Term for an emotional state of exaggerated ecstasy or an intense feeling of happiness that lifts someone above their normal emotional state. Such a state is caused by psychotropic substances, among other things. These are active substances that influence the human psyche. Depending on the substance, this is associated with disorders of consciousness, cognitive abilities, perception, affect and behaviour.

However, this article only deals with intoxication caused by excessive consumption of alcohol. When consumed in large quantities, alcohol causes disinhibition, increased emotionality, inhibition of thought, anaesthesia and overestimation of one's own abilities. In early civilisations, excessive alcohol consumption to the point of drunkenness was a ritualised custom on certain occasions. Until the Middle Ages, excessive intoxication was considered normal. From the 16th century it was outlawed and from the 19th century it was increasingly regarded as a disease (alcoholism).

Stages of development / degree of intoxication

Intoxication is a state of excitement or stupor lasting minutes to hours, which is usually accompanied by misjudgement of the situation in the form of sensory illusions and always leaves behind partial to complete amnesia (loss of memory). Alcohol intoxication initially leads to mental disinhibition, an increased urge to speak and move with a frequent transition to depression and aggression, which can escalate into destructiveness. After the intoxication has worn off, the after-effects, known as a hangover, often remain. The stages range from well-being and feelings of happiness to intoxication, which can be fatal in extreme cases. The levels in per mille:

• 0.3: Beginning of the effects of alcohol, legal limit in Germany
• 0.5: clear feeling of warmth, cheerfulness, legal limit in Austria
• 0.8: clearly limited ability to react, legal limit in Switzerland
• 1.0: Concentration and coordination problems, first speech disorders
• 1.5: severe intoxication, slurred speech
• 1.8: stronger intoxication with disinhibition and unsteady walking
• 2.0: uncontrolled staggering, nausea, vomiting
• 2.3: severe intoxication with apathy and fatigue, amnesia (memory loss)
• 2.5: Intoxication, from here on there is danger to life
• 3.0: you can no longer hold yourself upright, loss of consciousness
• 4.0: fatal dose

The temperance societies (temperance movements) that emerged in the 19th century attempted to draw attention to the dangers of alcohol consumption, in some cases with the help of humour. The cartoon "The development of a drunkard - from the first glass to the grave" dates back to 1846:

Tolerance of alcohol

The tolerance of alcohol depends on age, physical constitution, gender, type of person and drinking speed. Women and especially East Asians, indigenous peoples of America (Native Americans) and Australia (Aborigines) have less ADH (alcohol dehydrogenases), ALDH (aldehyde dehydrogenase) and other degradation enzymes and are therefore drunk faster and for longer. A completely different criterion is the amount of alcohol that is tolerable or harmless to health with regular (daily) consumption. This is stated differently in the relevant literature and varies considerably between 20 and 60 grams of alcohol per day (see Health). Alcohol has a high nutritional value, around 95% is converted into energy.

The alcohol consumed passes from the stomach (20%) and small intestine (80%) immediately into the bloodstream and then into the body tissue (absorption). The distribution depends on the amount of blood (approx. 5 to 7 litres) and body size or body surface area; the larger the volume, the better the alcohol is distributed. However, fatty tissue can hardly absorb alcohol. In a tall, lean person, alcohol is distributed more and results in less alcohol concentration in the blood compared to a short, fat person. This happens relatively slowly and (depending on the contents of the stomach) is only completed one to two hours after the end of drinking (for calculation see BAC).

Intoxication as therapy

Many scientists in the 18th and 19th centuries focussed on intoxication as a therapy and wine in particular was regarded as the ideal drink to achieve this euphoric state, although company was always a prerequisite for consumption (excessive drinking alone is a sign of possible alcohol dependence). The natural scientist Gottfried Leibniz (1646-1716) also dealt with this in his theory of the monadic soul and its inability to perceive the "subcritical" movements of the environment while awake. Only light intoxication sharpens the senses and expands the horizon of sensory experience.

The US psycho-pharmacologist Ronald K. Siegel writes in his book "Intoxicating Drugs in Animals and Humans" that intoxication as a fourth instinct can never be suppressed any more than sex, hunger and thirst. The Greek philosopher Kostis Papajorgis (*1940) unfolds a philosophy of passion for delirium from Homer to Baudelaire and Dostoyevsky to Jack London in his essay "Intoxication - A Philosophical Aperitif". Papajorgis talks about true intoxication, the secret of which lies in the "renunciation of control over oneself" and the tendency to self-destruction. Those who only drink water have something to hide (ex AMAZON).

The difference between moderate wine consumption and alcohol abuse is described in an essay by Peter Rosegger...