To Buy:
Want to buy a health insurance?
To Renew:
Want to renew your existing policy?
To Service:
Get quick resolution to all your queries
New
A Truly Complete Health Insurance Solution, that offers you an Essential Shield, Infinite Power and Instant Peace.
Best suited for
Individual
Family
Multi Individual
A comprehensive and flexible Health Insurance Plan that offers Better Coverage, Better Control and Better Care
A health insurance that lasts for a lifetime
Parents and elders took care of children in their most sensitive ages and phases of life. It is time to gift them the better Healthcare experience. Presenting ManipalCigna Prime Senior, a comprehensive Health Insurance plan which offers innovative features specially designed for Senior Citizens.
A comprehensive hospitalization plan for you and your family
Design your own health plan and pay for what you choose. Customise your plan according to your needs with ProHealth Select and reassure your future
The added boost that keeps you covered above and beyond your health plan.
Affordable standard health insurance plan
Standard Health Insurance Policy specially designed to cover Persons with Disabilities (PWD), Persons afflicted with HIV/AIDS, and those with Mental Illness
A plan that assures financial support and provides a safety cushion for a better tomorrow by providing complete protection, on and off the job, including death, disablement, repatriation of mortal remains and funeral expenses.
A plan that assures financial support and provides a safety cushion for a bettertomorrow by providing complete protection, on and off the job, including death, disability, loss of job and financial protection.
Standard Personal Accident Policy to safeguard your unexpected expenses arising from death or serious injury caused by an accident, while securing your finances
A vital protection for your financial health against life-changing critical illnesses that offers you the entire payment of sum insured on first diagnosis of listed illness.
A daily cash plan to financially aid hospitalization expenses
Every Detail Matters To Your Health
Employer-Employee Group
Non Employer-Employee Groups/ Association/ Institution/Society
Every Detail Matters For Global Protection
Non Employer- Employee Groups/Association/ Institution/Society
Check Detail to Secure Each Member's Lifestyle
Non Employer-Employee Groups/Association/ Institution/Society
Check Details To Secure Overseas Travel
Our All in One Plan to keep you healthy always
How Long Does Alcohol Stay in Your Body?
The way your body processes alcohol depends on several of your individualistic features. At a constant rate, your body should process an equivalent of one standard drink every hour. Understanding how long alcohol remains in your body is a matter of decoding the individual factors influencing its processing. Learning about this is essential if you're concerned about driving, taking tests, and avoiding dangerous interactions with medications. This article explores how long alcohol stays in your blood, the factors affecting its clearance, and the different tests to measure it.
Once you drink alcohol, it quickly makes its way through your digestive system. It is absorbed into your bloodstream from the stomach and through your small intestines. About 20% of the alcohol is absorbed by the stomach lining, while the majority of 80% is absorbed through the small intestines.
After entering the bloodstream, the alcohol circulates to various organs, including the brain. This is why you notice changes in your mood, cognition, and motor functions. The liver is the primary organ responsible for metabolising the alcohol content, where enzymes, including alcohol dehydrogenase, break down the alcohol molecules.
The metabolism is carried out effectively unless you drink too quickly, which can cause alcohol poisoning or overconsuming. About 90%-98% of the alcohol you consume gets processed and metabolised by the body. The remaining portion comes out through sweat, vomit, and urine.
Your body's ability to process alcohol determines how long it stays in your blood. On average, alcohol is detected in your blood for 10 to 12 hours after consumption. The percentage of alcohol content in blood is known as Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC). It is expressed as the amount of ethanol in grams per 100 millilitres of blood. A higher BAC indicates a more significant intoxication and vice versa.
Factors such as your gender, body weight, metabolism, and the quantity of alcohol consumed play a significant role in influencing the BAC level. Typically, your liver metabolises alcohol at a steady rate of 0.015 BAC per hour.
You can get a test done within the 10-12-hour window to determine how long alcohol stays in your blood. While this is the norm, some advanced testing methods can identify alcohol metabolites even after several days. It depends on your physical condition and how much you've consumed.
There are multiple tests to detect the alcohol in your body. Each test comes with a varied detection window. They are explained as follows:
This type of test detects the presence of alcohol in your body through your breath. It is often used by law enforcement to identify alcohol content in your blood for up to 24 hours after drinking. It is a quick and non-invasive method to identify BAC.
Considered highly accurate, blood tests, as the name suggests, measure the amount of alcohol in the bloodstream. Alcohol remains detectable in the blood for 6 to 12 hours after drinking. This type of testing is often done in medical and legal contexts.
Saliva tests are another non-invasive method to detect alcohol in your body. Alcohol can be traced in saliva for up to 12 to 24 hours after the last drink. These tests are apt for immediate detection of alcohol consumption, like roadside testing while drunk driving, where your saliva is swapped for testing.
Urine tests trace alcohol metabolites for approximately 12 to 48 hours after consumption. Some advanced urine tests take up to 72 hours, such as those looking for ethyl glucuronide (EtG). This makes urine testing useful for detecting alcohol over a more extended period.
Hair tests are apt to detect alcohol consumption over the longest time compared to other tests. Alcohol is traceable in hair follicles or up to 90 days after drinking. You can use this method for monitoring chronic alcohol use as opposed to short-term consumption.
Although alcohol is metabolised at a constant rate, some people may feel its effects longer than others. That's because it is processed differently by everyone based on a variety of factors, including:
The processing rate of alcohol slows down as you age, and the amount of water in your body goes down with age. As a result, the BAC is higher. Also, with older age, you may be taking medications, which react with the alcohol and increase its retention in the body as opposed to when you are younger.
Women tend to have a higher percentage of body fat and a lower water content than men. Hence, they process alcohol slower than men. Also, hormone levels during menstruation make women experience higher BAC levels when alcohol is consumed.
Body fat influences alcohol clearance because alcohol is more soluble in water than in fat. Thus, people with higher body fat may experience slower alcohol processing than those with lower fat. The same goes for body composition. People with a more petite frame have a lower BAC than someone taller.
Drinking on an empty stomach results in faster absorption of alcohol, whereas having food in your stomach before consuming alcohol slows down absorption. This is because of a more gradual metabolism. Food assists with the dilution of alcohol and induces enzyme activity in the liver.
If you drink regularly or are a heavy drinker, you may have liver damage. Consequently, the efficiency of alcohol metabolism reduces over time. In worse cases, chronic alcohol consumption leads to liver disease, which significantly affects your body's ability to break down and eliminate alcohol.
Some medication reactions affect how long alcohol stays in your blood by interacting with the enzymes responsible for metabolising alcohol. Such medications include antidepressants, antibiotics, painkillers, and allergy drugs. Additionally, alcohol may also intensify the effect of such medications.
Drinking more significant amounts of alcohol will naturally take longer for your body to process. It prolongs the time it remains detectable in your blood. Plus, drinking in the day or at night can extend the time alcohol lingers in your system. This is because your metabolism tends to slow down during resting periods.
The answer to how long alcohol stays in your body is influenced by multiple factors, including how much you drink, the frequency, and your physical characteristics. These aspects impact your liver function and BAC levels. The detection time varies based on the type of test. Typically, your system may return to normal after 12 hours of alcohol consumption. As there is no foolproof to cut down the alcohol clearance time, it is best to give it enough time and consume less.
If you are concerned about your alcohol consumption and its effects, consider seeking professional advice. Check out insurance policies from ManipalCigna Health Insurance to support your health needs.
A standard drink contains around 10-14 grams of pure alcohol. This amount is typically found in 330 ml of beer, 100 ml of wine, or 30 ml of distilled spirits like whisky or rum. A safe amount to consume will depend on your body weight, gender, and health condition.
No, drinking water or coffee can help you feel more alert but does not help speed up the alcohol processing time.
There is no quick way to eliminate alcohol from your body. You can only dry drink less to reduce the alcohol content. You may also elevate the symptoms by hydrating, eating food, and resting.
