Alcohol

Alcohol depresses your central nervous system (brain and spinal cord), lowers inhibitions* and impairs judgment. Drinking large amounts can lead to a coma and even death from alcohol poisoning. Mixing alcohol with medications or street drugs is extremely dangerous and can also be fatal.

Alcohol affects every system in the body, leading to loss of coordination, slowed reflexes, distorted vision, memory lapses and blackouts. Drinking can interfere with one’s normal growth and development in the teenage years, as well as mental and emotional well-being. Among all 15- to 18-year-old drivers involved in fatal crashes in one year, more than 1 in 5 had been drinking.

Street Names:

• Booze
• Brews
• Brewskis
• Hard Stuff
• Hooch
• Juice
• Sauce
• * inhibitions: ideas or rules that tend to stop a person from doing something

Short‑Term Effects:

Feeling of warmth, flushed skin, impaired judgment, lack of coordination, slurred speech, memory and comprehension loss. Heavy drinking often results in a hangover, headache, nausea, anxiety, weakness, shakiness and sometimes vomiting.

Long‑Term Effects:

Increased tolerance of alcohol leads to drinking more. This can cause serious physical problems, including liver damage, heart disease and an increased risk of cancer. A pregnant woman who drinks alcohol may give birth to a baby with defects affecting the baby’s heart, brain and other major organs. The child can also grow up with serious learning disabilities, vision or hearing problems and much more.

Updated: 2025