Effects of Alcohol Abuse

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According to the research literature, abusive drinking often results in physical damage, it can increase the risk of getting various diseases, and it can make other diseases more serious.

As a result, if you want to avoid the more dangerous AND preventable effects of alcohol abuse such as alcohol-related health problems later in life, drink in moderation or not at all.

Short and Long-Term Effects of Alcohol Abuse

Some problems, such as interpersonal relationship difficulties, negative interactions with prescribed medications, and driving impairment can reveal themselves after drinking over a relatively short time frame.

In a word, these are some of the short term effects of alcohol abuse.

image: doctor checking status of alcohol detox patient Other problems, however, can develop more slowly over the years and may become observable only after excessive drinking has taken place over an extended period of time. These are the problems that represent the long term effects of alcohol abuse.

It is also worthy of emphasizing the fact that women may develop alcohol-related health problems after consuming less alcohol than men over a shorter period of time. In any event, since alcohol affects many organs in the body, long-term drinking abuse puts an individual at risk for developing serious, if not fatal, health problems.

In sum, the effects of alcohol abuse, especially those that are long-term, can result in a gradual breakdown of the body's systems and organs, thus leading to serious, if not fatal, health consequences.

Effects of Alcohol Abuse: Liver Disease

More than 2 million American people experience alcohol-related liver disease.

For instance, some drinkers develop alcoholic hepatitis (i.e., inflammation of the liver) as a consequence of long-term heavy drinking.

image: young lady holding head from painful hangover The symptoms of alcoholic hepatitis include the following: fever, jaundice (abnormal yellowing of the skin, the eyeballs, and the urine), and abdominal pain. If an individual continues drinking, unfortunately, alcoholic hepatitis can be fatal. If the individual stops drinking, conversely, alcoholic hepatitis is frequently reversible.

About 10% to 20% of drinkers who abuse alcohol develop cirrhosis of the liver (that is, scarring of the liver). Moreover, alcoholic cirrhosis can be deadly if the individual continues to drink. Although cirrhosis is irreversible, if the affected individual stops drinking, his or her chances of survival can improve dramatically.

While some individuals may eventually need a liver transplant as a last resort, many individuals with cirrhosis who quit drinking alcohol can receive treatment and may not require a liver transplant.

A dysfunctional family is a family in which conflict, abuse, or misbehavior, by individual family members takes place on a continuing basis, leading other members of the family to perpetuate, enable, and reinforce such behaviors. Often, children grow up in dysfunctional families with the belief that such behaviors and ways of relating are "normal."

Effects of Alcohol Abuse: Pancreatitis

The pancreas helps regulate the body's blood sugar levels by producing insulin. Moreover, the pancreas is essential for the proper digesting of the food that people eat. Long-term chronic drinking can result in pancreatitis (that is, the inflammation of the pancreas). Pancreatitis results in excessive weight loss, severe abdominal pain, and can lead to death.

The overriding plan of action when experiencing a possible alcohol overdose situation is this: Do not take chances when someone's life is at stake. If you suspect that a person has alcohol poisoning or is overdosing on alcohol, get immediate medical assistance, even if the person is underage.

Effects of Alcohol Abuse: Cancer

Long-term abusive drinking increases the risk of developing various types of cancer, particularly cancer of the colon, voice box, kidneys, mouth, liver, throat, rectum, and the esophagus. Moreover, women who drink two or more drinks per day slightly increase their risk for developing breast cancer.

Current research suggests that children are less likely to drink when their parents spend time and interact in a positive way with them and when they and their parents report feeling close to each other.

Effects of Alcohol Abuse: Heart Disease

Drinking in moderation can actually have beneficial effects on the heart, especially with individuals who are at the greatest risk for heart attacks, such as men over the age of 45 and women who have gone though menopause. Long-term abusive, unfortunately, increases the risk for some heart disease, strokes, and high blood pressure.

Studies have shown that inpatient detoxification programs are more effective and longer lasting than outpatient detox programs. The important issue here, however, is the following: the more severe the alcohol-related withdrawal symptoms, the more likely that inpatient detox programs should be used.

Other Effects of Alcohol Abuse

In addition to the diseases listed above, abusive and excessive drinking over a relatively long time span is also related with the following:

epilepsy
irritated stomach lining and bleeding from stomach ulcers
nerve damage
loss of brain cells

Traffic crashes are the greatest single cause of death for persons aged 6–33. About 45% of these fatalities are in alcohol-related crashes.

Excessive, chronic drinking has also been associated with the following:

muscle disease
obesity
sexual problems

There are higher rates of alcoholism in the unemployed, laborers, those of lower socioeconomic status, those that drop out of high school, those who entered college but failed to earn a degree, and those under more stress.

skin problems
vitamin deficiency
infertility

The Effects of Alcohol Abuse: Conclusion

Based on an evaluation of the research findings listed above, it can be determined that chronic, excessive drinking frequently leads to physical damage, it can increase the risk of developing various diseases and medical conditions, and it can make other diseases more severe.

The message is clear: if you want to avoid the needless effects of alcohol abuse such as alcohol-related disease, medical illnesses, and health problems later in life, drink in moderation or not at all.

More than 67% of young people who start drinking before the age of 15 will try an illicit drug. Children who drink are 7.5 times more likely to use any illicit drug, more than 22 times more likely to use marijuana, and 50 times more likely to use cocaine than children who never drank.

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If drinking alcohol is going to affect your ability to have children, not to mention the negative health consequences that alcohol presents to the woman who will be having the child, why not simply abstain from drinking alcohol while you are trying to have a child, while the mother is carrying the child, and while the mother is breast feeding the child.

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