It’s no secret that binge drinking and alcohol addiction can cause serious health issues, including strokes, liver cirrhosis and physical injuries sustained in road accidents. If you think addiction, obesity, liver disease and accidents are the only risks posed by alcohol consumption, you need to think again! Researches quote—“Regular consumption of alcohol causes more than 60 physical, mental and psychological disorders in an average adult”.
How Rise In BAC Affects Your Performance:
From insomnia to vomiting and deaths, the after-effects of drinking can have severe effects on our lives. Dr. James C. Garbutt from Chapel Hill School of Medicine (at University of North Carolina) says alcohol is a pretty complicated substance. It does unthinkable things to a person’s body and not everybody is aware of its overall effect.
Though people enjoy light social drinking, drinking too much liquor leads to alcohol overdose. This condition arises when the amount of alcohol present in blood (BAC) increases enough to produce visible impairments, the harm is done. Alcohol overdose causes various problems, ranging from slurred speech to poor motor skills, hallucinations and coma. Age, gender, immunity, experience and habits contribute to severity of these symptoms.
The Dangers Of Alcohol Explained In Six Simple Steps:
1) Visible Changes in Behaviour
As BAC increases, so do harms. Excess amount of alcohol in blood alleviates motor skills, muscle coordination and make you feel sick. This condition clouds your judgement and can lead to violent acts, unintended sex and physical injuries. Alcohol makes the victim vulnerable to sexual assault and puts his reputation at stake.
2) Psychological Effects
It’s not easy to assume that you can overcome these symptoms by sleeping them off. Alcohol is a well-known depressant that affects your gag reflex, causes abnormal changes in brain and result in temporary memory lapses. Confusion, dulled responses and seizure are its immediate effects.
3) Nutritional Deficiency
Heavy drinking can cause loss of essential nutrients from the body, in the form of sweat and urine. Alcohol molecules tamper with your RBCs and trigger symptoms like fatigue, light-headedness and short breaths, which are prime symptoms of anemia and other deficiency disorders.
4) Cardiovascular Problems
As BAC continues to rise, alcohol molecules reach far inside your body via bloodstream. Bingeing causes blood platelets to clump together in a clotted mass. This causes atrial/ventricular fibrillation, cardiomyopathy, heart attacks, strokes and organ failures.
5) Liver Cirrhosis
It’s a universal fact that alcohol is toxic to liver cells. Loss of nutrients and poor oxygen circulation cause liver cirrhosis- a condition fatal for men. When liver converts alcohol into acetaldehyde (which functions as a potent carcinogen), the said substance triggers cancerous growth in oesophagus, larynx, pharynx, breast, liver, and colorectal region. The symptoms get severe when you combine alcohol consumption with tobacco smoking.
6) Alcohol Poisoning
Alcohol poisoning is the last stage of alcohol-induced symptoms. When there is so much affect alcohol in the bloodstream that it can interrupt life-supporting phenomenon like temperature control, osmo-regulation, heart beat and breathing, the body shuts down.
The more you drink alcohol, the greater the risks. The symptoms get worse with age. If you’re battling with the ill-effects of alcohol, you can get back in your usual shape with rehabilitation and proper medical supervision. While native Europeans can use EHIC to get free health checkups, tourists can apply for e111 forms to access medical facilities in all European states. If Europe tourism is on your To-Do-List this year, don’t forget to download the form from the official website of European health department.
