Alcohol Addiction and Alcohol Facts
You may have asked yourself, "Why do I put myself through this again by drinking so much alcohol?", or "Why do I keep drinking alcohol when I know it is doing me harm?" Once you understand the facts and risks about alcohol, it may be a small step forward to getting you help. I hope this article can be of help in knowing more about alcohol addiction and other important alcohol facts.Why is it that you still drink alcohol, when there are chemicals that are not good for your body in it? The facts are straight forward: One standard drink contains about 10 grams of ethanol. Ethanol is a chemical that causes the feelings of intoxication or the feeling of being drunk. When more than 10 grams of alcohol is consumed, risks increase for an individual, such as becoming dependent and a number of other health risks discussed below. Alcohol addiction is also known as alcoholism or alcohol dependence. However, nowadays, alcoholism is preferably not used, as it can cause stigma and discrimination.
What is alcohol dependence? This disorder is acknowledged when a person prioritizes drinking alcohol instead of doing other activities such as spending time with friends, going to work, or going to social occasions where there is no alcohol present. Alcohol dependency ranges from mild to severe. Mild alcohol dependency occurs when a person craves alcohol when it isn’t available, but once they start drinking, they find it difficult to stop drinking alcohol after a few drinks. In contrast, severe alcohol dependency occurs when a person undergoes physical and/or psychological withdrawal symptoms when they do not drink alcohol. These withdrawal symptoms include anxiety and vomiting.How many alcoholic drinks would be a guideline to be in a normal range? It varies for different people, as it depends on a person’s height, weight, and general build.
However, a general recommendation is no more than four standard drinks per day for men and two standard drinks for women. Further recommendations due to social drinking, and health professionals understanding that most people do not stick to the above recommendation is that individuals should not drink more than six standard drinks for men overall at one time, and four standard drinks by women.What are the facts about alcohol and what are the risk factors of becoming alcohol dependent? It is known that people with a family history of alcohol-related problems are more at risk to becoming dependent. Why is this so? This is because they may have a genetic predisposition of rewarding and reinforcing effects of drinking which demonstrates the possible ranges of being low to severe risk of dependence. People who are more genetically susceptible feel the reinforcing effects more strongly than those not at risk.
Other factors that cause alcohol dependency include a strong social environment, where families have alcohol-related problems that are exposed and modelled to others in the family. Also, the effects of a wild culture of drinking alcohol, and acceptance that it is okay to drink heavily, and be drunk on the weekends or at parties for example. This is common amongst the Western culture.So, what should you do if you know these risk factors exist? It is advised that you are more careful when you drink and take note on how much you drink; keep to the minimum standard if you want to drink alcohol. Also, it is advised that you take specific alcohol-free days on a regular basis, which may consist of two to three whole days per week being alcohol-free. Otherwise, it's still best to consider not to drink alcohol at all. Since you understand these harmful effects of alcohol, how can alcohol dependency still develop? Alcohol dependency may develop gradually from regular and heavy drinking as there is an association with physical and psychological distress. If the person tries to abstain from drinking, development of such dependence may occur as the body is used to having alcohol in the nervous system, and the psychological association that drinking is comforting them from the original distress. Therefore, they start to believe that drinking can comfort them from the distress – which is not an accurate assumption, as alcohol does more harm to the body and mind in the long-run. Having alcohol-free days enables the body to readjust and adapt to the nervous system having no alcohol in it. It enables an interruption of the psychological association developed by being alcohol dependent. The facts about alcohol are clear: it can cause alcohol dependency also known as alcohol addiction, it can have higher risks for those with a family history of alcoholism, and can be problematic in the long-run to cease dependency. Therefore, understanding the facts helps, and starting to follow the steps sooner rather than later to become alcohol-free helps your nervous system and body overall.
References: National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) (2001). Australian Alcohol Guidelines: Health Risks and Benefits. NHMRC, Canberra.Virtual Medical Centre. http://virtualmedicalcentre.com
You may have asked yourself, "Why do I put myself through this again by drinking so much alcohol?", or "Why do I keep drinking alcohol when I know it is doing me harm?" Once you understand the facts and risks about alcohol, it may be a small step forward to getting you help. I hope this article can be of help in knowing more about alcohol addiction and other important alcohol facts.Why is it that you still drink alcohol, when there are chemicals that are not good for your body in it? The facts are straight forward: One standard drink contains about 10 grams of ethanol. Ethanol is a chemical that causes the feelings of intoxication or the feeling of being drunk. When more than 10 grams of alcohol is consumed, risks increase for an individual, such as becoming dependent and a number of other health risks discussed below. Alcohol addiction is also known as alcoholism or alcohol dependence. However, nowadays, alcoholism is preferably not used, as it can cause stigma and discrimination.
What is alcohol dependence? This disorder is acknowledged when a person prioritizes drinking alcohol instead of doing other activities such as spending time with friends, going to work, or going to social occasions where there is no alcohol present. Alcohol dependency ranges from mild to severe. Mild alcohol dependency occurs when a person craves alcohol when it isn’t available, but once they start drinking, they find it difficult to stop drinking alcohol after a few drinks. In contrast, severe alcohol dependency occurs when a person undergoes physical and/or psychological withdrawal symptoms when they do not drink alcohol. These withdrawal symptoms include anxiety and vomiting.How many alcoholic drinks would be a guideline to be in a normal range? It varies for different people, as it depends on a person’s height, weight, and general build.
However, a general recommendation is no more than four standard drinks per day for men and two standard drinks for women. Further recommendations due to social drinking, and health professionals understanding that most people do not stick to the above recommendation is that individuals should not drink more than six standard drinks for men overall at one time, and four standard drinks by women.What are the facts about alcohol and what are the risk factors of becoming alcohol dependent? It is known that people with a family history of alcohol-related problems are more at risk to becoming dependent. Why is this so? This is because they may have a genetic predisposition of rewarding and reinforcing effects of drinking which demonstrates the possible ranges of being low to severe risk of dependence. People who are more genetically susceptible feel the reinforcing effects more strongly than those not at risk.
Other factors that cause alcohol dependency include a strong social environment, where families have alcohol-related problems that are exposed and modelled to others in the family. Also, the effects of a wild culture of drinking alcohol, and acceptance that it is okay to drink heavily, and be drunk on the weekends or at parties for example. This is common amongst the Western culture.So, what should you do if you know these risk factors exist? It is advised that you are more careful when you drink and take note on how much you drink; keep to the minimum standard if you want to drink alcohol. Also, it is advised that you take specific alcohol-free days on a regular basis, which may consist of two to three whole days per week being alcohol-free. Otherwise, it's still best to consider not to drink alcohol at all. Since you understand these harmful effects of alcohol, how can alcohol dependency still develop? Alcohol dependency may develop gradually from regular and heavy drinking as there is an association with physical and psychological distress. If the person tries to abstain from drinking, development of such dependence may occur as the body is used to having alcohol in the nervous system, and the psychological association that drinking is comforting them from the original distress. Therefore, they start to believe that drinking can comfort them from the distress – which is not an accurate assumption, as alcohol does more harm to the body and mind in the long-run. Having alcohol-free days enables the body to readjust and adapt to the nervous system having no alcohol in it. It enables an interruption of the psychological association developed by being alcohol dependent. The facts about alcohol are clear: it can cause alcohol dependency also known as alcohol addiction, it can have higher risks for those with a family history of alcoholism, and can be problematic in the long-run to cease dependency. Therefore, understanding the facts helps, and starting to follow the steps sooner rather than later to become alcohol-free helps your nervous system and body overall.
References: National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) (2001). Australian Alcohol Guidelines: Health Risks and Benefits. NHMRC, Canberra.Virtual Medical Centre. http://virtualmedicalcentre.com
0 comments