title: Testing the validity of the Danish urban myth that alcohol can be absorbed through feet: open labelled self experimental study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the validity of the Danish urban myth that it is possible to get drunk by submerging feet in alcohol.
  
  
  METHODS
  Open labelled, self experimental study, with no control group.
  
  
  METHODS
  Office of a Danish hospital.
  
  
  METHODS
  Three adults, median age 32 (range 31-35), free of chronic skin and liver disease and non-dependent on alcohol and psychoactive drugs.
  
  
  METHODS
  The primary end point was the concentration of plasma ethanol (detection limit 2.2 mmol/L (10 mg/100 mL)), measured every 30 minutes for three hours while feet were submerged in a washing-up bowl containing the contents of three 700 mL bottles of vodka. The secondary outcome was self assessment of intoxication related symptoms (self confidence, urge to speak, and number of spontaneous hugs), scored on a scale of 0 to 10.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Plasma ethanol concentrations were below the detection limit of 2.2 mmol/L (10 mg/100 mL) throughout the experiment. No significant changes were observed in the intoxication related symptoms, although self confidence and urge to speak increased slightly at the start of the study, probably due to the setup.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results suggest that feet are impenetrable to the alcohol component of vodka. We therefore conclude that the Danish urban myth of being able to get drunk by submerging feet in alcoholic beverages is just that; a myth. The implications of the study are many though.
authors.affiliation: Endocrinology Section, Department of Cardiology and Endocrinology, Hillerød Hospital, Dyrehavevej 29, DK-3400 Hillerød, Denmark.
authors.forename: Christian Stevns
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Hansen
authors.forename: Louise Holmsgaard
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Faerch
authors.forename: Peter Lommer
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Kristensen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000435:Alcoholic Intoxication / Q000209:etiology; D002492:Central Nervous System Depressants / Q000097:blood / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D003718:Denmark; D000431:Ethanol / Q000097:blood / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D005260:Female; D005528:Foot / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009229:Mythology; D012869:Skin Absorption / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D002492:Central Nervous System Depressants; D000431:Ethanol