In just 7 days, nearly 300 people were infected! Why do some people just can't stop drinking?

Expert of this article: Zhang Zhaomin, Master of Food Science, Senior Engineer

During every festive season, family and close friends gather together, which is a very happy thing.

One thing that is indispensable at a party is drinking.

Some people dislike drinking, but of course many people also like to drink and can't stop drinking once they start.

According to the WeChat public account of "Shenzhen First Aid" -

During the seven-day Spring Festival holiday, Shenzhen's "120" received calls and treated 274 people suffering from alcohol poisoning.

So, why do some people like to drink and become addicted? Do people who blush when drinking alcohol have a higher alcohol tolerance? Can drinking tea or milk really help sober you up?

Let’s learn about it today.

Why is drinking addictive?

Generally, the alcohol content of commercially available alcoholic products is above 0.5% vol (commonly known as degree), and is called beverage alcohol.

There are many kinds of alcoholic beverages, such as fermented wines (beer, wine, rice wine, etc.), distilled wines (baijiu, brandy, etc.), blended wines and liqueurs.

Some people become addicted to drinking, and in fact it is mainly alcohol that is addictive.

Alcohol (scientific name ethanol) is a non-specific central nervous system depressant that can cause short-term excitement and relieve tension.

However, if alcohol is consumed without restraint over a long period of time, it will cause the body to develop a pathological behavioral syndrome (i.e., alcohol dependence), which manifests as an inability to control the use of alcohol, a continuous or intermittent desire to drink, and some negative emotions and physical discomfort symptoms when alcohol is not available.

It is generally believed that alcohol addiction is closely related to functional disorders in our brain's reward pathways.

Studies have shown that alcohol can increase the level of neuropeptides (such as opioid peptides) secreted by the hypothalamus when drinking, and produce a disinhibitory effect by affecting neurotransmitters such as γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), glutamate and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), stimulating the brain to release dopamine to obtain pleasure, thereby prompting drinkers to drink repeatedly and producing a positive reinforcement effect.

As the body is repeatedly stimulated by alcohol, the effect of the brain's reward function will weaken (i.e., the sensitivity will decrease), causing the body to feel uncomfortable after "detaching" from alcohol, producing a negative reinforcement effect.

Over time, this reward effect will reach a new state of adaptation under the influence of alcohol. Once you stop drinking, you will experience adverse reactions after stopping drinking, such as anxiety, irritability, and insomnia. Under the effect of negative reinforcement, drinkers will constantly want to drink and eventually become dependent on alcohol.

Most of the wine is hard to drink

But why do some people still like to drink it?

Generally speaking, higher alcohol content wines tend to be harder to swallow.

Because the higher the alcohol content, the greater the damage and irritation to the digestive tract mucosa, such as causing spicy and burning sensations.

However, the occasions when people generally drink are mainly during reunions, social gatherings and celebrations. In this short-term, acute drinking scenario, the pleasure brought by dopamine in the brain tends to intensify people's emotions and create an atmosphere.

Therefore, even the most unpalatable wine may be finished in one gulp.

It is just because of the differences in alcohol content and other ingredients that the flavor and palatability of various wines vary greatly.

For example, beer and wine with low alcohol content have a bright and lustrous color, and contain some unique volatile flavor components, as well as the slight bitterness brought by hops and the astringency brought by tannins. These combined create a stimulation to the senses, making people like to drink some.

For liquor with a higher alcohol content, the content of flavor components such as acid, alcohol, and ester is relatively high, and the aroma of the wine is very strong, which makes people want to take a sip.

Therefore, people tend to drink a little wine to express their happy mood.

There is also a saying that people who blush when drinking can drink more than those with pale faces. Is it true or false?

People who have red faces when drinking can drink more than those with pale faces?

The so-called being able to drink means that one can drink a lot. The amount of alcohol one can drink has nothing to do with the changes in skin color after drinking. It is mainly related to the speed of metabolism in the body, which is mainly determined by genetic factors.

For example, men generally drink more than women, and the rate at which alcohol is cleared from the blood through metabolism is about 6-10g/hour, which also varies from person to person.

After entering the human body, most of the alcohol will be oxidized and metabolized in the liver. It will first be oxidized into acetaldehyde through three pathways. For example, it will be oxidized into acetaldehyde under the action of alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), and then oxidized into acetic acid under the action of acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH), and then metabolized into carbon dioxide and water and excreted from the body.

People who blush (or get flushed) when drinking alcohol mainly lack acetaldehyde dehydrogenase or have low activity in their bodies. Over a short period of time, too much acetaldehyde accumulates in the body, which manifests as dilation of capillaries in the face or other parts of the body, causing them to appear red.

Those who become pale and sweat after drinking may be consuming too much alcohol, causing serious adverse reactions in the body, such as low blood pressure.

Therefore, if your face turns red or pale after drinking, it means that there may be problems with your body's metabolism and you should avoid drinking.

Are hangover sobering methods such as drinking tea and milk really effective?

Drinking too much alcohol can easily cause symptoms such as dizziness and dry mouth, and people often seek ways to sober up.

After alcohol enters the human body, it mainly depends on the metabolic capacity of the liver to "detoxify", such as the activity of ADH and ALDH in the body. The gastric emptying rate is the main determinant of alcohol absorption, because most of the alcohol is absorbed after entering the intestine, such as the fastest absorption in the duodenum and jejunum.

Therefore, taking some measures before the alcohol is absorbed can provide some relief.

Eating more oily foods before drinking can slow down the rate at which alcohol is emptying from the stomach and form a certain "protective film" in the stomach to slow down the absorption of alcohol in the stomach.

Drinking more water or liquids with high water content such as milk before drinking can also dilute the alcohol concentration in the stomach.

In addition, after drinking alcohol, the main way to relieve some symptoms of dry mouth is to drink water and other liquids. However, since the amount of water consumed when drinking tea or coffee is generally not much, and ingredients such as tea polyphenols and caffeine can also have a certain dehydrating effect like alcohol, the effect of sobering up is not as good as drinking water.

In short, people who turn red or pale after drinking are not suitable for drinking, as excessive drinking will increase damage to the digestive organs (such as the liver).

At holiday gatherings, if drinking is necessary, adult men or women should not consume more than 25g or 15g of alcohol per day, while special groups such as children and the elderly should not drink alcohol.

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