Heavy Drinkers Still Can’t Hold Their Liquor

Published

2 years ago

June 22, 2023

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Share on Pinterest People who drink an excessive number of drinks will be impaired, even if they are heavy drinkers. Narcisa Palici / 500px/Getty ImagesA new study found that when people with alcohol-use disorder consumed the equivalent of seven to eight drinks they showed impairment on fine motor and cognitive tasks.This impairment was more than double what they experienced after consuming the smaller intoxicating amount of alcohol. Heavy drinkers and people with AUD both reported feeling less impaired than the light drinkers. Tolerance also does not reduce the damage that can be caused by alcohol, experts say.

While under some conditions, heavy drinkers may be better at holding their liquor, this is only true up to a certain level of alcohol intake, say researchers from the University of Chicago.

In a study published June 18 in Alcohol: Clinical and Experimental Research, they tested the effects of alcohol consumption on young adults with different patterns of alcohol use light and heavy social drinkers, and those with alcohol use disorder (or AUD, previously known as alcoholism). Differences between heavy and light drinkers

Researchers found that heavy drinkers and those with AUD showed less overall impairment on fine motor and cognitive tasks after consuming the equivalent of four to five drinks, compared to light drinkers.

This amount of alcohol is sufficient to produce a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.08-0.09%, the lower limit in the United States for drunk driving.

However, when people with AUD consumed the equivalent of seven to eight drinks which researchers say is more in line with their usual drinking habits, and produces a BAC of around 0.13% they showed impairment on both of those tasks.

In fact, this impairment was more than double what they experienced after consuming the smaller intoxicating amount of alcohol. Three hours after drinking, their performance on these tasks still hadnt returned to their baseline level.

In addition, people with AUD had greater impairment after consuming the larger amount of alcohol than what light drinkers experienced after drinking the lesser amount.

Theres a lot of thinking that when experienced drinkers (those with AUD) consume alcohol, they are tolerant to its impairing effects, study author Andrea King, PhD, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral neuroscience at the University of Chicago, said in a news release.

[Our study] supported that a bit, but with a lot of nuances, she added. When [young people with AUD] drank alcohol in our study at a dose similar to their usual drinking pattern, we saw significant impairments on both the fine motor and cognitive tests that was even more impairment than a light drinker gets at the intoxicating dose. Health effects of alcohol

Dr. Lawrence Weinstein, chief medical officer of American Addiction Centers, who was not involved in the new research, said the study highlights that technically, no one can handle their liquor.

There may be a marked difference in the amount of alcohol at which someone becomes intoxicated, which is a worrying issue in itself, but ethanol, acetaldehyde and other metabolites are toxicants that will affect anyone who consumes alcohol despite the tolerance theyve developed, he told Healthline.

Tolerance also does not reduce the damage that can be caused by alcohol, he said, adding: It is illogical to believe that one would remain unaffected by regular consumption [of alcohol].

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 140,000 people die from excessive alcohol use in the United States each year, making it the fourth-leading preventable cause of death in the country.

In addition, almost 30% of U.S. traffic fatalities in 2019 involved alcohol-impaired driving, reports the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Over the long term, excessive alcohol use can increase the risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, liver disease, certain types of cancer and other health problems.

[Alcohol is] costly to our society for so many reasons, said King in the release. Im hoping we can educate people who are experienced high-intensity drinkers who think that theyre holding their liquor or that theyre tolerant and wont experience accidents or injury from drinking. Different drinking patterns

In the new study, researchers enrolled almost 400 young people, most in their 20s, with different drinking patterns:light drinkers: consumed six or fewer drinks per week, with few binge drinking episodesheavy drinkers: consumed at least 10 drinks per week, with one to five heavy drinking episodes during that timedrinkers with AUD: consumed 28 or more drinks per week (21 or more for women), with at least 11 heavy drinking episodes per month; they also had to meet two or more clinical criteria for AUD

Binge drinking means consuming five or more drinks within about two hours for men, and four or more drinks for women.

Participants underwent two rounds of testing, one after consuming a high alcohol dose (the equivalent of four to five drinks) and the other after consuming a placebo drink containing only 1% alcohol (to create a similar taste). Both contained a flavored drink mix.

Researchers told participants they would receive a drink containing alcohol, a stimulant, a sedative or a placebo. This was to reduce the effect that peoples expectations might have on the results.

Participants consumed each drink over a 15-minute period.

Before drinking the beverage, and 30, 60, 120 and 180 minutes after drinking, participants took a breathalyzer and completed two performance tasks.

One task involved inserting a grooved metal peg into randomly slotted holes; this measured fine motor skills. The other was a pencil-and-paper task designed to test cognitive skills.

At the 30- and 180-minute intervals, participants also reported how impaired they felt. Impacts of higher alcohol intake

Heavy drinkers and people with AUD both reported feeling less impaired than the light drinkers.

In addition, these two groups showed less overall alcohol impairment on the fine motor and cognitive tests; although all groups had similar impairment on the fine motor test at the 30-minute interval.

The performance of heavy drinkers and people with AUD returned to baseline more quickly than that of light drinkers, suggesting they may have greater alcohol tolerance.

However, people with AUD often drink more than four or five drinks in a session. So researchers asked a subset of participants with AUD to repeat the tasks after consuming the equivalent of seven to eight drinks.

At this dose, they had more than double the impairment they experienced at the lower intoxicating dose. Their performance also did not return to baseline during the testing, even after three hours.

They also experienced greater impairment from that higher dose than light drinkers did after the lower intoxicating dose.

I was surprised at how much impairment that group had to that larger dose, because while its 50% more [alcohol] than the first dose, were seeing more than double the impairment, King said in the release.

Entertainment

Davina McCall reveals breast cancer diagnosis a year after brain tumour surgery

Published

29 mins ago

November 8, 2025

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Davina McCall reveals breast cancer diagnosis a year after brain tumour surgery

Davina McCall has revealed she has had breast cancer, nearly a year after she had surgery to remove a brain tumour.

The TV presenter revealed the diagnosis in a video posted to her Instagram on Saturday, saying she was “very angry” when she found out, but now is in a “much more positive place” after undergoing surgery to remove the tumour three weeks ago.

“I found a lump a few weeks ago. It came and went but then I was working on The Masked Singer and Lorraine, the TV show, and Lorraine Kelly had put signs on the backs of all the doors saying ‘check your breasts’ and every time I went for a wee, I did that,” she said.

“It was still there, and then one morning I saw myself in the mirror and thought ‘I’m going to get that looked at’. I had a biopsy. I found out it was indeed breast cancer and I had it taken out in a lumpectomy nearly three weeks ago.”

McCall, 58, said the “lump” was “very, very small” and was discovered early.

“I am so relieved to have had it removed and to know that it hasn’t spread. My lymph nodes were clear, I didn’t have any removed, and all I’m going to do now is have five days of radiotherapy in January as kind of an insurance policy,” she explained.

The former Big Brother presenter thanked her medical team, family and fiance for their support, before adding: “It’s been a lot. I was very angry when I found out, but I let go of that, and I feel in a much more positive place now.

“I think my message is: get checked if you’re worried. Check yourself regularly. If you are due a mammogram, then get it done.

“I have dense breasts and I had a mammogram in August, and I was postponing the ultrasound; I just couldn’t find time to do it. Don’t do that. Get the ultrasound.”

Her breast cancer diagnosis came nearly a year after McCall revealed that she had a benign brain tumour, a colloid cyst, which she described as “very rare”.

She said in a video posted in November last year that chances of having it were “three in a million” and that she had discovered it several months previously after a company offered her a health scan in return for giving a menopause talk.

McCall rose to fame presenting on MTV in the mid-1990s, and later on Channel 4’s Streetmate, before becoming a household name as the host of Big Brother from 2000 to 2010.

She’s gone on to present programmes across the networks, and currently presents ITV dating show My Mum, Your Dad.

In recent years, McCall has spoken regularly on women’s health and the effects of menopause in a bid to break taboos around the subject. Her 2022 book, Menopausing, won book of the year at the British Book Awards.

The same year, McCall fronted the Channel 4 documentary Davina McCall: Sex, Mind And The Menopause, and told the BBC that perimenopausal symptoms caused her difficulties multi-tasking and she considered that she had a brain tumour or Alzheimer’s disease at the time.

In 2023, she was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to broadcasting.

The presenter has previously raised money for Cancer Research UK by running the Race For Life in honour of her late sister, Caroline Baday, who died from lung cancer in 2012 at the age of 50.

Married twice, McCall has three children, two daughters and a son, with her second husband, presenter Matthew Robertson.

She lives with her fiance, hairdresser Michael Douglas, and presents a weekly lifestyle podcast with him, called Making The Cut.

Science

Scientists Identify Oxygen Trapping Weakens Sodium-Ion Battery Performance

Published

59 mins ago

November 8, 2025

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Researchers have identified oxygen trapping in high-sodium cathodes as the main cause of voltage decay. Using EPR spectroscopy, the team uncovered structural changes and trapped O2 accumulation, providing guidance for designing more stable sodium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and energy storage.

Environment

New Mitsubishi Eclipse electric crossover gets real with 370 miles of range

Published

1 hour ago

November 8, 2025

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New Mitsubishi Eclipse electric crossover gets real with 370 miles of range

Mitsubishi Motors Launches the All-New Eclipse Cross Electric Vehicle for the European Market

This one is bound to upset the DSM purists still out there — meet the all-new Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross, an all-electric crossover with over 370 miles of range that’s rolling out to European dealers as you read this. (!)

First unveiled last month, the all-new Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross EV is one of the first fruits of the Nissan- Mitsubishi- Renault alliance to wear the Mitsubishi badge and early production versions of the new SUV have already begun rolling out of Renault’s ElectriCity Douai Plant in Cuincy, France.

“Following the launch of the Outlander plug-in hybrid EV (PHEV) and the Grandis hybrid EV (HEV), rolling out the all-new Eclipse Cross marks a crucial step in our electrification strategy in Europe,” said Takao Kato, president and chief executive officer of Mitsubishi Motors, at the vehicle’s debut. “Having developed the world’s first mass-produced BEV, Mitsubishi Motors has made it a mission to provide environmentally friendly vehicles and has been working toward achieving carbon neutrality. We will continue contributing to the realization of a decarbonized society by expanding our lineup of electrified vehicles, as well as addressing the diverse needs of our European customers.”

Smart Armor styling

Mitsubishi calls its latest Eclipse’ design language “Smart Armor,” and says that its design, “conveys robustness and security by incorporating powerful, armor-like design elements into an advanced and sophisticated smart EV design.”

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I don’t know about any of that, but the design is certainly a noticeable, modern update on the Outlander and Outlander Sport that have dominated the struggling Japanese car brand’s North American product line for the last decade. So, while it may not win any awards or make into a “future classics” coffee table book, the latest Eclipse would certainly look “new” in a modern American Whole Foods parking lot.

Modern outside, modern inside

Inside, the new Mitsubishi Eclipse EV offers a comforting mix of buttons and touchscreens angled, cockpit-style, towards the driver and finished in a color palette that will be familiar to any 1st-gen DSM driver, paired with the chunky steering wheel and diamond-quilted seats that drivers familiar with Mitsubishi’s more recent SUV- and crossover-heavy are used to.

Like the exterior, the new Eclipse EV’s probably won’t win any design awards, but it seems comfortable and practical enough and — I can’t state this enough — looks to be a noticeable improvement over the previous generation. The car’s tech, connectivity, and infotainment features, too, also seem thoroughly modern:

The all-new Eclipse Cross is equipped with a vertical 12.3-inch Smartphone-link Display Audio (SDA) system, offering the latest infotainment experience. As it is a vehicle with Google built-in1, drivers can use apps like Google Assistant and Google Maps the moment they step into the car and even download additional apps via Google Play. Simply saying “Hey Google” enables drivers to operate the air conditioner, search for destinations, make phone calls, and play music—all hands-free. Both Apple CarPlay®4 and Android AutoTM are supported with wireless connectivity, offering a seamless connection to smartphones. The audio system features a Harman Kardon premium sound system with five selectable listening modes to suit any mood or preference, delivering an immersive, high-quality sound experience. In addition, four drive modes, Personal, Eco, Comfort, and Sport can be selected at will through the SDA, depending on the driver’s preferences and driving conditions. The Mitsubishi Motors mobile app enables remote access to the vehicle, including locking and unlocking, charging, and checking the parking location, all from a smartphone, enhancing everyday convenience. The model supports Firmware-Over-The-Air (FOTA) wireless software update technology, enabling drivers to easily update to the latest software environment by simply following the instructions on the SDA screen.

The all-new Eclipse Cross features up to 20 advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS)5. Ultrasonic sensors, cameras, and forward radar constantly monitor the vehicle’s surroundings to support safe driving. With a range of advanced safety technologies, including the MI-PILOT2 same-lane driver assistance system for highways and Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA)2 system, it offers a safe and secure driving experience.

MITSUBISHI

The new Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross EV features an 87 kWh battery good for up to 600 km (~375 miles) of range on the European cycle. That battery sends electrons to a capable 160 kW (~215 hp) electric motor that delivers 300 Nm (220 lb-ft) of torque at 0 rpm. DC fast charging can happen at up to 150 kW of charging, which (by my math) works out to something like a 25 minute 10-80% charge time.

Spanish-language site Motorpasión was able to get their hands on a preproduction version of the new Mitsubishi Eclipse and gave it a pretty solid review. You can check that out here, but we’ll be holding back our review until Fred or Micah can get their hands on one. Stay tuned.

Electrek’s Take

2026 Mitsubishi Eclipse EV; via Mitsubishi.

I’ve alluded to this a few times in this article, but it’s worth saying again: the new Eclipse Cross EVs aren’t wining awards or setting any performance records here, but they’re perfectly adequate and zippy enough to more than keep up with modern traffic. And, frankly, that’s a refreshing change of pace from an automotive market that seems to be constantly chasing the cancerous mantra of, “bigger, faster, more.”

If Mitsubishi’s US dealers aren’t positively begging for the parent company to bring this new EV to North America, they have truly lost the plot.

SOURCE | IMAGES: Mitsubishi.

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