Alcohol dehydrogenase ADH5, a protein that breaks down alcohol we consume.

Generally, most people tend to prefer drinking in the evening. However, when considering a few particular factors, this has always seemed strange to me (reasons for which I’ll get to in a minute), although there are obvious reasons for it. For instance, most people work jobs early in the day, since “business hours” generally fall between 9AM and 5PM. Thus, the only part of the day most people are left any time to imbibe is in the evenings. This provides rational as to why most (but not all) roadblocks and license check points occur at night; there are statistically a greater number of people consuming alcohol later in the day, and especially after dark.

Of course, it is advised that if you consume alcoholic beverages, you should abstain from driving at all, lest the routine license check points you may encounter result in penalties that could include loss of your driver’s license. This is one primary reason I prefer having a drink earlier in the day; although I’m not suggesting here that people can avoid consequences of drinking and driving by simply doing it at an earlier hour. Instead, I’ve found that, as a full time journalist, when I can work it into my schedule to break for a nice cocktail while in town running errands (often limited to pedestrian travel while in the city anyway), the relaxing, refreshing quality of a single, well-prepared mixed drink is far more enjoyable in the daytime anyway. But why is this?

(more…)