Most people have driven after having a drink. They’re confident that one drink isn’t going to put them over the legal limit and they don’t feel impaired. Maybe they just had a glass of wine while out to dinner.
But how many drinks can you have? One may be fine, but what if you have a second one with dessert? How many drinks does it take to get you to the legal limit?
It depends on a variety of factors
There’s no single answer for everyone, such as saying that you should stay under four drinks. There are just too many factors involved, such as the type of drink, your gender, your weight, how much you’ve eaten and more.
For instance, a 140-pound woman could be at the legal limit of 0.08% after just two drinks. A 140-pound man, meanwhile, may need three drinks to reach that point. Men also tend to be heavier than women, on average. If a man weighs 180 pounds, it will generally take him four drinks to get to the legal limit.
Plus, alcohol content varies widely among the various types of alcohol. A single shot of whisky is typically 40% alcohol, so it counts as “one drink,” but so does 12 ounces of a standard beer, which is 5% alcohol. It’s not safe to assume that a single glass of liquid counts as one drink. The makeup of that drink matters a lot.
If you do find yourself over the limit and facing a DWI charge, then it’s time to look into the legal defense options that you have.