The Effect Of Alcohol On Your Health

The Effect Of Alcohol On Your Health

Alcohol is a toxic and psychoactive substance with dependence producing properties. In many of today’s societies, alcoholic beverages are a routine part of the social landscape for many in the population. This is particularly true for those in social environments with high visibility and societal influence, nationally and internationally, where alcohol frequently accompanies socializing. In this context, it is easy to overlook or discount the health and social damage caused or contributed to by drinking.

An alcoholic beverage is a drink that contains ethanol, a type of alcohol that acts as a drug and is produced by fermentation of grains, fruits, or other sources of sugar. The consumption of alcoholic drinks, often referred to as “drinking”, plays an important social role in many cultures.

Alcohol is a chemical substance found in drinks such as beer, wine, and liquor. It is also found in some medicines, mouthwashes, household products, and essential oils (scented liquid taken from certain plants). It is made by a chemical process called fermentation that uses sugars and yeast.

The alcohol in drinks is called ethanol (ethyl alcohol). It is made when yeast ferments the sugars in grains, fruits and vegetables. For example, wine is made from the sugar in grapes and vodka is made from the sugar in potatoes.

Alcoholism, excessive and repetitive drinking of alcoholic beverages to the extent that the drinker repeatedly is harmed or harms others. The harm may be physical or mental; it may also be social, legal, or economic. Because such use is usually considered to be compulsive and under markedly diminished voluntary control, alcoholism is considered by a majority of, but not all, clinicians as an addiction and a disease.

Drinking problems also have a very negative impact on mental health. Alcohol abuse and alcoholism can worsen existing conditions such as depression or induce new problems such as serious memory loss, depression or anxiety.

Alcohol problems don’t just hurt the drinker. Spouses and children of heavy drinkers may face family violence; children may suffer physical and sexual abuse and neglect and develop psychological problems. Women who drink during pregnancy run a serious risk of damaging their fetuses. Relatives, friends and strangers can be injured or killed in alcohol-related accidents and assaults.

Drinking too much – on a single occasion or over time – can take a serious toll on your health.  Here’s how alcohol can affect your body:

and cancer, please visit the National Cancer Institute’s webpage “Alcohol and Cancer Risk” (last accessed October 21, 2021).

Immune System:

Drinking too much can weaken your immune system, making your body a much easier target for disease.  Chronic drinkers are more liable to contract diseases like pneumonia and tuberculosis than people who do not drink too much.  Drinking a lot on a single occasion slows your body’s ability to ward off infections – even up to 24 hours after getting drunk.

Individuals often hide their drinking or deny they have a problem. How can you tell if you or someone you know is in trouble? Signs of a possible problem include having friends or relatives express concern, being annoyed when people criticize your drinking, feeling guilty about your drinking and thinking that you should cut down but finding yourself unable to do so, or needing a morning drink to steady your nerves or relieve a hangover.

 

1. It Can Cause Liver Damage

The disadvantages of alcohol use appear when you turn moderate drinking to heavy or binge drinking.

“Heavy alcohol consumption can tax the liver because the liver is the organ that filters alcohol. If the liver has to filter alcohol, it can produce metabolites that are harmful to your health and can cause diseases like fatty liver, hepatitis and cirrhosis,” Kessler says.

 

2. Central Nervous System

The easiest way to understand alcohol’s impact on the body is to see how it deteriorates the central nervous system of the body. People who get down with this disease have a slurred speech and tend to get bad coughs as well. Another dangerous impact of alcohol on the body is it can reduce the communication between the brain and the body. This is why a lot of people lose their consciousness as soon as they start drinking alcohol. People also complain of numbness and tingling sensation in the hands and feet. That’s not all; alcohol also affects the memory and makes it difficult for the brain to remember important facts and figures. The frontal lobe of the brain is the area that gets damaged and is the one that is responsible for short term memory, emotional control and making important judgments.

3. Digestive System

The relationship between alcohol and the digestive system is still not clear. However, after one gets affected, the signs start appearing clearly. The more you continue to drink, the greater the damage will be in the body. Too much drinking can damage the intestine and make it difficult for the body to digest food and absorb important nutrients. Heavy drinking can lead to one feeling full all the time, bloatedness, gassiness and even give diarrhea. For people who are heavy drinkers, it is common for them to get stuck with ulcers and pass painful stools.

4. Effect on sexual health

People drink alcohol in the pursuit of having more fun time in bed, but the truth be told, the real situation is contrary. Men who drink too much alcohol are very likely to suffer from erectile dysfunction which is dangerous for their sexual health. Furthermore, women who are heavy alcohol drinkers might suffer from painful pregnancies and will surely have a severe effect on their baby’s health. A normal human body produces enough sex hormones, but heavy drinking lowers the libido levels and curtails the hormone production in the body which is crucial for the human body during sex.

5. Immune System

The immune system of the body should be strong enough to fight all possible issues. If your immune system is not strong, you will very likely get affected with any possible disease which walks your path. People who drink alcohol have a weak immune system and are vulnerable to falling ill very fast. Pneumonia and tuberculosis are two rampantly growing diseases which have encapsulated much of the world population. Alcohol drinkers are much likely to suffer from this issue. Stats show more than 10% of tuberculosis is caused due to alcohol drinking. That’s not all; alcohol drinking can give birth to several types of cancers such as colon, mouth, and breast. Breast cancer is a disease that is very common among women.

6. Deteriorating physical appearance

This is another major disadvantage of drinking too much alcohol. People who drink alcohol casually are very liable to get struck with obesity. Many overweight people are often down because of too much alcohol drinking. Physical appearance is crucial in this day and age with social media being a rage. If you are down with alcohol drinking, you will very likely suffer from less lucrative opportunities in the corporate market and will suffer for the rest of your lives.

7. Digestive and endocrine glands

Our pancreas is responsible for giving birth to the digestive enzymes which help in digesting the food which we eat. Sadly, alcohol intake can curtail the normal production of digestive enzymes and take it to an abnormal level. The buildup of these enzymes is toxic for the body and gives rise to a problem which is known as pancreatitis. This issue lasts for a longer time and dares to create serious complications in the human body. So next time you want to take a sip of alcohol you must remember the damage you are doing to your body.

8. Sugar levels

The pancreas is responsible for regulating a normal flow of insulin in the body and glucose.  However, people who drink alcohol abnormally will very likely have a damaged pancreas and liver which won’t allow a normal flow of sugar in the body. Whenever we eat sugar, the pancreas is responsible for managing it. However, binge drinking prevents the pancreas from producing enough insulin which is responsible for controlling sugar. This can lead to a condition which is known as hyperglycemia which is known as a lot of sugar content in the blood. This condition can worsen a person’s health. Many people have diabetes and abnormal sugar levels in the blood because of which they have to stay on hefty medicines all their lives.

9. Dependency

Alcohol addiction is rampantly growing disease in the world which has encapsulated the lives of millions of people across the globe. Every year millions of people die as a result of this disease, and many fall prey to this deadly disease. However, when they visit the doctor to get rid of an addiction, alcohol withdrawal is another major thing they have to fight. Many people prefer medical detoxification in the meantime to get rid of the issue. Detoxification is done based on the intensity of the damage which has been done. Some of the common symptoms of alcohol withdrawal include nausea, vomiting, depression, tremors, mental health worsening, high blood pressure, etc.

10. Circulatory system

Alcohol drinking is not good for the heart and lungs. It is crucial for the heart to pump blood to the body all the time. However, when you drink a lot of alcohol it is common for the human body to have an abnormal heartbeat which can be very notorious. People who drink too much alcohol are at a higher risk of developing heart-related diseases. A shocking fact is women who drink alcohol are more likely than men to develop heart disease. There are multiple circulatory complications which are an irregular heartbeat, high blood, pressure, stroke, heart failure, heart disease and difficulty for the heart to pump blood to the rest of the body.

11. Skeletal and muscle systems

To have a happy life you need to have a body with strong bones. Keep in mind, everything you drink apart from clean water has an impact on the body be it in a good or negative way. Long term use of alcohol might prevent the body from having strong bones. People who are involved in binge drinking are very likely to cause bone thinning and have an increased risk of a bone fracture. People who drink alcohol casually complain it causes weakness in the muscles, frequent cramping and eventually atrophy. Therefore, it is better to refrain from drinking alcohol.

12. Nerve damage

Alcohol doesn’t just affect the large organ of the body but has an equal impact on the small organs of the body. Too much alcohol drinking can lead to thinning of the blood vessels which is dangerous for the body. People who suffer from nerve damage have to suffer from many problems in life. Another shocking fact is too much alcohol intake can lead to the penetration of the fat tissues of the brain which can damage the neurons. Nerve damage is a common issue amongst frequent drinkers of alcohol.

How To Stop Alcohol

There’s no one right way or particular format to follow or go about quitting drinking — it’s all about figuring out what works for you and your lifestyle. And that starts with a plan. Here are a few things you should consider.

1. You must be determined and deliberate: You need to made up your mind genuinely that you want to quit alcohol. Through your determination, you will be able to resist any form of temptation that could come up from alcohol.
2. Seek professional help: Talking to a medical professional, whether doctor or a therapist, can also be extremely helpful. They will be able to guide and monitor the progress you are making in your effort to quit the alcohol.
3. You must discipline yourself: Deny your body to access alcohol when your body requires it.
4. You must avoid places you can easily have access to alcohol: It can be tricky to handle social situations as you cut back on drinking, especially if you’re around other people who are drinking or who are used to you drinking. And if you find yourself in a situation where someone offers you a drink, just politely decline.