It’s unfair, but true.  Women cannot metabolize alcohol like men.  The body structure and chemistry result in the women’s body absorbing more alcohol than men who drink the same amount.  That means, women end up with higher alcohol levels in their blood than men, even when both drink the same amount, and also experience the side effects quicker, which last longer!  Because of these, women are more vulnerable to the long term health impact of drinking alcohol.

The reason why women cannot handle alcohol as well as men could possibly be due to the fact that women weigh less than men, and have lesser body water than men.  They also have fewer levels of alcohol dehydrogenase enzymes which help metabolize alcohol. 

Drinking is known to interfere with the menstrual cycle, and increase risk of infertility in women of child bearing age.  In women who are pregnant, even moderate drinking is associated with a higher risk of miscarriage, stillbirth and premature delivery.  Drinking while pregnant also ups the risk of the baby being born with a syndrome called Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD), which causes mental retardation and birth defects.  The risk of  having the baby die of “sudden infant death syndrome” or SIDS, is also very high in pregnant women who drink any amount of alcohol.

Other Health Concerns

• Liver Disease: Women have a higher risk of liver damage, cirrhosis and other alcohol-related liver diseases than men.

• Impact on the Brain: Excessive drinking may result in memory loss and shrinkage of the brain. Research suggests that women are more vulnerable than men to the brain damaging effects of excessive alcohol use, and the damage tends to appear with shorter periods of excessive drinking for women than for men.

• Heart health: Studies have shown that women who drink excessively are at increased risk for damage to the heart muscle than men even for women drinking at lower levels.

• Cancer risk: Alcohol consumption increases the risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, liver, colon, and breast among women. The risk of breast cancer increases as alcohol use increases.

There is not much data available on the frequency of usage of alcohol among women in India, nor the adverse health effects.  However, other international data is clearly indicative of the fact that women, especially of child bearing age and pregnant women should stay away from alcohol.