Why Do So Many On The Spectrum Not Drink Alcohol?

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Why is it that there seems to be a disproportionate amount of people on the spectrum who don't drink, relative to the general population?

Is it because alcohol interferes with medications? Is it because of sensory issues? Is it because people on the spectrum are less likely to enjoy typical social situations where drinking is the norm?

There happen to be many people on the Spectrum who DO drink. I don’t find alcoholism to be rare in Spectrum people.

There are many potential bad reactions between medications and alcohol.

For me, I can't stand the taste of alcohol and have yet to find an alcoholic beverage I can't taste it in. Plus now I'm on meds that don't mix well with alcohol.

I enjoy alcoholic drinks, but don't drink to get drunk, don't think I ever "blacked out". It is just not logical to me. I don't enjoy being around drunk people either. I always think of myself as a "one drink guy", I know and respect my limits.
I find myself in general less likely to follow peer pressure, that may be part of this as well.

Don't know about others, but my poor brain struggles to function as it is. Add even mild intoxication and my IQ drops.

When I was younger I used to have friends who drank a lot. I drank a little and could let go and be myself, and they just assumed I was as far gone as they were so it was ok.

Alcohol makes masking impossible. As an adult, I wouldn't want people to think I was super drunk blacking out when really it's the autism, not alcohol, talking.

It also makes me too open and accepting of verbal abuse, and I don't like to be like that.

Ooh. That's the fear I have. If I should ever get drunk I would feel very vunerable if I am no longer able to mask. Even before I knew the term masking, I still knew within me that getting drunk would make me vunerable.

If indeed it's true that many of us don't like alcoholic beverages, that's good, because those of us who do drink alcoholic beverages have a greater-than-average tendency to get addicted. See:

Tuesday, July 3, 2018
Autism and Addiction: A Problem with Deep Roots
Maxfield Sparrow
http://www.thinkingautismguide.com/2018 ... -deep.html

The Hidden Link Between Autism and Addiction
It’s believed that people on the spectrum don’t get hooked on alcohol or other drugs. New evidence suggests they do.
Maia Szalavitz Mar 2, 2017
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/arch ... on/518289/

I'm one of the lucky ones who doesn't like alcoholic beverages at all, in the first place. I don't like the smell of them. Also, some alcoholic beverages fizz, which I don't like. I don't even like soda at all, for that reason.

Also I've never liked the idea of drinking alcohol as an aid to socializing. The only people I would want to socialize with, in the first place, are people with interesting and intelligent things to say. Alcohol does not help with that, but only lowers people's inhibitions, including inhibitions against saying really stupid things.

I will very occasionally have a drink. But I don't drink heavily/get drunk, mostly because I'm terrified of not being in complete control of my actions. There also aren't many alcoholic drinks that I actually like the taste of. I like hard cider, margaritas, and some other fruity drinks, but I can't stand beer and wine. They taste way too strong. Alcohol also tends to make me really tired. One drink doesn't affect me too badly, but one time I had two margaritas (the most I've ever drank at one time). It was only about 7 or 8 p.m., and I was just done for the night after that. I was so sleepy that I could hardly keep my eyes open, so I just went to bed because I had no energy to do anything.

I’ve just never had any desire to drink it.

I'd assume its because we don't have the 'peer pressure' that is often associated with drunkenness.

Either we don't have friends or social interactions that would create that peer pressure in the first place, or we are able to ignore it.

Therefore we can drink alcohol as and when we see fit to, and not when someone else wants us to.

It's mostly a sensory issue in my case.
I don't like how it is smelled and taste at all, but that's not the point. Drinking alcoholic drinks, sometimes in my case, can hurt. Especially if it's served cold, a sip can easily overwhelm me for a moment.
After a few sips or so, I may slowly acquire some tricks for the time being. Otherwise, so far, I'm not still used to it.

Trying to 'acquire' unaccustomed drinks is harder than 'acquiring' unaccustomed food in general in most of my case so far.


As for anything else; yes, I'm curious how it tastes like if one's accustomed to it. And no, there's no peer pressure there nor am ever tempted to just because everyone else is doing it, nor thought it's a mature thing -- cause it's more likely a pseudo-mature thing like most things I have no real interest growing up.

Unless you count your boss jokingly threatening you and others teasing you for not drinking, I'd just took it as a challenge nonetheless.

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Totally false that autistics can't/don't get addicted to things like alcohol, drugs, porn, gaming, etc.

I'm thinking the last time I had a drink was maybe a year ago. I did drink when I was a teen into my late twenties but I actually never liked the feeling of being buzzed or drunk. I can't imagine a situation at this point where I'd have a desire to get drunk again.

I also don't like seeing or being around other people when they're drunk. People are too unpredictable for me even when they're sober. When people are drunk, it's extremely unsettling to me; especially when they're men. I've seen many bad things happen in my life being around drunk people. From fights and people being hauled off to detox to grown men p*ssing themselves in front of me. I have definitely seen the ugly and devastating side of alcohol abuse.

More than a couple of drinks at a time can cause me a meltdown (although that didn't stop me from doing it anyway for years). Now that I know what's going on with me, I've become a lot more cautious with alcohol - a single glass of wine on occasion is my limit.