PSY 3171 Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: Anesthetic, Alcohol Dehydrogenase, Etiology

• School: University of Ottawa
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSY 3171
• Professor: Mary Theresa Howard

Document Summary

There are four neurotransmitters involved when drinking alcohol: dopamine, serotonin, pain relieving circuits similar to heroin, anesthetic e ect. There is not a universal use of alcohol. Hard to do research into the e ects of alcohol in children because it is not ethical to give children alcohol: an early study found that children didn"t act intoxicated despite high levels of aloha. This suggests that physically they are less sensitive to alcohol, but cognitively (memory and learning) they are more sensitive than adults: they metabolize it di erently. It is suggested that there is a mutation that predisposes people to alcoholism: 12% of white men have it. People"s relationship with alcohol will change over time. Mead was likely the rst type of alcohol. Opium derivatives were widely used in asian, greek and roman cultures to relieved pain or induce sleep and enhance pleasure. Natives in the andes chewed the lead of the coca plant to relive fatigue and increase endurance.