Main page      Science blog      My media blog      Media page
what-is-this-logo-3810.jpg


Continued Alcohol Abuse leads to brain damage


Continued Alcohol Abuse leads to brain damage
It is not uncommon to have a glass or two of wine with dinner, a smooth cocktail at a party, or a few beers while watching the game. These forms of light drinking typically do not cause radical health issues. Alcohol is a common element to many social gatherings and drinking is an acceptable pastime. That is, until consuming too much alcohol creates a problem. When alcohol becomes a problem and a person's drinking interferes with their lives, it's time for alcohol rehab. If an alcoholic refuses alcohol addiction treatment and continues to abuse alcohol, it will lead to brain damage and other series health issues.

Alcohol is a recreational drug that should be used in moderation. When a person continues to consume alcohol in an abusive way, it can lead to brain damage. One of the most common brain disorders found in alcoholics is called Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome. There are two stages of this permanent brain disorder, the first is Wernicke. In this first stage, the disease can be cured by living healthy and by discontinuing the use of alcohol. If healthy lifestyle changes do not take place, the syndrome will progress into Karsakoff Syndrome, which is a permanent brain disorder.


The majority of Korsakoff syndrome patients have abused alcohol for 20 to 30 years and have a vitamin B deficiency. People with Karsakoff syndrome have drooping eyelids, exhibit confusion, and suffer from severe long-term and short-term memory loss. When the patient can not remember past events, they begin to make up stories. One of the hardest aspects of this illness is that suffers usually do not know that they are sick. If the person does not stop drinking at this point, they will be hospitalized.


Additional health issues that can be caused by alcohol abuse include cardiovascular disease, chronic pancreatitis, liver disease, diabetes, obesity, infertility, stroke, ulcers, impotence, malabsorption, and even cancer and nervous system damage. And those are just some of the physical issues. AlcoholIssues.co.uk points out that people that drink too much will also have mental issues, like depression, hallucinations, memory loss, blackouts, mood swings, suicidal tendencies, concentration trouble, sexual performance issues, dementia, and personality breakdowns. For the alcoholic that continues to drink over the long-term, every single system and organ in the body will be damaged. A young person's brain is more vulnerable to the health problems of drinking alcohol, so it is even more important for an adolescent to seek alcohol addiction treatment before brain damage occurs. When a pregnant woman consumes alcohol, it can cause brain damage to the developing fetus.


When you or someone you love is suspected of drinking too much, the best way to get help is to attend alcohol rehab and AAA meetings. Unfortunately, most alcoholics are in denial and it might be difficult to get the person to get treatment. The person has such an intense desire to drink, that they do not care about the consequences and they will refuse alcohol treatment centres. Orange County has some great programs for alcohol abusers, which may be just the thing to get the alcoholic in denial to get help.


Posted by: Beverly    Source