What is a unit of alcohol?

One UK unit is 10ml of pure alcohol.

Alcohol by volume or ABV is the percentage of the drink that consists of pure alcohol, the higher the % the stronger the drink.

Some drinks companies are now putting the units as well as the ABV on the bottle so you can easily work out your limit.

What are the effects?

Alcohol affects the central nervous system which controls a number of vital body functions including speech, sensory organs such as the eyes and ears, muscles and sweat glands. It also affects the part of the brain that allows conscious thought.

It slows your reactions and loosens your inhibitions, so a drink can make you feel relaxed, happy and confident and is generally a pleasant experience.

Too many drinks can have a very different effect, the most common symptoms are slurred speech, blurred vision and loss of balance, sweating and the dulling of the sensation of pain. It also causes dehydration, where the body doesn’t have enough water to function normally, and the loss of vitamins which protect you from illness.

When you are drunk you are likely to lose your self control, your judgement and emotions are impaired so you may become affectionate, or think everything is very funny. Or you could become abusive and aggressive, saying and doing things that you wouldn’t normally.

How much alcohol your body can cope with varies according to your age, sex and weight, or even how much you have had to eat that day, and everyone has a different personal limit.

Sometimes one drink can make the difference between dancing on the tables and loving everyone to becoming obnoxious and aggressive and ending up in a situation where you or someone else gets hurt.

What are the risks?

The health risks for adults are well known. Heavy drinking over the years is a risk factor for a number of ‘progressive’ conditions including cirrhosis of the liver, certain cancers and raised blood pressure which can contribute to heart disease. It is estimated that the NHS spends £20 billion a year treating alcohol related disease.

The risks for high school students are less well known but health experts believe that alcohol has a greater effect on young and still developing bodies.

There is also concern that starting young establishes a pattern for life which can speed up the onset and severity of those health conditions that would normally occur in later life and, and possibly early alcoholism. What’s new is the growing number of young adults experiencing chronic illness, particularly liver disease, in their 20’s because of their teen drinking.

Binge drinking may be partly responsible as it is far more harmful to health than drinking a moderate amount regularly. It usually means having five or more drinks on any one occasion, and is more dangerous because you take in more alcohol over a short time than your body can process - which is one unit of alcohol per hour, and there is nothing you can do to speed it up.

Drinking more than one unit per hour is what makes you drunk because the level of alcohol builds up in your body, as well as toxic chemicals that can cause alcohol poisoning, something that hospitalises about 1000 teenagers every year.

And that is not the end of the health story for young people, they have a much greater risk of alcohol related accidents and injures, last year almost 4000 teenagers were admitted to hospital in England alone because of alcohol.

Accidents are the most serious short term risk for drunk or ‘intoxicated’ teenagers, with facial injuries and broken bones from a fall being the most common injury. You are most likely find yourself in the emergency room because you have fallen over or staggered into the path of an oncoming car.

Too much alcohol can make you and others aggressive, which increases the chances of being attacked or getting in to a fight.

It can also have the opposite effect, making people look very attractive and lowering your inhibitions so you are more likely to indulge in risky or regrettable sexual behaviours. The UK has some of the highest levels of teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases in Europe.

All these outcomes are likely to lead to problems with your parents and your teachers if hangovers and missed lessons affect your grades.