Intoxication Signs, Awareness Tips To Stop Service

Someone stumbles over to you, slurring their words as they ask for another shot of tequila. You automatically assume they are drunk. While these are clear signs that most people can recognize as intoxication, did you know there are several other indicators that a person has had too much to drink? 

Before we can dive into these other signs of drunkenness, it is important to understand just how alcohol affects the body. Alcohol depresses the central nervous system. Meaning, it can slow the chemical signs that allow for communication between the body and brain. This translates to delayed physical reactions, which is why clumsiness and slurring of words can occur. But it also displays in other ways, such as: 

· Impaired equilibrium and muscle coordination. An intoxicated person will most likely feel imbalanced and stagger and sway as a result. They often times will take a wider stance to help compensate for the general feeling of falling over.  

· Loss of thought. Someone who has had too much to drink may trail off mid-conversation as if their thoughts just stopped and they forgot what they were saying. 

· Impaired hand-eye coordination. This can result in slow hand movements and difficulty with fine motor skills. 

· Change in speech. Along with slurred speech, someone who is hammered may speak very slowly and deliberately as well as louder than usual.  

· Glassy eyes. It is common for visual acuity to decrease which gives a person dilated pupils that lack focus, red watery eyes that may appear droopy or tired and they may squint in order to reduce double vision.  

· Unusual behavior. A plastered person will often display behaviors that is out of the ordinary to them. Perhaps they are acting grandiose, overly friendly or aggressive.  

· Frequent trips to the bathroom. Alcohol dehydrates the body which can result in needing to use the restroom often.  

The more alcohol a person consumes, the more all these indicators will increase. A simple lack of hand-eye coordination can turn into difficulty picking up anything or dropping and spilling things. A stumble can turn into not being able to walk or falling down. Since pain receptors are diminished, someone inebriated is likely to injure themselves without realizing it. They lose track of where they are mentally and physically and stop responding to outside stimuli. Their heads may bob, eyes move involuntarily, and they may smell like alcohol as it can seep through their pores.  

All of these signs are indicators that a person has had too much to drink, from the slightly dilated pupil, to the inability to stand up right, there is always something to indicate how much alcohol a person has consumed.