Abstract
Many studies using alcohol administration assess breath alcohol concentrations (BrACs) in both men and women. To account for physiological differences and equate BrACs between men and women, alcohol doses are often reduced by 8% for women. Despite the use of this dose adjustment, a comprehensive comparison of the time course of men's and women's BrAC measurements following multiple alcohol doses has not been conducted. Using both bolus and hourly dosing procedures, we examined whether an 8% dose reduction for women results in BrACs similar to men regardless of dose size, measurement time, or method of administration. Two groups of moderate drinkers from 21 through 45 years old were recruited for this study. In a repeated‐measures design, one group of 90 men and women (n = 45 each) each consumed bolus doses of 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, and 0.8 g/kg 95% alcohol at 9:00 AM on separate days. Expired‐air samples were collected at 9:30, 10:15, and 11:15 AM. In the second group, 26 men and women (n = 13 each) consumed 0.35 g/kg 95% alcohol in three hourly doses at 9:15, 10:15, and 11:15 AM. Expired‐air samples were collected at 9:30, 10:30, and 11:30 AM and 12:30 and 1:30 PM. Results: Both bolus and hourly dosing procedures resulted in comparable BrAC measurements for men and women following all alcohol doses across all measurement time points. Following bolus dosing, peak BrACs reached .007%, .032%, .059%, and .087% for women, and .010%, .034%, .060%, and .086% for men (doses 0.2, .04, .06, 0.8 g/kg, respectively). Following hourly dosing (0.35 g/kg x 3), peak BrACs were .108% for women and .112% for men. This comprehensive comparison of a wide range of alcohol doses and measurement times using two administration procedures strongly supports the use of an 8% reduction of alcohol dose for women to equate BrAC with men.
Published Version
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