Alcohol in the bloodstream of the mother crosses the placenta and reaches the fetus. Fetal alcohol syndrome results in growth failure after birth, reduced IQ, and malformation of facial features. Your body's ability to break down alcohol depends on your weight, recent food intake, physical condition, and gender. A larger person can usually tolerate more alcohol. Recent food intake will slow the digestion of alcohol, thereby minimizing its effects.
Men generally tolerate more alcohol than women.
It is believed that gender and genetic factors determining alcohol tolerance are related to a person's ability to produce the enzyme that helps digests alcohol. If you produce more of this enzyme, less of what you drink reaches the bloodstream in the form of alcohol and more arrives already broken down. Therefore, a person with more of this enzyme can tolerate more alcohol without the effects on the central nervous system . Have someone designated to drive if you're going to drink, or plan an alternative way home, such as a taxi or bus as a general rule, the lower your body weight, the more intense the effect alcohol will have on you. Also remember that women are more susceptible to the effects of alcohol than men do not drink on an empty stomach.