Actually, it's a bit more complex than that. Dentatured ethanol is designed to be very toxic at low oral doses. Reason being the BATF doesn't want anyone getting drunk without paying their liquor tax. I'd look for Everclear in the liquor strore if you want a "safe" ethanol, if your state allows its sale. Otherwise, go to a state where its sale IS permitted.

There are several acceptable formulas for denaturing ethanol and usually you wind up with about 90% ethanol and a 10% hodgepoge of isopropanol, methyl ethyl ketone, methyl iso butyl ketone and methanol.

Halfway on the toxic meter between denatured ethanol and Everclear are the specially denatured alcohols (SDAs). These are government-sanctioned formulas to kinda sorta make ethanol toxic and there are roughly 40 SDA formulas. Purchasing a SDA requires a license from the BATF and anyone reading this probably doesn't fit their requirements for granting of a license. SDAs are used in personal care products, for example, like hairspray, mouthwash, cologne/perfume and the like. If you read the label on your bottle of mouthwash or cough syrup you'll see an ingredient like "SDA 31B." 31B refers to the specific formula for denaturing the ethanol. A cough syrup designed for oral consumption for instance, may contain an SDA that the government calls "safe" at the doses typical of a person suffering from a cough, but it's far less toxic than the denatured alcohol you'll find in the hardware store. Try to get drunk from an SDA-containing product and you'll probably wish you had just ponied up your liquor tax. Try to get drunk from dentaured alcohol (from the hardware store) and you'll probably wind up dead or in the hospital.

This is also why you'll sometimes hear about winos who get drunk on aftershave (SDAs). They drink it and get drunk from the ethanol and either the alcohol buzz is worth getting sick, or their bodies are accustomed to the denaturants and don't respond like your body would - assuming you're not an aftershave-swilling wino.