Diet Alcoholic Drinks More Intoxicating

Ivanhoe Newswire
Wednesday, October 11, 2006; 12:00 AM

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- You may be cutting calories when you choose a diet drink to mix with your alcohol, but the combination may make you more intoxicated.

Australian researchers conducted a small study with eight healthy men. The volunteers drank orange-flavored vodka mixed with either a sugary beverage or with an artificially sweetened one. Researchers measured their blood alcohol levels shortly thereafter.

Researchers also used ultrasound to measure how quickly their stomachs emptied after drinking. The bloodstream absorbs alcohol after it passes through the stomach, so the sooner the stomach empties, the sooner alcohol will affect the body.

The study found participants' stomachs emptied about 15 minutes sooner when they drank the alcohol mixed with the diet beverage than with the sugary one.

Blood alcohol levels peaked about 30 minutes after having either drink. But alcohol levels spiked higher with the diet mixer than the regular one -- 0.05 percent on average versus 0.03 percent.

Study authors say the results could make a difference between someone driving legally and driving drunk.

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SOURCE: The American Journal of Medicine, 2006;119:802-804