How does methanol poisoning happen? | 60 Minutes Australia
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- Опубліковано 7 лют 2025
- Methanol poisoning was something few Australians had heard of until late last year when six travellers, including two young women from Melbourne, died after being served alcohol at a backpacker’s hostel in Laos.
Evil Spirit (2025)
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2:07 This is not correct, water dissolves completely in ethanol, they are considered "miscible" liquids, meaning they can be mixed in any proportion without any limit to their solubility; essentially, water and ethanol dissolve completely in each other.
The reason they dilute ethanol (alchohol) with methanol (poison) is so that the SG (specific gravity) of the mixture is relatively unchanged, ie the mix still reads close enough to 40% whereas if the ethanol was diluted with water it would have a much lower SG and would read as obviously diluted when tested with a hydrometer.
The comment by @fins59 is mostly correct, but with some nuances. Let’s break it down:
Water and Ethanol are Miscible - ✅ Correct
Water and ethanol mix completely in any ratio, meaning they are fully miscible. There is no limit to their solubility in each other.
Why Methanol is Used in Adulteration - ✅ Partially Correct
Illicit producers may add methanol to alcoholic beverages to increase volume while maintaining specific gravity (SG).
Hydrometers measure SG, which is influenced by alcohol concentration.
If you dilute ethanol with water, the SG drops significantly, making it obvious that the alcohol is watered down.
Adding methanol instead of water allows fraudsters to maintain a similar SG to ethanol, making the dilution harder to detect with a hydrometer.
Limitation in Explanation - 🔶 Missing Context
While SG remains similar, some advanced hydrometers and chemical tests can still detect methanol contamination.
Authorities usually don’t rely solely on hydrometers; they use lab tests like gas chromatography to identify methanol.
Final Verdict
The comment is correct in principle about ethanol and water mixing completely and why methanol is used in fraud. However, it oversimplifies the detection process, as methanol adulteration can still be caught with proper testing beyond just SG measurements.
BOTTLED BEER OR CANNED BEER IS A SAFE BET. DONT DO COCKTAILS
The best is don't do any alcohol at all.
Is there something that can be used to detect methanol in a drink like a pH strip?
IN MEXICO IT HAPPENS REGULARLY. A DOZEN TEENS ALL PASSED OUT IN MEXICO WITHIN SECONDS AT A BAR. ALL DIED IN THAT BAR
Impossible.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum HAS 1. Won The Nobel Peace Prize 2. Has A Ph.D In Energy Engineering 3. Masters Degree 4. Bachelor's In PHYSICS..
@mc1993 UR POINT IS WHAT
@@mc1993And? Your resume’ has nothing to do with what happens in bars. Also, nothing is impossible.
Well how come it wasn't in the news ?
@@Bebedollie IT WAS IN THE NEWS. I FOUND OUT BY MSN FRONT PAGE ON MY LAPTOP. SEARCH MEXICO BAR DOZEN TEENS DEAD FROM ALCOHOL POISONING. HAPPENS FREQUENTLY IN MEXICO. TAINTED ALCOHOL. STICK TO CANNED BEER AND SODA ONLY. DONT RISK IT
This is a well known thing in Mexico. If you're a traveler you should know to only order drinks that come bottled or in a can. 🤷♀️
There’s still lack of public awareness
Well good for you but just because it's a known thing there doesn't mean it's known globally hence the video explaining why its so dangerous and warning travelers. 🤷♀️ Truthfully people shouldn't have to worry about some lunatic not caring about what it could do people and putting it in a bottle anyway with no fear of the consequences but that's the world we live in and that's why we raise awareness.
@ It's important to understand the world can be dangerous and to take precautions
Pure Methanol is easy to distinguish, it smells way too different than Ethanol.
But of course most poisoning incidents occur when consuming drinks that are supposed to be safe but are tainted.
Some companies are developing Testing paper strips so they are cheap and portable enough to be used at a Bar discretely to test your drink. Just dip one side of it and wait for the color change, Green is Ethanol, any other color (or Green plus other color) is not safe for consumption.
You're saying ethanol can't be watered down with water?
What are you saying?
@@user-oi9to7ux7k I'm saying 60 Minutes Australia should try to provide better information.
Both ethanol and methanol are miscible in water to some extent. Watered down with water. 🤷♀️
@@user-oi9to7ux7k I'm saying 60 Minutes Australia should try to provide better information.
@@rubicon6261 To a very great extent, that's why a distillation process is required to separate them,
Only drink in bottles or in cans especially if you're in a foreign country.
If there was a methanol testing kit, that would be a lifesaver. Those backpackers from Australia, Denmark, and the UK would be alive if there's a methanol testing kit to test alcoholic drinks.
During the terrible lockdown, a man and his wife who couldn't buy alcohol( or sigarretts or flipflops or all the other ridiculess things our polititians did to us) and needed it since they were alcoholics, made their own and died in my town.
Underreported? just off the top of my head I remember back in 2016 and then again 2019 both from Perth had methanol poisoning from bali. It was very much reported, in fact , it was by your dad!
Occurs in all the places that I have never ever wanted to visit as a tourist.
why is channel 9 comments is turned off all time as me l want to comment it's all way's off why
What about vitamin A - retinol?
I don’t know y ppl take it in the first place when they know damn well it’s not safe and a hazard
Did you not watch the video? It explains what's been happening. People aren't just choosing to chug the stuff.
It's impossible to tell
@@delsings well I know mate but sometimes ppl do for the sake of it but I’m not talking abt the video I’m talking in general
@Asiyafsrah oh wow people actually attempt that straight up?? Woahhhh mega dangerous
@ Yh doesn’t make sense the fact that ppl do random stuff but I’m not here to fight with a grown up about something obvious and logical