People drink to socialize, celebrate, and relax. Alcohol often has a strong effect on people – and throughout history, we’ve struggled to understand and manage alcohol’s power. Why does alcohol cause us to act and feel differently? How much is too much? Why do some people become addicted while others do not? Am I in need of recovery? Am I a possible alcoholic?
Drinking too much – on a single occasion or over time – can take a serious toll on your health. Sometimes treatment and recovery is needed to break the pattern and give you the necessary tools to understand the long-term damage alcoholism could be doing to your body.
Here’s how alcohol abuse can affect your body:
Brain:
Alcohol interferes with the brain’s communication pathways, and can affect the way the brain looks and works. These disruptions can change mood and behavior, and make it harder to think clearly and move with coordination. Alcohol can also result in black outs and memory lapses.
Heart:
Drinking a lot over a long time or too much on a single occasion can damage the heart, causing problems including:
- Cardiomyopathy – Stretching and drooping of heart muscle
- Arrhythmias – Irregular heart beat
- Stroke
- High blood pressure
Research also shows that drinking moderate amounts of alcohol may protect healthy adults from developing coronary heart disease.
Liver:
Heavy drinking takes a toll on the liver, and can lead to a variety of problems and liver inflammations including:
- Steatosis, or fatty liver
- Alcoholic hepatitis
- Fibrosis
- Cirrhosis
Pancreas:
Alcohol causes the pancreas to produce toxic substances that can eventually lead to pancreatitis, a dangerous inflammation and swelling of the blood vessels in the pancreas that prevents proper digestion.
Cancer:
Drinking too much alcohol can increase your risk of developing certain cancers, including cancers of the:
- Mouth
- Esophagus
- Throat
- Liver
- Breast
If you are concerned about a family member’s drinking habits or your own even, please contact us – your health is too important and sometimes, even though you think you can, the reality is that you cannot do it alone. For information on Eden Recovery Centre’s Treatment Programmes and advice, please contact the Eden Recovery Centre. You can depend on full discretion.