Average Blood Alcohol Content in Men by Weight

Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsOverviewBlood Alcohol in MenWhat Counts as a Drink?After One DrinkAfter Two DrinksAfter Three DrinksAfter Six DrinksMore Than Six Drinks

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Overview

Blood Alcohol in Men

What Counts as a Drink?

After One Drink

After Two Drinks

After Three Drinks

After Six Drinks

More Than Six Drinks

In the United States, a BAC of 0.10 (one-tenth of one percent) means that there is 0.10 g of alcohol for every 100 milliliters (mL) of blood. According to the law, the legal limit for operating a motor vehicle is 0.08 for drivers 21 and over.Many states have zero-tolerance policies for drivers under the legal drinking age, which make it illegal to have a BAC over .00 if you are under 21.

How Long Is Alcohol Detected in Blood Tests?

Blood alcohol concentration can differ significantly between men and women, with women tending to have higher BAC than men of the same age and weight. Moreover, men are able to metabolize alcohol faster because they have higher levels of an enzyme called alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) in their stomach and liver.

Even so, the time it takes a man to metabolize a single alcoholic beverage is not one hour, as some would have you believe. Depending on your weight, it can take far longer.

On average, one standard American drink will produce a blood alcohol concentration of between 0.02 and 0.04. Most light and moderate drinkers will feel subtle effects at this level.

One drink equals 1 12-ounce bottle of beer, 5 ounces of wine, or 1 oz of 100-proof liquor. But how intoxicated you become depends on how quickly you consume alcohol over a period of hours. For an average-sized American man, for example, drinking four beers in two hours may not be enough to raise your BAC to .08%, but five beers likely will be.

Most people will tell you that one drink is “no big deal.” While some men may respond to a single drink with a little tipsiness, others may appear entirely unaffected. That doesn’t mean that they’ve “cleared” the alcohol from the body; it simply means that their brains are more accustomed to alcohol and won’t react as profoundly.

After just one drink, it will take around two hours for the BAC to return to zero, even in larger men.

Two standard American drinks will, on average, produce a blood alcohol concentration of about 0.04, and most light and moderate drinkers will feel relaxed at this level. Even if you don’t feel the effects ofintoxication, your reaction times will be slowed and fine motor skills will be affected to the extent thatdriving will be impaired.

After two drinks, themetabolism of alcoholin men will further slow, meaning that you will have to wait longer before you get behind the wheel. For example:

After two drinks, it will take between four and six hours for your BAC to return to zero.

Three American standard drinks will produce, on average, a blood alcohol concentration of about 0.06. At this point, the negative effects of alcohol start to show.

Once the typical man has had three drinks, judgment will be impaired, often affecting the ability to make rational decisions, particularly around risk-taking activities such asdrivingor sex. Perception, memory, coordination, alertness, and self-control will also be impaired.

After a man has three standard drinks, the equation changes even further:

By the time you’ve consumed three drinks, you may already be well over thelegal alcohol limit, especially if you weigh 150 pounds or less.

The effects noted at the three drink level (or a BAC of 0.06) will become more pronounced with each additional drink. Six drinks will produce a BAC of about 0.12 unless the alcohol consumed over a long period of time.

When the BAC reaches 0.12, vomiting is not uncommon. It is the body’s first line of defense against alcohol poisoning.

After six drinks, the BAC and symptoms of severe intoxication and poisoning rapidly increase:

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, six people die of alcohol poisoning in the United States every day or roughly 2,200 deaths annually.

Keep in Mind

In general, three drinks or more will produce negative effects. These negative effects will increase the more you drink and the more quickly you drink. Because you feel “up” and emboldened, you may not even be aware of how badly you are impaired. These effects can be particularly pronounced in smaller men.

If you are driving, the evidence is clear that you are safer not drinking at all. Research also shows that the severity of life-threatening motor vehicle accidents increases significantly at BACs far lower than the current U.S. limit of 0.08.

It is also worth noting that the majority of sexual assaults occur when one or both people have been drinking. So having more than three drinks at a bar, club, or party may leave you vulnerable to impropriate and harmful behaviors.

If you are unable to stick to two drinks, you may need to consider whether you have a drinking problem. Even if you onlybinge occasionally, cravings and the inability to control your intake are signs of alcoholism that people often miss.

Signs and Symptoms of Alcoholism

4 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Scherer M, Fell JC.Effectiveness of lowering the blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limit for driving from 0.10 to 0.08 grams per deciliter in the United States.Traffic Inj Prev. 2019;20(1):1-8. doi:10.1080/15389588.2018.1508836American Addiction Centers.BAC legal limits in different states, counties, & cities.McHugh RK, Votaw VR, Sugarman DE, Greenfield SF.Sex and gender differences in substance use disorders.Clin Psychol Rev. 2018;66:12-23. doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2017.10.012National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.Core resource on alcohol.

American Addiction Centers.BAC legal limits in different states, counties, & cities.

McHugh RK, Votaw VR, Sugarman DE, Greenfield SF.Sex and gender differences in substance use disorders.Clin Psychol Rev. 2018;66:12-23. doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2017.10.012

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.Core resource on alcohol.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Alcohol Poisoning Deaths.Atlanta, Georgia; updated January 6, 2015.

Fell J, Voas R.The effectiveness of a 0.05 blood alcohol concentration ( BAC) limit for driving in the United States.Addiction109(6):869-874. 2014. doi:10.1111/add.12365.

Meet Our Review Board

Share Feedback

Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit

Was this page helpful?

Thanks for your feedback!

What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit

What is your feedback?

Keep in Mind#

Keep in Mind