# How much can alcoholics really drink? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 5, 2004, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-can-alcoholics-really-drink/253592 "2004-07-05T03:44:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-can-alcoholics-really-drink/253592/81 "2012-07-09T12:11:51Z")
Damn, how long would it take for a handle to work its way out of your system? It’s not as if your liver gets better at cleansing the alcohol the longer you’ve been drinking. (Or does it?) Let’s see, 40 drinks \* 2 hours a drink = 80 hours, you’d be drunk for 3 days without downing a single other drink! ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-can-alcoholics-really-drink/253592/82 "2012-07-09T12:15:44Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > Damn, how long would it take for a handle to work its way out of your system? It’s not as if your liver gets better at cleansing the alcohol the longer you’ve been drinking. (Or does it?) > > Let’s see, 40 drinks \* 2 hours a drink = 80 hours, you’d be drunk for 3 days without downing a single other drink! It doesn’t work like that even for inexperienced drinkers, at least subjectively you no longer feel intoxicated. ---
**Author:** ![lazybratsche](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ba8739/32.png) [@lazybratsche](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lazybratsche)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-can-alcoholics-really-drink/253592/83 "2012-07-09T13:02:52Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > Damn, how long would it take for a handle to work its way out of your system? It’s not as if your liver gets better at cleansing the alcohol the longer you’ve been drinking. (Or does it?) > > Let’s see, 40 drinks \* 2 hours a drink = 80 hours, you’d be drunk for 3 days without downing a single other drink! Alcoholics do metabolize alcohol at a higher rate – their livers’ produce more of the enzymes that process alcohol. A quick googling pulls up an older study ([PDF](http://www.ajcn.org/content/22/12/1608.full.pdf)) that measured alcohol metabolism rates in non-drinkers, alcoholics, and alcoholics with liver disease. (And this study was done in an era where “non-drinkers” include recovered alcoholics and people who average one drink per day). Roughly speaking, the average alcoholic will metabolize alcohol twice as fast as the average non-drinker. And a few will metabolize alcohol about three times as fast. Also, the usual rule of thumb for alcohol clearance is 1 unit per hour (where a unit is a single not-very-strong drink). Thus, alcoholics can easily clear 2 units per hour, and a few can clear 3 per hour. So 40 drinks would be cleared 13-20 hours later. ---
**Author:** ![Sicks\_Ate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Sicks\_Ate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sicks_Ate)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-can-alcoholics-really-drink/253592/84 "2012-07-09T13:25:21Z")
Noticed, reading through that post that by post 46, there were 3 posters who have since been BANNED. I wonder if there’s any connection to the subject matter. Probably just coincidence. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-can-alcoholics-really-drink/253592/85 "2012-07-09T13:36:31Z")
I was a binge drinker, and could easily go two or three weeks without drinking, meaning I built up no tolerance. Then I’d knock off a bottle or more of wine. Praise be I never liked hard liquor. As it is, I’m lucky to be alive, hacing had alcohol poisoning several times. If I’d been drinking straight hard liquor, I would be dead. My younger sister is also a binge drinker and bulimic. She would drink straight vodka and then make herself puke it up.:eek: ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-can-alcoholics-really-drink/253592/86 "2012-07-09T14:01:57Z")
One occasionally sees consumption levels like these on _Intervention_, although it’s not always clear if they’re recording sustained levels or the highest binge. It seems like a lot of the drinkers on the show need a fairly high level of alcohol just as a maintenance dose. ---
**Author:** ![chrisasimtunke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@chrisasimtunke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chrisasimtunke)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-can-alcoholics-really-drink/253592/87 "2012-07-09T14:37:07Z")
This past weekend I drank a half gallon of vodka, a ‘mini’ shot, something called a red white and blue (3 shots mixed, 2 shots vodka/rum n a shot of something blue) 2 shots of whiskey, a yager bomb, finished 2 random drinks of my friends, a shooter of something I can’t remembr and a bacardi mojito… I said a lot of dumb shit, ruined the best relationship I’ve ever had n woke up only remembring half the things id said, puke everywhere, didn’t remember the breakup n had a cut n bruise on my cheek that nobody knows how I got it. I’m quitting drinking… my mom said I could have died. N I’m 24 5’4" n 164 lb female… ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-can-alcoholics-really-drink/253592/88 "2012-07-09T18:19:20Z")
> [@chrisasimtunke](#): > > This past weekend I drank… I said a lot of dumb shit, ruined the best relationship I’ve ever had n woke up only remembring half the things id said, puke everywhere. I’m quitting drinking… Ahh yes, the horrible, humiliated day-after mess that is the hang-over after a binge. “I’m totally _ **done drinking!!** _”, I’m sure has been muttered by anyone who has has experienced this awful state. Not to suggest you aren’t serious but wait a few days and then come back and let us know if you are still sticking to your pledge. ---
**Author:** ![Simple\_Linctus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Simple\_Linctus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simple_Linctus)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-can-alcoholics-really-drink/253592/89 "2012-07-09T18:49:28Z")
> [@Sicks\_Ate](#): > > Noticed, reading through that post that by post 46, there were 3 posters who have since been BANNED. I wonder if there’s any connection to the subject matter. Probably just coincidence. I’ve been reading a lot of old threads, probably averaging 90 minutes a day (!) since I’ve been registered here. I lurked before for a bit but these threads I am finding through the search engine. In fact that BANNED thing seems to apply to most old threads. I conclude that the rule enforcement is strict. Perhaps you can start an ATMB thread about it as it is something interesting. ---
**Author:** ![MysteryFellow63427](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e4f/32.png) [@MysteryFellow63427](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MysteryFellow63427)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-can-alcoholics-really-drink/253592/90 "2012-07-09T18:49:32Z")
> [@lazybratsche](#): > > Alcoholics do metabolize alcohol at a higher rate – their livers’ produce more of the enzymes that process alcohol. A quick googling pulls up an older study ([PDF](http://www.ajcn.org/content/22/12/1608.full.pdf)) that measured alcohol metabolism rates in non-drinkers, alcoholics, and alcoholics with liver disease. (And this study was done in an era where “non-drinkers” include recovered alcoholics and people who average one drink per day). Roughly speaking, the average alcoholic will metabolize alcohol twice as fast as the average non-drinker. And a few will metabolize alcohol about three times as fast. Thanks greatly for providing this study–I was reading through this thread and kept wondering if the metabolic rates of alcoholics were known. This is much more helpful than “my uncle’s son-in-law drank a keg by himself in 36 hours!” Page 1611 shows the graph with error bars, but basically they said control = 25 mg /hr metabolization alco = 50 mg / hr alco w/ jaundice = 25 mg /hr ---
**Author:** ![andygirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9adbd/32.png) [@andygirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andygirl)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-can-alcoholics-really-drink/253592/91 "2012-07-09T18:51:14Z")
I’ve met some people who had alcoholic encephalopathy who were drinking a handle a day by the end. It ain’t pretty. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-can-alcoholics-really-drink/253592.md?page=4)