Scientists That Are Now Telling Us That Drinking On Airplanes Is "Dangerous" And Bad For Our Health Can Go Straight To Hell

NYT - The results of a small study published earlier this month suggest that there are certain risks associated with consuming alcohol on airplanes, especially on longer flights when you are planning to sleep. We asked experts about the new research, and how it fits with what they already know.

As an airplane climbs, the oxygen level in the cabin drops, and that causes your blood oxygen level to decrease, said Dr. Colin Church, a pulmonologist and senior lecturer at the University of Glasgow in Scotland. Drinking alcohol can increase your heart rate, he added, and it has been shown to reduce blood oxygen levels during sleep.

The new study was the first to examine the combined effects of altitude and alcohol, said Dr. Eva-Maria Elmenhorst, a researcher at the Institute of Aerospace Medicine in Cologne, Germany, who led the study.

For the experiment, she and her colleagues recruited 48 healthy adults between ages 18 and 40. Half completed the study in a sleep lab with normal air pressure. The other half slept in bunk beds in an altitude chamber with air pressure mimicking that on an airplane. Participants in both groups slept from midnight to 4 a.m. for two nights, one sober and one after having nearly four ounces of vodka, an amount of alcohol similar to that found in two beers or glasses of wine. They wore devices to measure their blood oxygen levels, heart rates and sleep stages.

The participants sleeping at normal air pressure had an average blood oxygen level of 96 percent on the sober night and 95 percent on the drinking night. But for those sleeping in the altitude chamber, oxygen levels were at 88 percent when sober and 85 percent after drinking.

Normal blood oxygen levels are generally above 95 percent in healthy people, said Dr. Ashish Sarraju, a cardiologist at the Cleveland Clinic. As for heart rate, the average during sleep at normal air pressure increased from 64 beats per minute when sober to 77 after drinking; and at altitude, from 73 beats per minute when sober to 88 after drinking.

Lower blood oxygen levels and increased heart rates are evidence of strain on the cardiovascular system — the heart has to work harder to compensate for the drop in oxygen, Dr. Sarraju said.

If you’re young and healthy, this type of strain on your heart may just leave you feeling a bit tired, Dr. Sarraju said. But if you have a cardiac or respiratory condition, such as heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or sleep apnea, it could make you lightheaded and short of breath, and drinking may increase your chances of having a medical emergency during the flight, he said.

Alcohol is also dehydrating, which may slightly increase your risk of developing a blood clot in your legs or lungs, Dr. Church said.

Oh, the humanity! A team of researchers, apparently oblivious to the universal truth that air travel is a special kind of hell, have dared to suggest that having a drink or two at 35,000 feet might not be the healthiest choice.

These killjoys in lab coats have discovered that combining the dehydrating effects of altitude with the dehydrating effects of alcohol can strain your heart and disrupt your sleep. Shocking, I know. Next, they'll be telling us that those tiny pretzels aren't a balanced meal.

Question from just a normal idiot for Dr. Church: have you been on an airplane recently Dr.?

You really want to take away the one saving grace that we're afforded in the skies, trapped in a metal tube with the worst society has to offer? 

I didn't go to medical school, but I fly like 200 times a year so allow me to do my best to refute your claims from a professional commercial passenger. 

Oxygen Levels: Apparently, the thin air on a plane combined with booze can make your blood oxygen drop a bit. But let's be real, who needs oxygen when you've got a mini bottle of gin and a good book? Just breathe into the paper bag they provide for motion sickness and you'll be fine.

Heart Rate: The study also found that drinking at altitude can raise your heart rate. But isn't that the point of a good vacation? A little excitement for the cardiovascular system? Besides, who needs a calm heart when you're hurtling through the air with a 400 lb guy burying his knees into your seat behind you, and 15 kids screaming bloody murder?

Dehydration: Yes, alcohol is dehydrating. And yes, so is flying. But that's what those little cups of water are for, right? Just ask the flight attendant for an extra one, or five. Problem solved.

Sleep:  The researchers claim that while alcohol might help you fall asleep faster, it disrupts your sleep later. But isn't that the beauty of a long flight? You're not trying to get a good night's rest, you're just trying to pass the time until you reach your destination. And who needs REM sleep when you've got a snoring seatmate and a crying baby to keep you entertained? If you're advising us to not mainline Svedka (at $15 a pop mind you) then you're leaving us no choice but to take hard drugs. Narcotics aren't that easy to take to and from the airport so I think that's only going to add to the stress and anxiety guys. You call yourselves scientists?

I think I speak for us all whne I say we appreciate your concern for our health Dr.s. But perhaps you could focus your efforts on more pressing matters, like inventing a teleportation device so we don't have to endure these flights in the first place. Until then, we'll be crammed in seat 23B, fighting for the arm rests, sipping our tiny vodka and sprite and dreaming of a world where science doesn't rain on our parade. Just once. 

Hit it Dierks-