Risks, Dangers, and Effects of Alcohol on the Body

People who choose not to drink make that choice for the same reasons. Knowing your personal risk based on your habits can help you make the best decision for you. The rising rates of severe morbidity and mortality from ALD underscore a pressing need to screen patients for heavy drinking, assess for AUD, and recommend evidence-based AUD treatment.

• Regular drinking can also affect overall mental health and well-being, in part because alcohol may worsen symptoms of certain mental health conditions, including anxiety, depression, and bipolar disorder.
• Theories suggest that for certain people drinking has a different and stronger impact that can lead to alcohol use disorder.
• Here, we provide a brief overview of common medical problems that may be related to your patients’ consumption of alcohol.
• In the United States, moderate drinking for healthy adults is different for men and women.
• One involves the two-step process that rids the body of the alcohol.

One of the unexpected benefits of giving up alcohol is that you may find yourself more productive than before. This is because alcohol can cause fatigue and decreased motivation, so when you stop drinking, you may find it easier to get things done. „Furthermore, consistent use of alcohol to induce sleep only increases the need to use alcohol in the future to get to sleep,“ he explains. Anyone with an alcohol dependency disorder who desires to stop drinking should seek professional medical care or a treatment center specializing in safe alcohol detoxification.

Your Brain Shrinks

Binge drinking is behavior that raises blood alcohol levels to 0.08%. That usually means four or more drinks within two hours for women and five or more drinks within two hours for men. Many people drink alcohol as a personal preference, during social activities, or as a part of cultural and religious practices.

Chronic drinking can affect your heart and lungs, raising your risk of developing heart-related health issues. Slurred speech, a key sign of intoxication, happens because alcohol reduces communication between your brain and body. This makes speech and coordination — think reaction time and balance — more difficult.

Complex brain interactions

Drinking alcohol can contribute to a variety of cognitive issues, including poor memory, slow reaction time, impaired impulse control, and poor concentration. Over time, drinking can also damage nerve cells and contribute to a loss of brain volume. Some people who stop drinking may experience delirium tremens (DT). This condition is serious and may lead to symptoms such as high blood pressure, tremors, and seizures. After half a year without drinking, you will really start to reap the rewards.

Alcohol use disorder (or alcoholism) is also a clear issue for the brain. It has been linked to a higher risk for dementia, especially early-onset dementia in a study of 262,000 adults, as well as to smaller consequences of alcohol brain size. Evidence for human consumption of alcohol dates back over 10,000 years. Consumption of alcohol has and continues to serve major roles in religious and cultural ceremonies around the world.

Long-term effects of alcohol

But as you continue to drink, you become drowsy and have less control over your actions. No matter how severe the problem may seem, evidence-based treatment can help people with AUD recover. If you are on any medications, talk to your health care provider about how alcohol may affect them. Heavy drinking also has been linked to intentional injuries, such as suicide, as well as accidental injury and death. And drinking raises the risk of problems in the digestive system.