Nuts and Bolts
 
Physiology
During the course of an evening drinking (even one drink an hour), your body uses up the free glucose in your blood and then starts using up your stored glucose in your muscles. When alcohol is in the body, the liver focuses in on metabolizing the alcohol as its number one priority….it views alcohol as a poison that must be removed for the sake of the body! Since the liver is so busy on alcohol, it can’t make glucose for the body to use, hence the depletion of the muscle glucose. For most sports, you need to have that muscle-stored glucose for the ability to endure the whole competition.
 
Recovery/Sleep
During drinking—and at the same time that glucose is dropping in the body—lactic acid is building up in the body. You know what lactic acid is? It’s what tells the muscle that it is tired and needs to quit. That’s one of the reasons you still feel tired the next day after drinking even though you’ve slept 10 or 12 hours. Heart muscle cells will metabolize alcohol and produce a fatty acid ethyl, ester, which affects the mitochondria, the cell’s energy source, of heart muscle cells. As little as .08 BAC reduces cardio function 24% for 48-72 hours afterwards! Women are four times more vulnerable to this complication of the cardio-vascular system.
 
College students never really get enough sleep but when you add alcohol to the already sleep deprived, you are producing even more stress in the brain. To perform well on the court you need to be well rested.
 
Electrolytes and Dehydration
After a big night out drinking, the central nervous system which has been depressed by alcohol, will try to get back to normal the best way it knows how…..pendulum swing into agitation back to suppression back to agitation, until it finally mellows out back to normal…..sometimes taking days to get back to normal!!! This is called the central nervous system rebound effect of alcohol. For a real party weekend of drinking say a 6 pack on Friday night, waking up around noon and drinking a few while you’re watching TV, then heading out that night to drink another 6 pack or so; waking up Sunday and a few beers that afternoon……How long do you think it would take your CNS to get back to normal? 7-10 days! What happens during those 7-10 days???? Another weekend! So, you can start the cycle all over again! Electrolytes…..are all messed up when you drink alcohol… alcohol dehydrates the body by suppressing the hormones which control urine output. You end up losing body fluid/minerals/vitamins/ electrolytes not just the beer that you drink when you go to the can. You all know how important it is to keep hydrated, right? You can have cardiac arrest if you don’t stay hydrated and replace electrolytes. The muscles, including the heart, need a certain balance of sodium and potassium electrolytes for the electrical impulses to proceed thru the muscle smoothly and communicate to the next muscle cell. If that balance is out of balance, then the heart muscle cells will misfire, resulting in arrhythmia &/or cardiac arrest. (Being overheated can add to the potential for cardiac arrest). Have you ever had a muscle cramp? Dehydration certainly can cause that!
 
Injuries and Healing
Injured? Alcohol interferes with buildup of muscle strength and volume as well as bone repair! You want to get back to play as soon as possible, don’t you? But doesn’t alcohol have a lot of carbs and aren’t carbs good!? Alcohol is a poor source for carbs. A 12oz. beer has only 14 carbs as compared to 40 grams in a can of soda (not to advocate soda!) Plus, there are a lot of empty calories in alcohol. There are better ways to add carbs to your diet than by adding alcohol. Alcohol also depletes the body of vital nutrients: impairs digestion of proteins and amino acids; interferes with absorption and utilization of essential vitamins/ minerals.
 
If you do choose to drink alcohol—be smart!
It is illegal to consume or possess alcohol under the age of 21 in Washington
 
If you do drink:
Set a drinking limit before you go out
Keep track of how much you drink
Avoid taking shots or playing drinking games
Space your drinks out —drink water or another non-alcoholic drink between drinks
Learn refusal skills—you don’t have to drink to socialize and have fun!
Consider this —using alcohol:
Reduces endurance
Reduces nutrient absorption
Causes Dehydration / Cramping Disrupts sleep
Reduces reaction time and mental sharpness needed for competition
 
Alcohol Overdose — Not a Time to Hesitate!
If someone is passed out check the following:
 

• If vomiting while passed out— turn on side—call 911
• If unresponsive after shaking or pinching—call 911
• If shallow or irregular breathing—call 911
• If blue lips or clammy, pale skin—call 911

 
Remember a passed out person’s Blood Alcohol Level could still be rising depending on when they took their last drink!
Never leaved a passed out person alone!
 
How do I know if I have a problem?
Understanding your resources on campus is the most important thing to know moving forward.  The counseling center and/or the health center would be the ideal first place to have a confidential conversation on your concerns.  There resources are:
 
Counseling and Wellness Center
Location: Lynch Center
360-412-6123
counselingCWC@stmartin.edu
Hours:

Fall and spring semesters
Monday-Friday
9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Summer
Hours are reduced with some closures and limited to emergency outreach and consultations.
 
Health Center
Location: Burton Hall 102
360-412-6160
healthcenter@stmartin.edu

Hours of operation
Fall / spring semesters
Provider hours
Monday, Wednesday, Friday
10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Thursday
2 - 4 p.m.

Nurse hours
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Summer
Wednesdays
10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Office manager scheduling assistance
(Office manager available)
Tuesdays
10 a.m. - 2 p.m.