these lost fluids can help ease symptoms like headaches, fatigue, and nausea. Alcohol also depletes vital nutrients. While water is crucial, supplementing with electrolyte-rich drinks or foods can aid in restoring balance. Unfortunately, there’s no magical cure for a hangover. The body simply needs time to metabolize the alcohol and repair the damage. While rehydration and rest are essential, the lingering effects may persist throughout the day.

So, does everyone’s body respond to alcohol similarly? Or are there certain risk factors Sarah has? While it’s easy to assume that everyone experiences a night of drinking the same way, that’s not true. While the immediate effects of Sarah’s drinks felt unpleasant enough, there are hidden factors that might make her especially vulnerable to the longer-term effects of alcohol.

First, there’s the fact that Sarah’s a female. Biology plays a big role here. Women generally metabolize alcohol slower than men, leading to a higher concentration in their blood. They also tend to have a higher percentage of body fat, which means less water to dilute the alcohol, making its impact stronger. These factors could contribute to both negative short-term and long-term consequences for Sarah.

What about weight? A person with a smaller body will feel the effects of alcohol more strongly than someone with a larger body, even if they consume the same amount. This is because the alcohol is less diluted in the bloodstream of someone smaller.

Next, there’s the factor of food intake before and during drinking. In Sarah’s case, she worked until 7:00 p.m., then went home, showered, got ready, and went out… but skipped dinner, thinking she’d get a bite sometime during the night. Not having eaten beforehand was detrimental to her, and by the time her appetite intensified later in the night, the local kitchens were closed. Drinking on an empty stomach accelerated the absorption of alcohol into her bloodstream, intensifying its impact on her brain and body.

There are also risk factors associated with medications and other substances. It’s vital not to mix alcohol with anything else without consulting a medical professional. Even common over-the-counter medications or certain herbal supplements can have dangerous interactions when combined with alcohol, exacerbating the effects of both. Sarah is on anti-anxiety medication, which puts her at greater risk of feeling the intense effects of excess alcohol.

It’s crucial to remember that these individual risk factors can compound over time. The more frequently Sarah drinks, and the more heavily she drinks, the higher the risk of alcohol impacting her health in the long run in a wide variety of ways.

While today’s hangover feels awful, it’s a short-term consequence of Sarah’s alcohol consumption. What’s more concerning is that repeated, excessive alcohol use can put a strain on her body, silently increasing her risk for serious, chronic health problems over time.

Let’s look at some of those risks. First, there’s liver damage. Our liver takes the brunt of processing the alcohol we drink. It’s resilient, but long-term, heavy drinking can lead to a buildup of fat in the liver, inflammation, and eventually, irreversible scarring. A damaged liver can struggle to function properly, which has widespread effects on the entire body.

In fact, alcohol is a known carcinogen, contributing to the development of several types of cancer. The risk is associated with all kinds of cancers, including those of the mouth, throat, esophagus, liver, colon, and breast. The more you drink and the longer the duration of heavy drinking, the higher your overall risk becomes.

Then, there’s potential heart disease. Chronic alcohol consumption weakens the heart muscle and disrupts its rhythm, increasing blood pressure and making it harder to pump blood efficiently. Over time, this raises the risk of heart attack and stroke. Even light to moderate drinking has been linked to a slight increase in cardiovascular risks.

How about mental health? Alcohol and mental health have a complex, two-way relationship. For some people, drinking can become a way to numb negative emotions or cope with stress. However, chronic alcohol use can actually worsen existing conditions like anxiety and depression, even increasing the risk of developing new mental health disorders.

These conditions can all develop insidiously. Sarah might not immediately feel the impact of chronic alcohol use, but if she has regular occurrences of heavy drinking, the damage might be silently accumulating inside her body. Understanding these risks highlights the importance of responsible alcohol consumption.

Sometimes, the line between social drinking and something more problematic can blur. For some people, alcohol use can become difficult to manage, leading to a condition called Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD). It’s a chronic, relapsing medical condition where someone can’t control their alcohol intake, even when it causes significant harm.

Understanding the signs of AUD is crucial. Let’s break down some key symptoms. Note that AUD comes in varying degrees – mild, moderate, or severe. These signs might be subtle at first or only become noticeable during difficult times.

The first thing to look for is cravings – a strong desire or compulsion to drink alcohol. Sarah might find herself thinking about alcohol frequently, and those thoughts may become hard to ignore. Then, there’s the loss of control. Having trouble limiting the amount of alcohol consumed or the duration of drinking episodes. For someone with AUD, the intention of “just one drink” might often spiral into several more.

Additionally, there’s the dependence factor. This includes things like building a tolerance, which means needing more alcohol to feel the same effect, or experiencing withdrawal symptoms when stopping drinking.

It’s important to understand that AUD is not a sign of weakness or a moral failing. It’s a complex disease influenced by a mix of genetic predispositions, environmental factors, and individual psychology. The earlier someone with AUD seeks professional help, the better their chances of successful recovery.

Now check out “What Happens To Your Body When You Stop Drinking Alcohol.” Or watch this video instead!

—

This version maintains the informative nature of the original transcript while removing any explicit or sensitive content.