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  • Hey, there! Welcome to Life Noggin.

  • Science is awesome.

  • We know this.

  • It can help explain what's going on when you come across new things in life.

  • One of these new things you might encounter is having a drink of an adult beverage.

  • It can make you feel different than you have before, and if you drink enough, you can get drunk.

  • I brought my good friend Hannah Hart from "My Drunk Kitchen" to help explain.

  • So, Hannah, what happens to you and your body when you get drunk?

  • Well, obviously, make sure you wait until the legal age of wherever you live to actually have a drink yourself.

  • We should start off with what happens when you first start to drink.

  • Early on, as you have a glass of wine or a bottle of beer, the alcohol in whatever you're drinking will make its way on down to your stomach.

  • Once it's here, the alcohol will quickly get absorbed into your bloodstream, and then it can get transmitted throughout your body.

  • But the main place that actually breaks down or metabolizes alcohol in your body is your liver.

  • Your body does this because, while some people like the way alcohol makes them feel, alcohol is actually pretty poisonous to you.

  • When your liver encounters alcohol enzymes known as alcohol dehydrogenase, or ADH, and aldehyde dehydrogenase, or ALDH, it will metabolize the alcohol.

  • These enzymes break down alcohol and convert it into something called acetaldehyde.

  • This can then be metabolized into a less active byproduct known as acetate,

  • which can be broken down even further into things like water and carbon dioxide so that you can easily eliminate this stuff from your body.

  • So, how do you start to get drunk?

  • Well, this happens when you drink more alcohol than your liver can process.

  • Your body can only metabolize a certain amount of alcohol at a time, and it's usually not a lot.

  • This amount can vary depending on a number of different factors, from liver size and body mass to what ADH and ALDH enzymes you have, which research has shown to vary among different people.

  • When you drink more alcohol than your liver can process at a time, you start to get drunk as your blood-alcohol level rises.

  • At first, this may make you feel good.

  • You might feel a sense of euphoria and other stimulating effects as the dopamine is released within you.

  • But, at a certain point, things will often take a turn.

  • You might become more clumsy and not react to things as fast as you normally would.

  • Your vision could also get blurry.

  • Since your body is trying to do all it can to rid itself of the alcohol, it's also likely you'll need to pee. A LOT.

  • Getting drunk can also lower your inhibitions and alter the way you think, so you might make choices that you wouldn't have made if you were sober.

  • And that can make for some pretty interesting stories that I will not get into because we don't have the time.

  • Now, when talking about getting drunk, people often want to know if there are ways to cure or prevent hangovers.

  • While some things may make you feel better, there doesn't seem to be much scientific evidence that a true cure actually exists.

  • According to a study published in the "British Medical Journal",

  • researchers weeded down nearly 300 potential relevant articles on hangover cures to a total of only 8 that had randomized controlled trials and that met their inclusion criteria.

  • In their research, they found no compelling evidence that suggests there is anything that's actually effective for treating or preventing hangovers.

  • In the end, it seems more about treating the symptoms of a hangover rather than being able to actually cure it all together.

  • Hey, if you're old enough, where were you when you had your first drink?

  • Let us know in the comments below!

  • Thank you so much to Hannah for being in this video!

  • Her series "My Drunk Kitchen" is hilarious, and, you know, there's some education in there.

  • Make sure you go subscribe right now if you haven't already, and tell her Blocko sent you!

  • As always, my name is Blocko, this has been Life Noggin, don't forget to keep on thinking.

Hey, there! Welcome to Life Noggin.

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