Alcohol poisoning is a serious — sometimes deadly — result of consuming dangerous amounts of alcohol. When your body absorbs too much alcohol, it can directly impact your central nervous system, slowing your breathing, heart rate and gag reflex. This can lead to choking, coma and even death.

Alcohol poisoning most often occurs as a result of drinking too many alcoholic beverages over a short period of time. Binge drinking is a common cause of alcohol poisoning. Alcohol poisoning can also occur by drinking household products that contain ethyl alcohol (ethanol), or by ingesting isopropyl alcohol (isopropanol) or methyl alcohol (methanol).

A person with alcohol poisoning needs immediate medical attention and should not be left alone. If you suspect someone has alcohol poisoning, call your local poison control center or emergency number, usually 911.

Treatment of alcohol poisoning consists of providing breathing support and intravenous fluids and vitamins until all of the alcohol is eliminated from the body.

Signs and symptoms of alcohol poisoning include:

• Confusion, stupor
• Vomiting
• Seizures
• Slow or irregular breathing
• Blue-tinged skin or pale skin
• Low body temperature (hypothermia)
• Unconsciousness ("passing out")

It's not necessary for all of these symptoms to be present before seeking help. A person who has become unconscious, or cannot be roused, is at risk of dying.

Alcohol poisoning may result from accidental ingestion, particularly among children:

• Ethanol, for example, is found in alcoholic beverages as well as common household items such as after-shaves, colognes, perfumes, mouthwashes and medications.
• Isopropyl alcohol is commonly found in rubbing alcohol, lotions, some cleaning products and antifreeze.
• Methanol is found in items such as solvents, paints, varnishes, antifreeze and windshield washer fluid.

Most often, however, alcohol poisoning is a result of drinking too much ethanol in the form of alcoholic beverages.

The effects of alcohol on your system depend on the concentration of alcohol in your blood (blood alcohol concentration, or BAC). Factors that affect your blood alcohol concentration include how strong the alcohol is, how quickly and how much you drink it, and how empty your stomach is at the time you drink it.

Normally, your body can eliminate the alcohol from a 12-ounce can of beer in about one hour. If your body absorbs more alcohol than it can eliminate, your blood alcohol concentration goes up. As you can imagine, drinking several beers in the space of an hour will increase your BAC much more than if you had one beer during the same time period. Binge drinking — rapidly having five drinks or more in a row, for example — can elevate your BAC to the point of causing alcohol poisoning.

Blood alcohol concentration continues to rise even after you've stopped drinking or have passed out because alcohol in your stomach continues to enter your bloodstream.

If you suspect that someone has alcohol poisoning, even if they don't have all of the signs and symptoms, seek immediate medical care. If the person is unconscious, call 911 or your local emergency number. If the person is conscious, call 800-222-1222 and you will be automatically routed to your local poison control center. The staff at the poison control center or at the emergency call center can instruct you as to whether you should take the person directly to a hospital.

Don't leave an unconscious person alone. While waiting for help, do not try to make the person vomit. A person who has alcohol poisoning has an impaired gag reflex and may choke on his or her own vomit or accidentally inhale (aspirate) vomit into his or her lungs, which could cause lethal lung injury.

Tell hospital or emergency personnel, if you know, the type and quantity of alcohol the person ingested, and when.

In addition to checking for visible signs and symptoms of alcohol poisoning, your doctor will likely order blood tests to check blood alcohol levels and identify other signs of alcohol toxicity, such as low blood sugar. A urine test also may help to confirm a diagnosis of alcohol poisoning.

Alcohol is a stomach irritant and may cause vomiting. It also impairs your gag reflex. This increases the risk of choking on vomit if you've passed out from excessive drinking. There's also a risk of accidentally inhaling vomit into your lungs, which can lead to a dangerous or fatal interruption of breathing (asphyxiation). Excessive vomiting can also result in severe dehydration.

In addition, alcohol poisoning can affect your respiratory and heart functions to the point of shutting them down, causing death.

Alcohol poisoning treatment usually involves supportive care while your body rids itself of the alcohol. This typically includes:

• Careful monitoring
• Airway protection to prevent breathing or choking problems
• Oxygen therapy
• Administration of fluids through a vein (intravenously) to prevent dehydration

If methanol was ingested, kidney dialysis may be necessary to speed up the alcohol elimination process. Dialysis is a mechanical way of filtering waste and toxins, such as alcohol, from your body. Dialysis may also be helpful in severe cases of isopropyl alcohol poisoning.

Survival past 24 hours of alcohol ingestion usually results in a good outcome.

Here are some tips to avoid alcohol poisoning:

• Be moderate. To prevent alcohol poisoning, consume alcoholic beverages in moderation, if at all. Most doctors recommend no more than one drink a day for women and no more than two a day for men. A standard drink is equal to 12 ounces of beer or wine cooler, 5 ounces of wine or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof distilled spirits. Also, try to enjoy your drink over time. Sip, don't gulp.
• Communicate with your teens. Talk to your teenage children about the dangers of alcohol. Binge drinking increases during adolescence and usually peaks between the ages of 18 and 22, decreasing thereafter. Evidence suggests that children who are warned about alcohol by their parents and who report close relationships with their parents are less likely to start drinking.
• Store products safely. If you have small children in the house, store alcohol-containing products, including cosmetics and medications, out of the reach of your children. Child-proof bathroom and kitchen cabinets to prevent access to household cleaners and keep potentially toxic items in your garage or storage area safely out of reach. Consider keeping alcoholic beverages under lock and key.