With today’s competitive world and the endless pressures that come along with the breakneck pace at which we live, resorting to a soothing drink to tide you through the tough times isn’t an uncommon phenomenon. In fact, with every day that passes, larger numbers of people are falling prey to the devastating disease called alcoholism.
The problem lies not only in the fact that they are trying to drink their worries away, but also that they are in the dark about the fact that alcohol is in itself a depressant. And hence, they continue to drink, in order to relieve the depression which they have brought on to themselves by consuming excessive amounts of alcohol. And while they delve deeper into the recesses alcohol plunges them into, their bodies also suffer severe and often irrevocable damage, which if not treated in time, can also result in death.
When you drink alcohol, it passes into your esophagus and then into your stomach, from where it is absorbed into the blood. All this blood then passes into your liver, which is responsible for breaking down this alcohol into other chemicals, which are then further converted into water and carbon dioxide which can be excreted. This process is far from simple and cannot be carried out by your liver instantaneously. So, when you drink more alcohol than your liver can put up with, the level of alcohol in your bloodstream rises.
Alcohol directly attacks your liver by causing large amounts of fat to be deposited in it. Although this condition is not very severe and can be reversed if you stop drinking heavily, it can also lead to alcohol hepatitis where your liver is inflamed. In its mild stages, hepatitis is usually not noticed as it does not have any distinct symptoms of its own. However, when this inflammation becomes chronic, it leads to over production of bilirubin in the liver, which causes jaundice and finally liver failure. Further, alcohol also leads to the production of scar tissue in the liver or fibrosis. This scar tissue damages the cells in your liver and prevents new ones from growing, which can also result in liver failure. Liver Cirrhosis is even more difficult to detect as the symptoms manifest themselves very gradually and often when the condition is at its most severe.
One of the most frequent origins of heart disease is excessive consumption of alcohol. Alcohol causes severe and long term damage to your heart, invariably leads to high blood pressure and can also lead to stroke. Victims of alcohol abuse are also known to develop Alcohol Cardiomyopathy, when their excesses with alcohol result in abnormal enlargement and diminishment of their cardio-vascular health.
Sustained abuse of alcohol also results in Alcohol Dementia, where your drinking patterns inflict severe damage on your nervous system, negatively influencing your memory, learning abilities and reasoning. With time, you may even begin to experience lapses in your memory which many alcoholics try to cover up with elaborate tales, which is called Korsakoff Psychosis which can even result in paranoia. The alcoholic may also experience difficulties with his basic cognitive functions like reasoning and problem solving which impairs his social and personal interactions.
Prolonged abuse of alcohol also affects the pancreas, causing a severe inflammation which is called Pancreatitis, a condition which may also lead to him contracting Diabetes. Also, the high calorific content of most alcoholic drinks makes the victim susceptible to obesity and high blood pressure. A victim of alcoholism may also be undernourished as alcohol wears out the inner lining of the stomach and thus interferes in the absorption of many essential nutrients, while also impairing the individual’s appetite. Alcohol is also directly responsible for the growth of cancerous tissue in the mouth, liver, colon and gullet while also causing erectile dysfunction in males and putting female alcoholics at an acute risk of developing complications during pregnancy.
Although moderate quantities of alcohol can be absorbed by your body and even aid it in the prevention of heart disease, drinking more than three times a day will drastically turn the tables. Hence, as the adage goes, “If you haven’t begun to drink, don’t start.” Indeed, there are several other ways by which you can lower your risk of heart disease like regular exercise and a moderate diet. Remember, one of the most deceptive of all the symptoms of alcoholism, is the victim’s inability to recognize his own addiction. And many of the physical manifestations lie latent until only severe measures have to be called for The next time you raise a toast, pause a minute to contemplate over the tremendous damage you are causing your body with every excessive drink that you take and think about whether those nights of drunken stupor are indeed worth risking your life for
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age,
alcohol. depression,
alcoholism,
drinking,
Health & Medicine
