For more than a few years alcoholism research has revealed the fact that there is strong association between alcohol dependency and life-threatening health conditions.
As an illustration, in 2005, medical investigation and alcohol abuse and alcoholism statistics showed that alcohol abuse and alcoholism cost the United States an estimated $220 billion on an annual basis. It can be stressed that this considerable alcohol-related cash outlay was substantially more than the cost linked with cancer ($196 billion) or with obesity ($133 billion). While it is relevant to highlight these facts, it is also noteworthy to highlight the fact that an interrelationship exists between all three of these health conditions.
More explicitly, chronic alcohol abuse and alcohol dependency are also highly associated with obesity and with cancer.
To be sure, substance abuse research has revealed that alcohol addiction can increase the risk for various forms of cancer, especially cancer of the voice box (larynx), esophagus, liver, rectum, colon, kidneys, and throat. Excessive and repetitive drinking can also lead to immune system problems and harm to the fetus during pregnancy.
Heavy and Irresponsible Drinking Enfeebles the Person’s Organs and Systems
Furthermore, if alcohol addiction continues over a period of years, the individual’s body organs will likely be affected in a negative manner. As an illustration, long-term, hazardous drinking is especially damaging to the liver due to the fact that the liver does most of the work of processing the alcohol that has been ingested. Excessive amounts of alcohol kills liver cells and obliterates the ability of liver cells to redevelop. This condition results in a progressive inflammatory malfunction of the liver that can ultimately lead to cirrhosis of the liver, a critical and potentially deadly disease.Excessive, long-term drinking not only can result in severe liver damage, but it can also lead to damage to the heart and to the brain. Physical damage this critical may be irreparable and may, in turn, lead to serious ill health or an untimely death.
The Critical Nature of Alcohol Rehab
It is important, therefore, to know how to recognize the different alcoholism symptoms and the “alcohol signs” so that the alcohol dependent person can be given the opportunity to seek the quality alcohol treatment he or she requires.
Alcoholism and Technologically Advanced Brain Research
Fortuitously, scientific exploration is continuously generating new and important information. Recent alcoholism research supplies an excellent example. More precisely, for approximately the past ten years, technologically advanced brain-imaging scanning devices have verified that continuous and long-term irresponsible drinking alters the constitution of the brain to a great extent, as a consequence resulting in brain disease that can last months, years, or perchance as long as the individual exists.
Stated another way, medical investigation has shown that individuals who have been drinking excessively for a sizeable length of time increase their risk for developing lasting and significant modifications in the brain.
This type of damage may be indirectly associated with the drinker’s poor overall health or directly related to the alcohol’s effects on the brain or to severe liver disease.
Abusive Drinking, Malnutrition, and Mental Disorders
As a final example of various medical problems that are considerably related to alcohol addiction, take into account the fact that according to medical research, the excessive and repeated abuse of alcohol can lead to erosive gastritis, a medical condition that diminishes the absorption of minerals, nutrients, and vitamins.
This form of organ failure is linked to malnutrition and to a variety of serious mental and neurological syndromes including memory loss, sleep disturbances, and psychosis such as Wernicke’s Encephalopathy and Korsakoff’s syndrome. This latter health problem is a long lasting debilitating health problem that is characterized by repetitive learning and memory difficulties.
Conclusion
It is clear that continued, hazardous drinking is directly or indirectly correlated with a number of dangerous medical conditions that can and do result in serious ailments and premature death. Such information needs to be emphasized and presented to everyone in our society so that most individuals will be able to abstain from irresponsible drinking while other individuals who have a drinking problem will get the quality therapy they need.
Tags: abusive drinking, alcohol abuse, alcohol addiction, alcohol dependency, alcohol treatment, alcoholism, heavy drinking, self improvement
