Alcohol

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Introduction and Basic Description

Alcohol is a recreational substance used for its CNS depressant properties as far back as the year 10,000 BC.

Timeline of Experience

Onset: 15-30 minutes
Come Up: 15-20 minutes
Plateau: 30-90 minutes
Coming Down: 45-60 minutes
After Effects: 1-2 hours
Day After: 1-36 hours


Effects

Alcohol is a CNS depressant, due to this property many people will use it to relax or cheer them up and some also use it to make them more sociable, especially during parties or at bars and nightclubs.

Along with this it also affects motor co-ordination and reduces inhibitions, both of which can lead to users doing things they wouldn't usually do and possibly result in embarassment the next day. After engesting too much, many users may also feel nausea which could result in vomiting.



Dosages

Method of administration

Inhalation
Oral
Capsules
Intravenous


Problems
Contraindications and Overdose
Alcohol is a GABA agonist, therefore care should be taken when mixing with GABA reuptake inhibitors or other GABA agonists. GABA antagonists such as saclofen may reduce the effects of alcohol.

Engesting too much alcohol may be fatal, up to a 19% BAC (blood alcohol content) may result in unpleasant effects, going as high as 40% will likely result in death. If a lethal BAC is reached the user may feel nausea and black out. Their breathing may also stop and they could go into a coma.

Negative Short-Term Side Effects

Lowered inhibitions may result in doing things that the user may feel embarassed about the next day. The day after a heavy session of engesting alcohol the user could feel nauseous, lethargic, depressed and thirsty. This is usually causes by the alcohol being metabolised to toxic products such as ethanal and acetic acid.

Negative Long-Term Side Effects

Long term users of alcohol may result in a thiamine deficiency which could cause brain disorders such as Wenicke-Korsakoff syndrome which consists of mental confusion, occular paralysis, impaired co-ordination, and memory problems. Alcohol may also cause cirrhosis which scars the liver and may result in it not functioning correctly.



Addiction and Withdrawal Issues

Prolonged use of alcohol can result in physical addiction, which when suddenly stopped may cause withdrawal symptoms. Drugs such as benzodiazepines may be used when slowly tapering off alcohol to help reduce withdrawals. Alcohol withdrawals may include headaches, nausea, insomnia, tremors, fever, visual hallucinations, and convulsions.


Legal Issues


Background and Chemistry
History of Drug


Chemistry and Pharmacology
Ethanol acts primarily as a positive allosteric modulator at GABAA-receptors, but with a binding site distinct from the benzodiazepine binding site in the receptor complex. Consequently, ethanol shares many immediate effects and neurological consequences of regular use and addiction with benzodiazepines and similar sedatives. The withdrawal syndrome is similar too. However, alcohol has a wide array of auxiliary effects, from nmda-receptor antagonism (as seen with dissociatives like ketamine, albeit much weaker) to nicotinic agonism (possibly partially explaining experienced synergy with nicotine) to selective serotonergic agonism (among other activities). Due to the complexity of its activity, our understanding of ethanol remains incomplete, despite quite possibly being the longest-studied psychoactive drug.