Alcohol and postural imbalance. A force plate study.

A total of 16 normal, medium sized persons were given 20 g of alcohol every hour for 4-5 h. This yielded blood alcohol concentrations between 0.1 mg/ml and 1.7 mg/ml (0.1-1.7%) during the 4-5 h of testing. By use of a computer-assisted force plate system, objective measurements of postural imbalance were performed each hour. An increasing postural imbalance was found at blood alcohol concentrations above 0.6 mg/ml (0.6%). The results illustrate the risk of intake of alcohol by people highly dependent on a safe standing position.