alcohol abuse, alcoholism

The number of people consuming alcoholic drinks in some form or the other is increasing all over the world and alcohol abuse is becoming a very serious problem.

Though considered as less dangerous than cigarette smoking alcohol has the potential to ruin health and destroy families.

A distinction is made between consumption of alcohol and alcohol abuse or alcoholism. It cannot be denied that a good number of people leading dignified lives and occupying important positions regularly consume alcohol.

It is also true that countless number of people lose control over themselves after consuming alcoholic beverages behave irresponsibly and make a mess of their lives. Many traffic accidents can be attributed to alcohol abuse.

Many teenagers are consuming alcohol today due to easy availability. As with cigarette smoking stress is pointed out as the major cause. Other factors are peer pressure and curiosity. Some start drinking to assert themselves and show they are grown ups (teen psychology). Family problems can also predispose to alcoholism and good family life can act as shock absorber and prevent them from becoming victims of alcohol abuse .

As many people are interested in justifying alcohol consumption they have coined fancy and perhaps paradoxical phrases like responsible drinking and sensible drinking. I say paradoxical because alcohol has the potential to make a person irresponsible and senseless.

If millions of people are consuming alcohol all over the world there must be some compelling reason for that. Hence let us try to understand what alcohol does to human body.

The first fact which should be firmly borne in mind is that alcohol is a Depressant of the nervous system. This is well known to medical professionals but others may not be aware of this and think that alcohol is a stimulant.

But why do many people become talkative and behave violently after consuming alcohol if it depresses the nervous system?

Human nervous system is an extremely complicated structure. What distinguishes man from other animals is the presence of so called higher centers- those areas in the brain which are responsible for abstract thinking, logical analysis and higher emotions like an urge to render social service.

Alcohol suppresses the higher centers. Due to this a person under the influence of alcohol loses inhibitions. With minimal depression a person stops worrying and experiences a sense of relaxation. It may not be entirely wrong to say that alcohol makes a person less human. There are cases of drunken people raping their own daughters including small children.

While a good number of people believe that moderate drinking has some beneficial effect on health many authorities do point out that the risk of ending up in alcohol abuse is always there.

A phenomenon which makes many people consume more and more over a period of time is tolerance. When a person consumes the same amount of alcohol either daily or regularly he ceases to get the same degree of kick after some time forcing him to consume more.

He may cross the fence any time and become an alcoholic. Those people who reach this stage find it quite difficult to give up alcohol.

They develop withdrawal symptoms which are both physical (nausea, vomiting, headache, tremors etc.) psychological (anxiety, depression, irritability etc.) if they do not gulp down the regular dose.

Another danger is that many alcoholics gradually start using other mood altering drugs and finally end up in drug abuse to get greater kick.

It is to be noted that consumption of greater amounts of beverages with lower concentration of alcohol like beer can be as harmful as consumption of smaller quantities of whisky having higher alcohol content.

Hangover is very common even with so called moderate drinking. This is an unpleasant sensation a person gets after getting up is the morning.

Alcohol irritates the digestive system. Alcoholic gastritis is a well known entity. It causes abdominal pain and vomiting.

Another vital organ which suffers is liver. Chronic alcohol consumption results in a condition called fatty liver. In this condition there is enlargement of liver but without significant impairment of liver function. Later it leads to alcoholic hepatitis and finally a condition called cirrhosis in which there is scarring of the liver. This condition is irreversible and predisposes to cancer.

Pancreas is also affected by alcohol. Damage to pancreas can lead to digestive problems.

Though moderate drinking is supposed to have a beneficial effect on heart and circulatory system, excess consumption causes damage to heart muscle.

Thiamine deficiency is more common in alcoholics and this causes a condition called Wernicke’s encephalopathy.

Alcohol has an adverse impact on our immune system. Hence alcoholics are more susceptible to infections and cancer.

Financial problems: Consumption of alcoholic drinks adds to the financial burden. The person may get into a debt trap to get his favorite drink. The resulting mental stress causes problems in family and work place.

Interpersonal relationship: As alcohol clouds a person’s faculty of judgment the affected person often behaves rudely with colleagues and family members. Alcohol has been and continues to be a major cause of family disruption.

Fetal alcohol syndrome: Alcohol consumed by a pregnant woman can harm the developing fetus. It is known to cause growth retardation, nervous system abnormalities, learning disability and hearing problems. While the exact amount of alcohol which causes congenital defects is not known exposure to alcohol in the early stage of pregnancy when the various organs are forming predisposes to fetal abnormalities.

Considering the pros (?) and CONS it may not be desirable to start consuming alcoholic drinks. You can keep your heart healthy with regular exercises and healthy food. There are many ways of preventing and handling stress other than gulping down a few pegs of whisky.

Regular practice of meditation can go a long way in preventing and curing stress.

If you still want to lift a glass of an alcoholic drink and say cheers it is up to you. You will never see me on the other side to cheer you.

SBI!

Beware of reaching for your peg you may end up in alcohol abuse