Here’s Why Superman Can’t Get Drunk & High

Superman is generally known to be invincible, so it’s hard to apply human criteria to him regarding biological needs and effects. We know that Superman looks like a regular human, but his internal mechanism is drastically different. He doesn’t need to eat or drink but often partakes in meals due to psychological needs, but what about drinking alcohol or even using drugs? Can Superman get drunk or high? This is what we set out to discover today. 

Superman can’t get drunk or high due to his Kryptonian physiology. Superman’s metabolism functions drastically differently than that of regular humans. He primarily metabolizes solar energy to fuel his abilities, meaning that alcohol and other various substances don’t even register inside his organism. There are a few instances in which Superman can enjoy the side effects of drinking alcohol, but those are rare and mostly associated with him being in a weak state. 

Now that we’ve covered that Superman generally can’t get drunk, it’s time to explore why. It’s also important to mention the rare scenarios in which he would be able to get drunk. If you’re interested in more, stay with us and keep reading! 

Superman’s metabolism is too powerful for alcohol 

Everyone knows up to this point that Superman is Kryptonian and that his powers, in large part, depend on the type of solar radiation he is exposed to. The key to his powers lies in the fact that Earth orbits a yellow dwarf type of star, which gives Superman that beneficial yellow solar radiation he needs to basically supercharge his physiology. 

With access to yellow solar radiation, Superman has super strength, super durability, super speed, and enough energy to power plethora of other powers and abilities that regular humans don’t have access to. 

His cells basically convert yellow solar radiation directly into energy, and not only that, even if Superman is not directly exposed to the yellow sun for some time, he will get to keep his powers for as long as he has yellow solar radiation stored within his cells. Superman is a living, breathing solar battery, but how does this translate to him drinking or getting high? 

Superman doesn’t have to eat or drink; everything he does related to drinking and eating is purely on a psychological level, as he really doesn’t get any benefits from food or fluids consumed, and there’s no difference regarding alcohol. 

In his usual superpowered state, alcohol or drugs, for that matter, won’t have any effect on Superman. He can’t absorb those substances normally and is also highly immune to the detrimental effects of alcohol and other substances. 

Superman can’t drink endless amounts of alcohol without suffering any kind of effects. Even liver failure and alcohol poisoning are out of the question due to his super-rapid healing factor. Regarding drugs, Superman is immune to these types of substances, and his mind likely wouldn’t suffer detrimental effects as well. 

So Superman can physically drink or do drugs, but it won’t result in anything significant. However, there are some exceptions to this rule, but they naturally mean that Superman needs to be in a weakened state. Let’s check them out. 

Superman needs to be depowered to get drunk 

In recent years, a new superpower has been introduced to Superman. Superman is able to eject massive amounts of solar power, which results in him basically draining his power reserves and turning into a regular human. With no backup energy to rely on and no healing factor and resistance to fall onto, Superman is able to get drunk and enjoy the effects. Sadly, we don’t know how various other substances would affect him, considering we don’t exactly have a source from the comics to back this up.  

Also, while depowered following a solar flare, Superman can get drunk much faster than a regular human, considering that he has no built-up tolerance to it. 

Superman can get drunk after Kryptonite exposore 

Green Kryptonite and Superman are two things that don’t mix well. Kryptonite weakens Clark on a molecular level, depowering him and weakening him, having the same effect as radiation has on a human being. If Superman is exposed to Kryptonite enough, his natural defenses and mechanisms keep him immune to the effects of alcohol and various other substances. This is only theoretical in nature since the last thing Superman would do following Kryptonite exposure is drink alcohol. 

He might get drunk under a different type of sun

Most Kryptonians, in theory, have a similar potential as Clark, but throughout history, much of their potential was lost because Krypton wasn’t exposed to the right type of solar radiation. If Clark were to venture on a planet that orbits a red sun, and if he were to stay there long enough to spend his yellow solar radiation supply within his cells, he might once again revert to a level of powers of regular humans, and alcohol and drugs might affect him.

We don’t know what kind of substances Krytptonians used when they wanted to party, but whatever they had would almost certainly affect Clark as well. 

Magical alcohol might be the solution to Superman’s partying problem 

Superman, in theory, is not especially weak to magic; it’s only that he doesn’t have built-in mechanisms to combat its effect, and in that aspect, he is more similar to humans than you would have believed. This is why Superman might be sensitive to the effects of different types of enchanted alcohol or other various substances. 

Magic defies all laws, and it also defies any scientific premise that would allow him to be resistant to it.  

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