00:00Music
00:13What? I'm at work?
00:18Hi, yes. Is this the city doc?
00:21We had a wild office party here last night and I'm just, I'm not feeling too hot.
00:27I think I need to learn about this topic.
00:30I myself have never been the biggest alcohol drinker, but seeing as I am over 21,
00:35there is almost always alcohol present when I'm hanging out with my friends.
00:39Alcohol is a commonly used drug that quickly alters the way you feel,
00:43leading most people to feel, at least immediately, very free and euphoric.
00:47But what happens when young people drink far too much alcohol?
00:51Today I'm bringing in Dr. Venus Wilder, also known as the city doc,
00:55to talk about how this one simple substance can drastically change not only your actions,
01:00but also your perception of the whole world around you.
01:03We're also going to explore the effects of alcohol on your liver
01:06and see how it affects your overall health.
01:09I'm Lucy Fink and this is The Fink Tank.
01:14Dr. Wilder!
01:16Hi Lucy!
01:17Oh, you came!
01:18I did. What's going on?
01:19I need your help.
01:20What's wrong?
01:21Alcohol.
01:22Oh.
01:23What is it and why does it do to us what it does?
01:25So alcohol, the other name for it is ethyl alcohol,
01:29and it's different from rubbing alcohol, which is isopropyl alcohol.
01:32Which you should not drink.
01:33No, do not drink that.
01:34Okay.
01:34So the alcohol is absorbed in your stomach and also your intestine, your small intestine,
01:39the duodenum to be exact, and it goes into your bloodstream.
01:42It travels to your blood in your brain and affects the cells there.
01:47It can interact with the neurotransmitters.
01:50Dopamine can be affected so people can feel like really good.
01:53The happy, what do they call it?
01:55Yes, the happy center.
01:56The happy center.
01:57Yes, but it can also affect GABA receptors.
02:00Things that make us feel low and tired and not breathe as fast.
02:06And those bad things are more so over the course of time.
02:09The body makes changes.
02:11It changes the amount of neurotransmitters that respond to alcohol,
02:14so therefore they'll need more alcohol in the future.
02:17So people can develop something called alcohol tolerance, alcohol dependence.
02:21So that's sort of similar to the idea that I myself am a lightweight.
02:26Okay, yeah.
02:26Meaning I don't drink alcohol all that much.
02:29So when I do, it takes a very little amount of alcohol to achieve the same effects that
02:33someone else might need with say five drinks.
02:35Right.
02:36And then also in the liver, there is something called alcohol dehydrogenase,
02:40which is an enzyme that helps the liver to get rid of alcohol and to detoxify the body.
02:47Got it.
02:47Okay.
02:48So now before we dive into the liver, because that's a whole other story that you need to
02:53tell me.
02:53Yes.
02:53I want you to just kind of talk me through the standard serving size of different alcohols.
02:58I'm so glad we are discussing this because people say, hey doc, I had one drink and they're
03:03telling me that it's this.
03:05So a standard drink of alcohol is about 12 grams of alcohol.
03:10Beer, 12 grams would be 12 ounces.
03:15Five ounces for the wine, 1.5 ounces of rum.
03:20All of these can give you the same type of buzz.
03:22But also it varies for women and men.
03:24So for women, one serving of alcohol a day, one glass a day is okay.
03:30And for men, two glasses is acceptable.
03:33If you're over 21.
03:35Okay, the liver.
03:37Yes.
03:37Specifically in relation to alcohol, what's going on with the liver?
03:40So the liver helps to detoxify the body.
03:43When the liver has to work overtime, it can cause scarring or inflammation in the liver.
03:48And also the toxin of the alcohol can be damaging to the liver after a while as well.
03:52So, because this is the think tank and we always like to do fun demonstrations.
03:57Yes.
03:57If we assume that this funnel is standing in for the liver.
04:01Yes.
04:01And these black beans are standing in for, say, alcohol molecules.
04:05Okay.
04:06Yes.
04:06So that's your drinking, your one drink and your liver is doing a great job of processing it.
04:12Right.
04:12Yes.
04:12And now the way you just described this to me is that if you have too much, it's almost
04:16like system overload.
04:18So instead of what you did before, the beans were poured in and it just nicely went through,
04:23there is a backlog that can happen.
04:26And that alcohol can just stay in the blood and the concentration level of the alcohol
04:32in the blood would be higher.
04:34So this is after, let's say you're binge drinking.
04:37You have your five drinks.
04:38Oh, wow.
04:39This person ends up in the hospital because there's nothing flowing through.
04:43This person needs this.
04:44Right.
04:45It's gonna come.
04:46Yes.
04:46So if you puke, alcohol out, alcohol out, and then sometimes people feel better.
04:54Right.
04:55But we don't want to get to this point.
04:56So that's why just the one casual drink, if you're 21 and older, might be okay.
05:02So this would be a classic case of somebody who, you know, drank too much alcohol.
05:06This is alcohol poisoning.
05:08This is alcohol poisoning.
05:09So when you do drink safely, you might still wake up and not feel great.
05:15What is the cause of that?
05:16So as I mentioned before, the alcohol can affect the brain and decrease like the neurotransmitters
05:21from like working properly.
05:22So there still can be a delay in the neurotransmitters and in the body like just being fully at its
05:29best.
05:30So that can be the cause of a hangover.
05:32Still feeling like a little fatigued, tired, having a headache.
05:35Okay, I feel I've learned a lot about alcohol.
05:39The different portion sizes, what it's doing to my brain and my liver.
05:43And now I'm gonna drink a lot more responsibly.
05:45Good.
05:45Than I did last night.
05:46Good.
05:47Good.
05:47Because I don't want to have to call you every time I drank Dr. Miller.
05:50But the fact is, when I did need you, you were here for me.
05:53Of course.
05:54I'm always here.
05:55So for anyone who's watching at home, follow at the city doc on Instagram and send her a
05:59DM if you have any questions.
06:01She will answer your questions in the best way possible.
06:04And also DM me at LucyBThink to let me know what other topics you want to see me learn
06:08about on the Think Tank.
06:09See you next time.
06:11Bye.
06:11I think I'm gonna have this red.
