Alcohol Effects Over Time

Think you’ll just sleep it off?

Think again!

After a night of drinking, the effects of alcohol last longer than you might think.

You and your friends have decided to have a few drinks after work to ease the tension. You’ve been drinking since 6:00 p.m. and it’s now 1:00 a.m.  So, by now you already have a good idea of the way alcohol affects your motor skills, but are you aware of the blood alcohol levels?

After the designated driver has driven you home, you fall into bed at 2:00 a.m., intoxicated with an alcohol concentration of .190 (.08 is now legally intoxicated as determined by the federal government and most states).

Since alcohol leaves the blood at .015 per hour, let’s see the blood alcohol effects over the next ten hours…

Time

BAC*

2:00 a.m.

You get into bed, the room is spinning.

.190
3:00 a.m.

Sleeping

.175
4:00 a.m.

You wake up with a pounding headache, find the bathroom and take aspirin.

.160
5:00 a.m.

Sleeping.

.145
6:00 a.m.

Alarm startles you awake. Reluctantly, you get up for work.

.130
7:00 a.m.

You leave for work, wondering why the keys won’t fit the lock.

.115
8:00 a.m.

You’ve miraculously made it to work, but you’re still legally intoxicated!

.10
10:00 a.m.

You leave for an appointment and could still be arrested for “driving under the influence.”

.07
12:00 p.m.

Still under the influence.

.04
*Blood Alcohol Concentration (Information is based on a 170lb. average man)

See some more serious alcohol effects. Also see the effects of alcohol on the body.