Short-term Effects of Alcohol
While expectations can help shape ones reaction to drinking it is clear that alcohol has its own direct effects. It is a powerful drug, capable of affecting body and behavior. The determining factor is how much ethanol is in the blood stream, because it is via the blood that alcohol is carried to the brain, nervous system, and bodily organs and systems where its direct actions take place. Alcoholic beverages differ in the concentration of ethanol they contain: beers average 4.5%, wines about 12%, and straight distilled spirits (hard liquor) approximately 40%. The effects mainly reflect the action of the alcohol as a general depressant of the central nervous system, which includes the brain and spinal cord. Alcohol reduces the ability of neurons (nerves) to produce and transmit electrical impulses essential for the proper processing of information that comes to the brain from the skin, senses, and muscles (Lang, pp. 39-44).
The general effect of alcohol is that it is a downer that reduces activity in the central nervous system. The alcohol intoxicated person exhibits loose muscle tone, loss of fine motor coordination, and often has a staggering “drunken” gait. The eyes may appear somewhat “glossy” and pupils may be slow to respond to stimulus. At high doses pupils may become constricted. At intoxicating doses, alcohol can decrease heart rate, lower blood pressure and respiratory rate, and result in decreased reflex responses and slower reaction times. Skin may be cool to the touch (but user may feel warm), profuse sweating may accompany alcohol use (“Effects of Alcohol Intoxification”).
Alcohol causes both temporary and permanent brain injury. Areas affected include memory, problem ...
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Most alcoholics proceed to a stage where their brains or their bodies have been so harmed by alcohol that the effects persist even when they are not drinking. This stage may be reached...
"Alcohol's Effects on the Body." National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013. . (tags: none | edit tags)
When alcohol is consumed, an enzyme called alcohol dehydrogenase metabolizes the alcohol to acetaldehyde at a rate of one standard drink per hour (Schuckit, 2009). After repeat exposures, tolerance may develop as a result of adaptational changes in the cells of the central nervous system (Merck, 1999). The increased tolerance may cause the patient to consume alcohol in greater quantities than before to achieve the same intoxicating effects. Alcoholics suffer dramatic long-term health damage. The most common forms of specific organ damage in alcoholics are cirrhosis, peripheral neuropathy, brain damage, a...
Saitz, Richard, M.D. "Unhealthy Alcohol Use." New England Journal of Medicine (2005): 596. Web. 7 Apr. 2014.
Kramer, Liz, and Nancy Sprague “Alcohol Abuse and Youth: An Overview.” Points of View: Alcohol Abuse & Youth (2007): 1. Points of View Reference Center. EBSCO. Web. 17 Nov. 2009.
When someone drinks an alcoholic beverage, it is absorbed through the stomach or small intestine. Once absorbed, the alcohol merges into the bloodstream and travels its way through the body. Although the liver does help to eliminate as much alcohol as possible, not all is filtered. This alcohol filled blood will flow through the body in a circuit and eventually go through the brain (Watson 4). Since the brain is still in the process of developing mature lobes, alcohol can revise the way cells are working. A healthy brain has an increase in myelination which is essential for gaining and obtaining knowledge and also allows for beneficial communication between lobes. The key operational method to the brain is that all the lobes work together (Squeglia 1). Alcohol increases the effects of the inhibitory neurotransmitter, GABA, which means chemical messengers decrease electrical brain activity (Watson 5).
The Brain tissue can be damaged easily by alcohol and it weakens the nervous system. Nerve cells are blocked when alcohol reaches the brain because it reacts with receptors on other cells. This is why many times people who are drunk can fall and will not feel the pain until the day after because the nerve cells are being blocke...
This article speaks of adolescent alcohol use and abuse. It examines the lack of research done on adolescent health issues and the current knowledge of the consequences of adolescent alcohol consumption. The article also presents strategies on how to inform and clarify the issues of adolescent alcohol abuse.
Marcus, D. (March 27, 2000). Drnking To Get Drunk. U.S. News & World Report [On-line], Available: www2.gasou.edu/library/ (Galileo)(EBSCOhost)(Search=Alcohol Abuse).
Neurotransmitters are chemicals that help transmit signals from one nerve in the brain to another (Drinkaware). Drinking decreases our mental sharpness and judgment. According to the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, “1,825 college students between the ages of 18 and 24 die from alcohol-related unintentional injuries, including motor-vehicle crashes” (NIAAA,). Another problem that affects us mentally is addiction. Alcohol is very addictive and people go through withdrawal. (Brittanica, Mark Keller). Alcohol affects human’s bodies and causes them to die at a young age. Alcohol harms your organs such as the heart, liver, pancreas, and the brain. (NIAAA). Also, there is an increase of developing cancer around the mouth, esophagus, throat, liver, and breast (NIAA). Consuming alcohol came lead to people taking actions they might not have taken when sober. Regular drinking lowers the levels of serotonin in your brain. This leads to depression and
Ethyl alcohol or ethanol, or most often known as simply alcohol can come in the form of beer, wine, or liquor. A depressant affects the central nervous system although many would believe it to be a stimulant. Many people get more energetic and stimulated but this is only because alcohol affects parts of the brain that control judgment. The stimulate...
Alcohol has many terrible effects on a person’s health. Alcohol affects many different parts of the body, but first of all, alcohol affects the brain. A person’s brain is very important, it shows how someone thinks, makes decisions, and controls their body. According to National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and
Drinking alcohol can affect every single person in a different way depending on many different factors. Two people who drink the same amount can come out with different blood alcohol levels. Depending on how high a person’s blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is determines how the person’s judgment is affected. Having a BAC of .01%-.05% increases the heart rate and decreases judgment. An increase to .10%-.15% causes more dramatic effects. Slurred speech, vomiting, and immobilization are some of the many short-term effects of over drinking (Lang 45). People with drinking problems also frequently use illegal drugs that
"Alcohol." KidsHealth - Alcohol. Ed. Steven Dowshen. The Nemours Foundation, 01 June 2013. Web. 01 Apr. 2014.
Effects of alcohol are many and are all bad. There is not one good effect of excessive alcohol drinking, except what an alcoholic considers a good feeling after getting drunk. The alcoholics drink for many reasons, but the results are all the same. Alcohol has very bad effects on all human body organs; it causes disease and some of those diseases are dangerous and even fatal, and the most common diseases re...