Some teens (and some adults) are under the impression that drinking coffee can help them sober up after they have been drinking. But aTemple University study on rats proves that this is not the case:

• Professor Thomas Gould and his colleagues gave mice doses of alcohol and caffeine and then had them navigate a maze.
  
• The mice that got only alcohol failed the maze test, as did the mice who consumed both alcohol and caffeine.
  
• Under the influence of both chemicals, the mice appeared alert, but they were incompetent at avoiding stimuli in mazes.

"The myth about coffee's sobering powers is particularly important to debunk, because the co- use of caffeine and alcohol can actually lead to poor decisions with disastrous outcomes," said Dr. Gould.

The study appeared in the journal Behavioral Neuroscience.

Labels: alcohol, caffeine, sobriety

Posted By: Aspen/CRC