Questions tagged [alcohol]

For questions about the biological aspects of alcohol, such as metabolism, mechanisms of effect, etc. Questions should be carefully written to focus on the biology. Chemistry questions are off-topic.

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How many drinks were consumed by each test subject in this study?

I was reading this study and came across the following line: ...subjects consumed either 500 mL of whey protein (25 g; PRO), alcohol (1.5 g·kg body mass⁻¹), 12±2 standard drinks) co-ingested with ...
Timothy Fisher's user avatar
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1 answer
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Does mixing alcohol types result in faster intoxication or worse hangover?

There is a widespread belief that mixing (drink one, then the other) alcoholic beverage types results in faster intoxication and/or worse hangover. E.g. beer, wine, vodka etc. The claim is that ...
Vorac's user avatar
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Methanol and brain damage -- special affinity for optic nerve or just really toxic?

Methanol is known for causing blindness. One explanation I have read is that the optic nerve is especially active and so methanol will be preferentially taken up by the cells there which then die. But ...
releseabe's user avatar
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Does alcohol really helps to get substances get faster into the bloodstream? [closed]

I saw the video where Arnold Schwarzenegger cooks some protein cocktail and adds Austrian Schnapps to the mix, saying that it's to make everything get faster to the blood. Is it true or some kind of a ...
R S's user avatar
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-3 votes
1 answer
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Can hand sanitizer kill a fertilized human egg cell?

If you took a human egg cell that was fertilized in vitro and sprayed some hand sanitizer on it would it die?
sibling's user avatar
2 votes
3 answers
272 views

Is it true that ethanol can have some positive effects?

I recently was reading this inforgrafics about excessive alcohol use. It is written: No one should begin drinking or drink more frequently based on potential health benefits I am surprised. Is ...
Pierre's user avatar
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28 votes
4 answers
39k views

Is it possible to kill parasitic worms by intoxicating oneself?

I've heard of parasites that can live in the human body and do a lot of damage to the host. There are even safer forms of worm-like parasites inside the intestine, but some parasites can live in the ...
Roybin93's user avatar
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2 votes
1 answer
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Rice left in water for several months - what biological reactions or growths would occur?

In an attempt to make a hair care product, uncooked white basmati rice was left in an air-tight container half filled with tap water for several months. When opening the container, the smell was ...
Aalawlx's user avatar
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Why do urine have a chemical smell after drinking a lot of alcohol (red wine)?

When I've been drinking a lot of red wine my urine starts to have a chemical smell. How do that urine differ from normal urine? Is that chemical smell a sign of liver issues? When I was younger I don'...
user5493's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
545 views

How does the human body extract energy from ethanol?

I was talking about alcohol and obesity with a colleague. I always thought the only cause of that is the sugar that is found in most alcoholic beverages. But my colleague pointed out that ethanol ...
Tomáš Zato's user avatar
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How does alcohol interact with sympathomimetics to affect the cardiovascular system?

There is a fair amount of information on the cardiovascular effects of alcohol, and of sympathomimetics. How do they work? And how do their mechanisms interact? We know that similar pathologies ...
Roby Vicary's user avatar
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Quantify Protein Denaturation with Change in Solubility

I plan to run a lab which compares the impacts of ethanol and methanol, in varying concentrations, on the denaturation of whey protein. Change in water solubility is a good indicator of the degree ...
John Toff's user avatar
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Why is ethanol osmotically active if it can enter through the plasma membrane easily?

This has been bugging me for a while, and I can't seem to find an answer to it, and I am sorry if I am asking a lot with this question(s). Firstly, I keep finding sources suggesting that ethanol is ...
Matthew John Jackman's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
322 views

Alcohol consumption and central nervous system

After alcohol intake, the cerebrum related functions like vision and speech is affected first and later on there's problem with the cerebellar functions like balancing and hand-eye coordination. My ...
anamika Singh's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
329 views

Will meat rot in alcohol below freezing?

I understand that freezing slows decay but I'm wondering what will happen if meat is kept in below freezing temperatures while submerged in a liquid that has a lower freezing rate, like alchohol?
bigcodeszzer's user avatar
2 votes
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Preserving/disinfecting meat with alcohol?

I'm considering safer ways to handle raw meat and it occurred to me that alcohol might be useful. I'm considering, say, sealing pieces of meat in a container with 40% alcohol or higher in fridge or ...
stackoverflow909's user avatar
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403 views

Does Methanol cause similar intoxication as Ethanol?

Take two average healthy adult males weighing 80 kg. Neither has, ahem, developed their alcohol tolerance to any significant degree. One imbibes 1 shot, 40 ml of 40% Methanol, and another 40 ml of 40%...
hyde's user avatar
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Why does double vision when drinking happen?

Why do you see double sometimes when you're drunk? Its weird because it seems to happen more when you try to focus. Try to look at something when you're drinking and it barely seems to double up Try ...
Carlos Bribiescas's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
232 views

If the liver can regenerate why can alcohol abuse permanently damage it?

The liver is a fairly unique organ in that it has the ability to regenerate itself even if parts of it are removed/damaged. It is a well known fact that continual alcohol abuse damages the liver and ...
noobcoder's user avatar
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4 votes
1 answer
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What fruits will naturally ferment?

If left unpicked after the fruit ripens, what fruits may ferment instead of just rotting? My perception is that most fruits just rot. I know figs will ferment. I'm guessing that this is because the ...
MaxW's user avatar
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1 answer
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How can alcohol cause blindness?

Strong alcoholic beverages (e.g. moonshine) are reported to have caused blindness amongst some people. How exactly can alcohol make someone go blind? Is that because different forms of "rubbing" ...
Ebbinghaus's user avatar
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5 votes
2 answers
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Does drinking alcohol having UTI may help to kill the bacteria?

It's well known that ethyl alcohol kills bacteria. And amount of alcohol in urine may be detected by EtG tests (as long as 3-4 days after intake). Does drinking alcohol in reasonable amount by ...
kenorb's user avatar
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2 answers
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Why is alcohol such a weak drug?

Most day to day drugs such as caffeine and paracetamol require a dosage in milligrams to have the desired effect. Why then, does it take many tens of grams of alcohol to have a tangible/noticeable ...
Phil's user avatar
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4 votes
1 answer
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The effects of auto-brewery syndrome

Why are some people affected so differently by auto-brewery syndrome differently if the syndrome seems to be caused by the single organism saccharomyces cerevisiae? It is known that the syndrome has ...
aspiringSD's user avatar
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1 answer
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Why is alcohol purged from the body more slowly when we sleep?

It is a popular belief that when you get asleep after drinking alcohol, in the morning you have higher level in your blood than if you stayed awake the whole night. Is this true? If so, why? Is it ...
Honza Zidek's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
146 views

How do mosquitoes react to blood feeding on a highly ethanol intoxicated host?

Considering that a mosquito can consume up to five times its body weight in blood during a single meal (Encyclopedia of the Arctic, M.Nuttal), and considering a very strong alcoholic intoxication of ...
Cobactan's user avatar
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4 votes
1 answer
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Does alcohol really do more damage to the body of a child compared to an adult?

Beside the fact that children and teens (people under the age of 18 year) usually have less body weight than the average adult, is there a biologically fundamental difference between the damage done ...
Joeohbannajoe's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
326 views

Can the liver prioritize it's metabolizing potential?

Let's assume we have two toxins - one of which is routinely metabolized by the liver, and the other is new to the organism (consider for example alcohol in a heavy drinker and any other drug that is ...
Space Cadet's user avatar
12 votes
2 answers
526 views

What are the survival limitations of alcohol?

This question was inspired by watching one of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies; particularly where Jack Sparrow allegedly survives on a desert island by finding an unlimited supply of rum. I've ...
WannabeCoder's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
877 views

Does ale give less of a hangover than a lager?

I got into an argument surrounding beer type and hangover. Apparently there is a opinion that ales give you less hangover than lagers do (considering same alcohol content consumed). My understanding ...
Matas Vaitkevicius's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
202 views

Alcohol and athletes? [closed]

I've seen a lot of articles claiming that alcohol has a very bad impact on athletic performance. Examples include, but are by far not limited to: http://oade.nd.edu/educate-yourself-alcohol/alcohol-...
gaazkam's user avatar
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20 votes
2 answers
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How does isopropyl alcohol disinfect less in higher concentration?

Isopropyl alcohol (2-propanol) can be used as disinfectant. For increasing concentration of it in water, the effect as disinfectant increases, and then decreases again. Typical concentrations for ...
Volker Siegel's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
723 views

Effect of alcohol on parasites

I recently came across an article saying that fruit flies use alcohol to deter parasites. The researcher was quoted as saying there have not been any studies on the effect of human alcohol consumption ...
Will Townes's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
107 views

Can non-carbonated energy drinks boost alcohol intoxication?

I just read news article about banning caffeine in alcohol drinks and about that energy drinks increase the urge to drink alcohol. Energy drinks cause sugar intoxication - answer about it here in ...
Léo Léopold Hertz 준영's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
323 views

How does Acetaldehyde accelerate mitosis?

I read that one of the ways alcohol is carcinogenic is via accelerated mitosis due to acetaldehyde, I was wondering what pathway caused this acceleration?
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1 vote
0 answers
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mixing beer with spirits, increase alcohol content? [duplicate]

I decided to mix beer with vodka hoping it would make me more drunk due to the alcohol content but then remembered the rest ISNT alcoholic and i cant figure out if mixing beer with vodka or other ...
Damon Morris's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
2k views

Can sugar alcohols, and glycerol in particular, cause intoxication?

I'm mostly curious about glycerol, which I use as a sweetener. I've been told that it can cause intoxication, because it is an alcohol. Is this true? If so, are there any good sugar alcohols which ...
Muz's user avatar
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7 votes
1 answer
129 views

What are the biological mechanisms behind the increase in cancer risk and alcohol consumption?

Alcohol consumption is known to be a risk factor for developing cancer. Compared to obvious causes like tobacco where one is exposed to known carcinogens, I don't see an obvious mechanism by which ...
Mad Scientist's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
3k views

Why must the alcohol decolorizer be used for 30 seconds or less for Gram staining?

I had today a class in microbiology and my teacher said that the Decolorizer component is the critical one and cannot be more than 30 seconds. The decolorizer has alcohol in high concentration, my ...
Léo Léopold Hertz 준영's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
9k views

Why does alcohol cause the hemolysis of RBC in a large proportion?

I had today an experiment that we put 95% alcohol to the blood which made it completely transparent so hemolysis must have occurred. I started to think about the reasons. I think that this is because ...
Léo Léopold Hertz 준영's user avatar