1
MYTH: Driving after only a drink or two is no big deal.
FACT: Drinking and driving is never OK. Impairment begins with your first drink. It's just not smart. You’ll put yourself and others at risk.
2
MYTH: Eating a big meal before I drink will keep me sober.
FACT: Food in your stomach only delays the absorption of alcohol into the bloodstream. A full stomach doesn't stop the effects of alcohol or intoxication.
3
MYTH: Switching between beer, wine and spirits will affect me more than sticking to one type of alcohol.
FACT: Wrong. Your blood alcohol concentration or BAC – the percentage of alcohol in your blood – is what counts, not the types of drinks consumed. Alcohol is alcohol.
4
MYTH: It's just a wine spritzer/beer. It can't damage me.
FACT: Any kind of alcohol, if consumed irresponsibly, has the potential to seriously damage your digestive system, brain, heart, liver, stomach and other critical organs. It could also take years off your life.
5
MYTH: Everybody reacts the same way to alcohol.
FACT: Everyone is different. There are dozens of factors that affect reactions to alcohol: your gender, body weight, body chemistry, time of day, how you feel mentally, fatigue—the list goes on.
6
MYTH: Alcohol gives you energy.
FACT: Nope. Alcohol’s a drug. It's a depressant and slows down your ability to think, speak and move. Even at low levels, it affects your perception, coordination and judgment, long before any physical signs of impairment occur.
7
MYTH: I'll sleep better if I've had a few drinks.
FACT: Wrong. Alcohol may help you fall asleep, but it interferes with the quality of sleep you get.
8
MYTH: A cold shower and a cup of coffee are good ways to sober up.
FACT: A shower will make you feel clean and a coffee may keep you awake, but nothing sobers you up other than time.
9
MYTH: Alcohol makes me sexier.
FACT: Alcohol clouds your judgment and makes you less inhibited. You could end up engaging in something you hadn't planned on or wouldn’t normally do, including unprotected and/or unwanted sex, putting you at serious risk of a lot of bad things. Also, physiologically, it reduces your performance. Definitely not sexy.
10
MYTH: If someone passes out after drinking, it's best to let them sleep it off.
FACT: If a friend or guest passes out, never leave them alone. Have someone call 911. And be sure to roll them onto their side with their head on its side as well, until help arrives.
11
MYTH: I can only become an alcoholic after years of drinking.
FACT: You can develop alcoholism at any age. It all depends on how much and how often you drink.
12
MYTH: People who drink too much only hurt themselves.
FACT: Everyone has friends and family who care about them. If the problem drinker gets behind the wheel of a car they could kill someone else.
13
MYTH: It's none of my business if a friend is drinking too much.
FACT: If you're a real friend, it is your business. You can't make them change, but you can be honest. Maybe they'll listen. You might even be able to help them decide to get help.
14
MYTH: The worst thing that can happen when you drink too much is ending up with a raging hangover.
FACT: If only. For one thing, if you drink a lot of alcohol quickly it can build up in your body so much that you can die of alcohol poisoning within only a few hours. Also, you're more prone to accidents, which can be serious or fatal, especially if you’re behind the wheel of a car. Definitely much worse than a hangover.
