Blood Alcohol Content

Blood alcohol content is the amount of alcohol in a person's system measured by volume. The higher the blood alcohol content of a person, the more alcohol he or she has had to drink. It is the speed of alcohol consumption that actually affects the rate at which a person feels drunk. The faster a person drinks, the less alcohol the body absorbs. This means that the alcohol remains in the bloodstream, and the person feels more intoxicated.

A standard drink is considered a 12 ounce glass of beer, five ounces of wine, or 1.5 ounces of 72-proof liquor. All of these quantities contain the same amount of alcohol, which is about 0.54 ounces. One drink by a person will, on average, raise his or her blood alcohol content by 0.04. However, this is not an accurate assumption because the level at which a person is able to absorb alcohol depends on weight, gender, and body fat.

In the United States, all states have now adopted a blood alcohol content of 0.08 as the legal limit of intoxication. This means, on average, a person who weighs about 150 pounds will be near that level only after three drinks. Now, for a person who weighs only 120 pounds, having two drinks will put him or her near that level, and having three drinks will put him or her well over it.

A good rule of thumb is to have a designated driver if you are planning on drinking. It does not take but a couple of drinks to impair a person's driving. Even worse, most people do not realize that only two or three drinks can make them legally intoxicated and subject to major legal problems.