After ingestion, ethanol is rapidly absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract into the bloodstream. The majority is absorbed in the small intestine, but some is absorbed in the stomach. Once in the bloodstream, ethanol is distributed throughout the body and metabolized primarily in the liver by the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase into acetaldehyde, which is then further metabolized into acetate by aldehyde dehydrogenase. This metabolic pathway is crucial as acetaldehyde is more toxic than ethanol itself.
