The dosage difference between the sexes is due to the fact that it takes less alcohol for women to achieve the same blood concentrations as men. This is due to differences in the concentration of the ALDH enzyme found in the gut, mentioned above, as well as sex differences in the proportion of body fat. A male typically has more blood than an equally weighted female because women have a higher proportion of body fat, and fat requires less blood than muscle does. Lower blood volume and slower metabolism may also partly explain the steeper dive in women alcoholics who more quickly progress to
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