Alcohol
Effects on our Body
The brain
Steady Drinking Over Many Years Leads To Permanent Changes In
The Brain. One Of The Permanent Effects Of Alcohol On The Brain Is To Reduce
The Amount Of Brain Tissue And To Increase The Size Of The Ventricles Instead. Another
Way In Which Alcoholic Drinks Affect The Brain Is Through Depriving It Of Food
Substances Such As Vitamins. This Is Because Heavy Drinkers Often Neglect Their
Diet, Which Can Lead To Vitamin Deficiencies. Thiamine, One Of The 'B' Vitamins
Is Most Commonly Missing From The Diet And Can Lead To Serious Mental
Disturbance.
The Heart
The heart can be affected by the vitamin
deficiencies caused by a neglected diet. The pumping action of the heart is weakened. Heart failure can result from this.
Some Of The Most Serious Effects On
The Body Of Drinking Alcoholic Drinks Are Caused By Damage Done To The Liver By
Alcohol. If Alcohol Is Frequently In The Blood In Large Amounts, It Causes The
Liver Cells To Die And Prevents The Liver From Working Efficiently. This Disease
Is Called Cirrhosis. In The Case Of A Generally Healthy Person, If Alcohol Is
Taken Infrequently Or Only In Moderate Amounts, Any Damaged Liver Tissue Has
Time To Repair Itself. Two-thirds
of the cases of Cirrhosis of the liver diagnosed in the UK are caused by
alcohol.
Just one occasion when you drink heavily can irritate the stomach and cause
sickness and pain. The steady drinking of alcohol can lead to the regular
occurrence of these symptoms.
Alcohol causes small blood vessels in the skin to widen, allowing more blood to
flow close to the skin's surface. This produces a flushed skin colour and a
feeling of warmth.
Your sex life can be harmed by
drinking alcoholic drinks. Alcohol depresses nerve impulses. In men, it can
depress those which cause erections. In women, heavy drinking during pregnancy
can harm the foetus. The baby, when it is born, may be very small and could
have reduced intelligence and facial deformities. This condition is called
Foetal Alcohol Syndrome and babies born to mothers with an alcohol problem are
at a high risk of suffering from this.
Alcohol contains sugar and other
carbohydrates and so is a good from of energy. Heavy drinking can cause a
serious weight problem due to alcohol's high carbohydrate content.
The Harmful Effects of Alcohol
Brain and Central Nervous System
Impaired behaviour, judgment, memory, concentration and
co-ordination. Drinker experiences mild euphoria and loss of inhibition as
alcohol impairs regions of the brain controlling behaviour and emotion. Alcohol
impairs judgement, memory, concentration and co-ordination; as well as inducing
extreme mood swings and emotional outbursts.
Alcohol
acts as a sedative on the Central Nervous System, depressing the nerve cells in
the brain, dulling, altering and damaging their ability to respond. Large doses
cause sleep, anesthesia, respiratory failure, coma and death.
Brain Disorders and Addiction
Long term drinking may result in
permanent brain damage, serious mental disorders and addiction to alcohol.
Other effects on the central nervous system
Impaired visual ability
Altered sense of time and space
Impaired fine motor skills
Loss of pain perception
Unclear hearing
Slows reactions
Dulled
smell and taste
Impaired sexual performance
Distorted vision and ability to
adjust to lights. Pinpoint pupils and red eyes
Diminishes ability to distinguish between sounds and perceive their direction
Slurred
speech. Dulls taste and smell, reducing desire to eat
Irritation and damage of lining of
oesophagus, induces severe vomiting, haemorrhaging, pain and difficulty
swallowing. Cancer.
Weakens the heart muscle and ability to pump (Cardiomyopathy). Heart enlargement, abnormal heart signs and irregular
heart beat. Increases blood pressure, risk of heart attack and strokes.
Inhibits production of white and red blood cells.
High amounts of alcohol may cause
breathing to stop, then death. Lowered resistance to infection.
Muscles become weaker and atrophy,
pain, spasms and tenderness
Chromic heavy drinking
may cause alcoholic hepatitis (inflammation and destruction of the liver cells)
and then cirrhoses (irreversible lesions, scarring and destruction of liver
cells). Impairs the liver's ability to remove yellow pigment and skin appears
yellow(Jaundice). Liver damage causes fluid to build in extremities (Edema).
Decreases production of blood-clotting factors; may cause uncontrolled bleeing.
Liver accumulates fat which can cause liver failure, coma and death.
Irritation of stomach lining, peptic ulcers, inflammation, bleeding lesions and
cancer.
Significant risk of pancreatis, a chromic inflammation of the pancreas.
Irritation of the lining of the
intestinal tract and colon. Chronic drinking may result in inflammation ,
ulcers and cancer of the intestines and colon. Nausea, diarrhoea, vomiting,
sweating and loss of appetite are common. Alcohol impairs small intestine's
ability to process nutrients and vitamins.
Alcohol interferes with the body's
ability to absorb calcium resulting in bones being weak, soft, brittle and
thinner (Osteoporosis)
Sexual functioning can be impaired and deteriorate, resulting in impotence and
infertility, sometimes irreversible. Females also have high risk of developing
breast cancer.
Pregnancy and Unborn Babies
Drinking during pregnancy
significantly increases the chance of delivering a baby with Foetal Alcohol
Syndrome, small head, possible brain damage, abnormal facial features, poor
muscle tone, speech and sleep disorders and retarded growth and development.
Alcohol
is a depressant, which slows down thinking and actions. It acts on the brain
and affects all parts of the body. An average-size person's liver can break
down about one drink per hour; the rest of the alcohol circulates throughout
the body, affecting behavior, judgment, perception, and motor skills - such as
driving and operating machinery.
Alcohol Affects Each Individual Differently...
Smaller-size
people, women, younger or older people, and those who are ill will feel
stronger effects from the same amount of alcohol than larger people,
middle-aged adults, or people who are in good physical health. People with a
history of alcoholism in their family may also be affected differently than
people who have no history of alcoholism in their family.
Alcohol Abuse is a Health Risk...
Abuse
of alcohol can cause damage to many of the body's organs. Researchers report
damage to brain tissue, heart muscle, and reproductive organs in both males and
females. Alcohol may cause the drinker's blood pressure to rise, putting him or
her at risk for heart attack and stroke. Stomach ulcers, poor nutrition and
sexual dysfunction have all been related to alcohol abuse.
Alcohol Affects Driving Skills...
Alcohol
is involved in over half of the fatal car crashes in the U.S. Although many
states consider a driver legally intoxicated when their Blood Alcohol Content
reaches .10%, driving skills are affected at levels as low as .03%. This is
especially true of younger drivers, who may be less experienced. Alcohol
affects crucial driving skills like quick reflexes and vision.
Alcohol
is Harmful to Unborn Babies...
Alcohol
consumed by a pregnant woman enters the bloodstream of the fetus she is
carrying. Alcohol can affect the fetus in many ways: slowing both physical and
mental growth before and after birth; causing severe physical malformations of
the face and brain; creating learning disabilities or retardation. The safe
choice is not to drink during pregnancy.
Alcohol
Reacts with Other Drugs...
Combining
alcohol with certain over-the-counter or prescription drugs is dangerous.
Drinking while taking medication may cause impairment of coordination, a sharp
change in blood pressure, seizures, convulsions, and even death. Ask your
doctor or pharmacist about how a certain medications reacts with alcohol before
combining these two drugs.
Alcohol Abuse May Lead to Alcoholism...
Drinking
large enough amounts of alcohol over a period of time can produce alcoholism, a
physical dependence on alcohol. People with a history of alcoholism in their
family are at much greater risk of developing alcoholism themselves. Alcoholism
is a treatable illness; family members and friends may need to obtain help,
too.
More
Facts
Alcoholism is one of the most serious public health problems in the US today. Among
the 18.3 million adult "heavier drinkers," 12.1 million have one or
more symptoms of alcoholism, an increase of 8.2 percent since 1980.
One out of three American adults -56 million Americans- says that alcohol abuse
has brought trouble to his or her family.
Chronic brain injury caused by alcohol is second only to Alzheimer's disease as
known cause of mental deterioration in adults.
About 65 out of every 100 persons in the US will be in an alcohol-related crash
at sometime in their life.
Fifty-four percent of jail inmates convicted of violent crimes were drinking
before they committed the offense.
Over 80 percent of college presidents identify alcohol abuse as the biggest
problem on campus.
If a man and a woman of similar weight drink the same amount of alcohol, 30%
more alcohol will enter the woman's bloodstream, because women have less of a
certain stomach enzyme that digests alcohol.
THE SIZE IS
DIFFERENT...
THE ALCOHOL IS THE SAME.
One Standard Drink is equal to:
12 oz.
beer (5% alcohol)
5 oz. wine (12-17% alcohol) or 3 oz. fortified wine
1.5 oz. hard liquor (80-proof)