Binge drinking is drinking large amounts of alcohol or drinking to the point of intoxication, with periods of sobriety in between episodes of drinking. This means that the person does not drink everyday, but occasionally drinks excessively. This may happen once a year or every weekend. It is especially common in young adults who tend to drink in situations where “getting drunk” is the goal. Often, people who binge drink may play drinking games. While there are many different drinking games, they all have the same goal…To see who can drink the most alcohol in the shortest time without passing out. Even when drinking games are not involved, people may set out to get drunk or to out drink some one else.
The danger of this type of alcohol abuse is that a lethal blood alcohol concentration (BAC) may be reached very quickly and without the person realizing it. Further, the rapid rise in BAC may prevent the body’s natural defenses against alcohol poisoning from happening or cause them to happen out of their normal order. For example, a person may pass out before they become nauseous. If they then vomit after passing out, their vomit may block their airway and they could die. Therefore, if a person is passed out they should be positioned on their side rather than on the back or stomach to help prevent their airway from becoming blocked. While being placed on their side does not guarantee that their airway would not become blocked if they were to vomit, it is less likely than in any other position.
Another danger of binge drinking is that after a person passes out, they may still have a large amount of alcohol in their stomach. If they do not vomit, this alcohol will be absorbed into the bloodstream and may continue to elevate their BAC to lethal levels.
Finally, binge drinking may lead to increased tolerance to alcohol and may be the beginning of an addition to alcohol, which is called alcoholism.
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