Ethanol, Alcohol, Panadol, Paracetamol, Lol

Ever had a hangover? A splitting headache, nausea, lethargy and dehydration sets in and you have had it for the day. A result of festive celebrations or weekend gatherings. Sounds common isn't it. At that moment, many would vow never to do it again and then the next weekend or holiday comes along and here we go again. For others it could become a weekly or twice weekly affair or me. Why?

The Legend of The Merlion

Hangovers occur when the liver cannot process and get rid of excess toxins fast enough especially when we go "binge" drinking and such unpleasant symptoms of hangover can get worse when the ethanol present in alcohol becomes a dehydrating effect. Whenever you have alcohol, drink lots of water, mate. You will urinate more often due to this effect as dehydration can cause brain fluid to be reduced which leads to headaches, lethargy and a very dry mouth.

The myth of our Merlion was to me not as interesting as the creature itself having stood as guardian at the mouth of our river for so long. I never thought I'll see anything resembling a Merlion until I was initiated into the pub scenes eons ago where I get to see hordes of people - some who can't drink but wanted to look cool or some who drinks excessively without control doing the Merlion. They were feeling so pissed due to too much drinks or drinking too fast and just when they got to the restrooms but before they could be close to the wc they did the "Merlion" spouting powerful pukes unleashed with such great force and worse, stench that smells like a thousand dead fish. Pity the cleaners and next users. That was the drinking culture. This is what happens to you when you down a tequila or more.

 

Intoxication

Alcohol actually causes queasy feeling due to inflammation of your stomach lining and intoxication can set in by the third of fourth drink. That is why they say you shouldn't drink and drive or you may spill your drink when you go over a hump and after two drinks you have reached you legal limit of alcohol in your blood. It causes a decrease in reaction time and judgement. At certain level, some may even begin to slur in their speech and thought they could sing like Elvis. This is about the time you begin to let your guard down. You begin to think you look more handsome than you really are when you stare at the mirror and tell yourself that you are hot!

You believe you are the cure to life's problems. I have to tell you that at this stage troubles often happen. You think that women wants you and men want to be like you or that you are God's gift to mankind. Your defences are down and you could say things that hurt your friends, insult strangers, just being crude, offends the bosses or subordinates, falls to the ground in a heap or crash your car. A novice drinker drinking up to 9-12 drinks can end up sick or in a coma while chronic alcoholics may be able to keep awake even after 18-20 drinks.

However, no matter how strong a drinker you are, all human livers are the same. When it is overworked continuously without breaks and especially including during their rest time (during sleep) just like a human being or machine, they fall sick or malfunction. It gets worse, because drinking is about the threshold. You achieve new levels each time or the more you drink. Soon 6 drinks is nothing and you needed 10 to feel something and so on then you go on by the bottles. If one is unable to exercise control then you do not consume the drinks but the "drinks consume you! That could lead to debauchery.

Binge Drinking

If you are not a chronic alcoholic, those occasional binge drinking sessions can be equally fatal. Consuming a large quantity of alcohol in a short period of time leads to dangerously high level of alcohol in the blood which can cause poisoning which can result in being comatose or some people may aspirate on their own vomit or secretions resulting in pneumonia and in some cases choking to death.

ToleranceHangovers also depends on tolerance level. Certain alcoholic drinks can cause more severe headaches. Congeners give different types of alcohol their flavours plays a part in hangovers. More may be present in whiskey or brandy than liquors like vodka and gin. This lead to some people believing in greasing their gut or oiling their stomach lining such as by consuming butter or dirnking milk.

Alcohol is usually and mostly absorbed in the small intestine and when food is ingested, there is a valve at the end of the stomach that will close to hold food in the stomach for digestion. This prevents alcohol from reaching the small intestine and slow down the process of the absorption rate. Some folks do resort to paracetamol or aspirin or by drinking lots and lots of fluid to neutralize nasty headaches. However, this is bad practice as the best way is for the body to completely ingest the alcohol and metabolize it. It may take about 1-2 hours for the human body to get rid of one unit of alcohol - something equivalent to one glass of wine, one shot of whiskey or one pack of brandy subject to an individual drinker's alcohol tolerance. The one and only way to prevent all these and more trouble is - abstinence. Avoid drinking alcohol altogether. SOS. Well, take everything in moderation in life is perhaps the best advice but sometimes we just could not contain ourselves.

PoisonAlcohol is basically a substance called "ethanol". Ethanol is a flammable, volatile, colourless liquid which is also called ethyl alcohol. It can be found in beverages, deodorants and thermometers. It is a straight chain alcohol and its molecular formula is C2H2OH. The largest ethanol use is as a motor fuel or fuel addictive. Ethanol is the main psychoactive constituent in alcoholic beverages with depressant effects on the central nervous system and it also affects multiple systems in the brain and is an agonist against GABA receptors. Alcohol beverages are basically fermented beverages. Whiskey is a distilled beverage made from cereal grains, brandies from fruits, beers from cereal grains, wines from fruit juices, rum from sugar cane, vodka from grains or potatoes. Long term use can result in severe damage to the liver.

It has widespread use in the manufacturing of commodities, creating scents, flavouring, medicine or as an anti-septic. It is highly effective against bacteria, fungi and viruses. That is why you will hear some people saying that if you feel unwell, have a beer, whisky or brandy. A couple of drinks taken slowly is okay but be careful of the "whites". White spirits are deadly because they have slow kicks which means that you feel nothing when consuming it and it gives you a false of security that you could have more but when the kick comes in, you get stunned with nasty surprises. Some folks get allergic reaction to alcohol and rashes can quickly form all over you body leading you to scratch all over like a monkey. In such cases, you can either challenge the reaction or quit drinking. Allergies can be serious so be careful here.

Alcohol is a magical elixir as a social beverage where it has no peer. Champagne is regarded as the best choice for a celebration while beer is usually meant for informal gatherings. Others like whisky and Scotland goes hand in hand just like stout is to the Irish. Is alcohol man's best friend since you drink it when celebrating and also indulge when in sorrow? Or is the good old dog still man's best friend? What's your poison and how are you managing it? Alcohol like fire is a good servant but bad master.

Culture Shock

I do believe all the Westerners who have watched the locals downing whisky, brandy or wine are quite shock because they were not meant to be drank that way. The French would sip on their wine or hold, warm up with their hands, smell and then sip their cognac. Imagine when they see locals doing bottoms up with them. Frequently, there are those who don't want to drink and do not sing or make some noise but after a few drinks they could not stop, makes the most noise and refuse to stop singing. What you are about to see below are all professional drinkers and models, therefore, do not attempt this stunt at home or anywhere especially when people start knocking tequila glasses and start singing the National Anthem or Auld Lang Syne.

I could now only indulge a little during special social occasions, celebrations and sometimes when golfing, that first beer on a hot day is out of this world! Well, the golf course is the only place where one can drink and drive. With the driver of course! And boy do I love a Pure Blonde!





















Sometimes, they do it in large silly numbers, as in a herd. Germans called it Oktoberfest! It's getting popular.

So be careful my friends! Awol, Ethanol, alcohol, paracetamol - seems like most things that end with ...0l are dangerous. LOL! Always remember the "good servant but bad master" slogan. Alcohol like fire is a good servant but bad master.

Drink! for you know not whence you came nor why. Drink! for you know not why you go, nor where. — Omar Khayyam, Persian astronomer, poet

This is just but one anecdote and I shall give you some more occasionally just for the humour, not that I encourage drinking but for the brotherhood of man. Am I my brother's keeper? You make that judgement call on your poison carefully. I can bring a cow to the beer tap but I won't be able to make it drink. The reverse is also true - I can't keep the cow in a barnyard if it chooses to go to the beer tap. Most importantly, be of good cheer!