For many years alcohol abuse and alcoholism research has shown that alcoholism and life-threatening health conditions are strongly linked. As an illustration, a U.S. scientific study carried out in 2005 showed that alcohol addiction and alcohol abuse cost American society roughly $220 billion annually. Interestingly, this expenditure was significantly more than the cost that was associated with obesity ($133 billion) or with cancer ($196 billion).
While these statistics and facts have enough merit to stand on their own, it is instructive to highlight the interlinking that exists between all three of these health issues. In other words, alcohol dependency and chronic alcohol abuse are also strongly interconnected with obesity and with cancer.
From a different outlook, medical research and alcohol dependency investigations have documented the fact that chronic alcohol abuse and alcoholism considerably increase a persons risk for diverse types of cancer such as cancer of the throat, liver, voice box (larynx), colon, kidneys, rectum, and cancer of the esophagus. Not only this, but heavy drinking over an extended period of time can also result in abnormalities of the fetus during pregnancy and immune system problems.
In a similar way, the longer an individual drinks in an excessive and hazardous manner the stronger the probability that his or her organs will be affected in an unhealthy and negative way. As an illustration, long term, heavy drinking is particularly injurious to the liver due to the livers importance in metabolizing the alcohol that has been ingested. In point of fact, extremely large amounts of alcohol not only inhibit the ability of the liver to regenerate but it also kills liver cells. The consequence of this is a progressive inflammatory malfunction of the liver that can ultimately result in cirrhosis of the liver, a damaging and potentially fatal disease.
Long term, abusive drinking not only can lead to severe liver damage such as cirrhosis of the liver, but it can also result in serious damage to the persons heart and to his or her brain. Physical damage to this extent may be so damaging that it can result in critical health issues or an early death.
It is thus imperative to know how to recognize the different symptoms and signs of alcohol addiction so that the alcoholic can be given the chance to get the quality alcohol treatment he or she needs.
It is fortunate indeed that medical research is constantly seeking and discovering new and important alcohol-related information. For instance, for approximately the past decade, sophisticated brain-imaging scanning devices have revealed that chronic, excessive drinking transforms the brains inner workings so extensively that the resulting brain disease can last months, years, or perhaps as long as the drinker lives.
Put another way, medical research has discovered that people who have been drinking in an abusive and irresponsible manner for a substantial period of time considerably increase their risk for developing severe brain damage. Damage this critical can be directly correlated to the effects of alcohol on the brain or to severe liver disease, or may be indirectly associated with the individuals poor overall health.
As a final illustration of various health issues that are highly correlated with alcoholism, it needs to be emphasized that heavy, excessive drinking can result in erosive gastritis, a medical condition that decreases the absorption of vitamins, minerals, and essential nutrients. Erosive gastritis, in turn, can lead to organ malfunctioning that is linked to malnutrition and to a number of serious neurological and mental disorders such as memory loss, sleep disturbances, and psychosis such as Korsakoff's syndrome and Wernicke's Encephalopathy.
It is plain to see that heavy, repeated drinking is directly or indirectly correlated with a number of acute medical issues that can and do lead to serious diseases and medical conditions and quite possibly to premature death. It is also obvious that these facts and statistics and this information needs to be stressed and taught to every person in our society so that a significant number of individuals will be able to abstain from abusive and excessive drinking while other individuals who already have a drinking problem can get the quality rehab they need.
While these statistics and facts have enough merit to stand on their own, it is instructive to highlight the interlinking that exists between all three of these health issues. In other words, alcohol dependency and chronic alcohol abuse are also strongly interconnected with obesity and with cancer.
From a different outlook, medical research and alcohol dependency investigations have documented the fact that chronic alcohol abuse and alcoholism considerably increase a persons risk for diverse types of cancer such as cancer of the throat, liver, voice box (larynx), colon, kidneys, rectum, and cancer of the esophagus. Not only this, but heavy drinking over an extended period of time can also result in abnormalities of the fetus during pregnancy and immune system problems.
In a similar way, the longer an individual drinks in an excessive and hazardous manner the stronger the probability that his or her organs will be affected in an unhealthy and negative way. As an illustration, long term, heavy drinking is particularly injurious to the liver due to the livers importance in metabolizing the alcohol that has been ingested. In point of fact, extremely large amounts of alcohol not only inhibit the ability of the liver to regenerate but it also kills liver cells. The consequence of this is a progressive inflammatory malfunction of the liver that can ultimately result in cirrhosis of the liver, a damaging and potentially fatal disease.
Long term, abusive drinking not only can lead to severe liver damage such as cirrhosis of the liver, but it can also result in serious damage to the persons heart and to his or her brain. Physical damage to this extent may be so damaging that it can result in critical health issues or an early death.
It is thus imperative to know how to recognize the different symptoms and signs of alcohol addiction so that the alcoholic can be given the chance to get the quality alcohol treatment he or she needs.
It is fortunate indeed that medical research is constantly seeking and discovering new and important alcohol-related information. For instance, for approximately the past decade, sophisticated brain-imaging scanning devices have revealed that chronic, excessive drinking transforms the brains inner workings so extensively that the resulting brain disease can last months, years, or perhaps as long as the drinker lives.
Put another way, medical research has discovered that people who have been drinking in an abusive and irresponsible manner for a substantial period of time considerably increase their risk for developing severe brain damage. Damage this critical can be directly correlated to the effects of alcohol on the brain or to severe liver disease, or may be indirectly associated with the individuals poor overall health.
As a final illustration of various health issues that are highly correlated with alcoholism, it needs to be emphasized that heavy, excessive drinking can result in erosive gastritis, a medical condition that decreases the absorption of vitamins, minerals, and essential nutrients. Erosive gastritis, in turn, can lead to organ malfunctioning that is linked to malnutrition and to a number of serious neurological and mental disorders such as memory loss, sleep disturbances, and psychosis such as Korsakoff's syndrome and Wernicke's Encephalopathy.
It is plain to see that heavy, repeated drinking is directly or indirectly correlated with a number of acute medical issues that can and do lead to serious diseases and medical conditions and quite possibly to premature death. It is also obvious that these facts and statistics and this information needs to be stressed and taught to every person in our society so that a significant number of individuals will be able to abstain from abusive and excessive drinking while other individuals who already have a drinking problem can get the quality rehab they need.
About the Author:
Denny Mitchell writes about Christian alcohol treatment, drunk driving, and alcohol related deaths. For more info, visit the short term effects of alcohol abuse.
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