Alcoholism the Disease "NIH Study Finds Chronic Alcohol Use Shifts Brain's Control of Behavior." NIH News Release. 22 Aug. 2013: n.p. SIRS Government Reporter. Web. 19 Mar. 2014. The National Institution of Health published this article for the purpose of explaining about the human brain and it’s relation to alcohol. According to the article, people with alcoholism have been known to have problems with skills in their prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain that controls decision-making and emotions. These same people show exaggerated neural responses in the dorsal striatum due to alcohol-related cues. This information shows that excessive drinking can affect learning and control of behavior and emotion. This information can be helpful in my paper because it explains that alcohol is a disease that affects the brain and it will help me try to prove my point of view. Meyer, Roger E. "Alcoholism." Encyclopedia Americana. Grolier Online, 2014. Web. 20 Mar. 2014. Roger E. Meyer writes this article to explain the effects of alcohol and how it affects the body. Once alcohol is taken into the body it is absorbed from the stomach and the small intestine and into the bloodstream. If too much alcohol is taken in the stomach may secrete a mucous that will slow absorption. One tenth of the alcohol exits form the body as sweat or urine, as the rest is slowly broken down by the body. This article and information can be helpful to me because it will give me a background and information on alcohol and what happens when one consumes it. Nurnberger, John. "Alcoholism Is a Genetic Disorder." Alcohol Abuse. Ed. Christine Watkins. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. At Issue. Rpt. from "Unraveling the Genetics or Alcohol... ... middle of paper ... ...Christine Watkins. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. At Issue. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 19 Mar. 2014. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism writes this article to inform the world that alcohol is a brain disease that affects the body and mind. The article states that alcoholism is a type of addiction, which therefore means it is a complex disease. It affects the health and well-being of the person. Alcoholism was defined as a disease by the American Medical Association in 1956. David Rosenbloom, PhD, states, “They can’t stop because their brain has been changed.” Neurotransmitters in the brain such as, dopamine, serotonin, GABA, and glutamate, are disrupted by abused substances such as alcohol. This article will be helpful to me because it has specific examples and situation that explains that alcoholism is a disease.
Jody was born biologically with male genitals and he was brought up as a boy. Unlike his more gender-typical older brother, Jody’s childhood behavior was considered “sissy”. Jody genetically preferred the company of girls compared to boys during childhood. Jody considered herself a bisexual male until the age of 19. At 19 years of age, she became involved with a man, and her identity would be transgender, meaning that Jody was unhappy with her gender of birth and seeks a change from male to female. It would seem that there was some late-onset dissatisfaction, and late-onset is linked to attraction to women; in comparison to early childhood-onset, which are attracted to men. Jody identified herself as bisexual. The relationship with the man ended; nevertheless, Jody’s desire to become a woman consumed her, and Jody feels that’s he was born in the
Slutske, W. S., D’Onofrio, B. M., Turkheimer, E., Emery, R. E., Harden, K. P., Heath, A. C., et al. (2008). Searching for an environmental effect of parental alcoholism on offspring alcohol use disorder: A genetically informed study of children of alcoholics. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 117, 534-551.
Zeigler, Donald. "The neurocognitive effects of alcohol on adolescents and college students." Preventive Medicine 40. (2004): 23 – 32. Web. 10 Apr. 2014. .
Gorski (1996, p.98) stands by his belief in the disease theory of alcoholism. Although some drinkers do not have the disease of alcoholism, more severe drinkers do and are seen as suffering from a biological disease and need to be treated as such. In the late 1950’s and 60’s research projects at Yale and Rutgers concluded that alcoholism is a disease. As a result of the...
Hanson, David J., Ph.D. “Drinking Alcohol Damages Teenager’s Brains.” Sociology Deprtment. n.d.. Web. 20 March 2014. .
It is said to believe that alcoholism is a type of behavior, which is why it shouldn’t just be studied by medical doctors, but by psychologists, psychiatrists, and psychoanalysts. Why? Psychology is the study of human behavior. This article argues that alcohol addiction is distinguished by an imbalance of two different psychological reports leading to the loss of willpower (Bechara 2005). The first one being a spontaneous reaction for signaling immediate expectations. The second report is a reflective reaction needed to decrease the response triggered by the impulsive system. The article also reviews some candidates that can trigger alcohol use either knowingly or unknowingly. According to Alcoholism and the Loss of Willpower, alcohol-related stimuli capture the attention of problematic users of alcohol, triggers specific attributes (good/bad and sedative/arousal), and both of which could increase the likelihood to drink more alcohol or to drink in inappropriate situations, like before an exam or before driving a car. (Page 1) Another main aspect of alcoholism is the diminished extent for self-control. This also includes things like addicts not being able to efficiently execute certain behaviors and regulate their emotions and feelings. This can have a lot to do with the insula, which is a region of the brain deep inside the cerebral cortex. Where a lot of decision making takes place here, once the insula is engaged it makes conscious and unconscious decisions to drink that beer or take that drug. All of these findings conclude to possessing willpower. “Willpower depends in many important ways on neural substrates that regulate homeostasis, emotion, and feeling.” (Persaud, McLeod, & Cowey, 2007) All these understandings of alcohol...
Frequent consumptions of alcohol are followed a number of potential health risks. This is more critical to the young body that is still growing. New research has shown that consuming alcohol can negatively impact the physical developments of brain structure. Youths who were influenced by an early drinking were not able to perform as well as nondrinkers in memory-test. Furthermore, the early drinkers may experience a direct effect on brain functioning. The negative effect includes decreased ability in planning and executive functioning, memory, spatial operations, and attention.
It is a factor in five of the leading causes of death among 15 to 24 year olds” Chuck Pearce (2009). Binge drinking not only can lead to fatalities but also destroys the lives of teens. It leads them down the road of misery and self-destruction. Also, teenagers are at the most developmental stage of their life. Alcohol does in fact mess with the wiring of the brain. It mainly affects the prefrontal cortex of the brain; this part of the brain is where one’s thinking, decision making, and impulse control come from. The prefrontal part of the brain develops the most through one’s years of adolescence. When one begins binge drinking at a young age, it blunts the brain cells in the prefrontal cortex (book). Research consistently shows that students who do not drink perform far better in school than those who do (book). Many negative health consequences are directed back to binge drinking; such as, abuse, violence, injury, and addiction. Also, other negative behaviors like having sex, getting bad grades, trying to commit suicide, or trying other drugs (Pruitt & Wrye
Heredity, conditioning, and environment can contribute to the use of alcohol. One beverage can affect parts of the brain and nervous system. Sensory input then comes into play when alcohol is consumed. Symptoms depend on many factors such as one’s body itself and the amount of alcohol intake. Not only does alcohol affect the person consuming it but others around them, impact relationships, and group behavior. Therefore, after the individual has taken beverage after beverage of alcohol the body will start showing signs of damage to the body both internally and externally.
“Teen alcohol use kills 4,700 people each year — that’s more than all illegal drugs combined” (Fitzgerald 1). Alcoholism is a serious issue in our society and causes harm to ourselves and others. In this paper the effects of alcohol, how it affects the body, why people do it, and alcoholism as a whole will be explained.
Heavy drinking is more damaging to both body and brain than smaller amounts of alcohol consumed more often because extremely high blood alcohol levels are toxic to organs, severely impair sensory and cognitive functions, and encourage habit formation or addiction. A youthful brain has weaker controls that would stop a person from drinking too much. Scientists are finding clues in the brain that may help them identify the most vulnerable young people in hopes of halting problem drinking before it starts. According to psychiatry researcher Reagan R. Wetherill of the University of Pennsylvania, “the aim is to bolster brain development ‘just enough’ so that young people can ‘inhibit their own drinking behaviors before they act’”. In the study, the 21 kids who had begun heavy drinking had, in their...
Alcoholism may be passed down by genetics, or may influenced by culture, and background. "People with a family history of alcoholism are more likely than other people to become alcoholics themselves (Alcohol Use and Abuse). Sons of alcoholic fathers have a one in four chance of becoming an alcoholic" (Alcohol Use and Abuse). "Alcoholism is more likely developed in the biological children of alcoholics, than in adopted children which suggest that alcoholism involves a genetic or biochemical defect" (The Merck Manual of Medical Information 443).
Research now shows that genetics and environmental factors play a major part in alcohol and it addictiveness; it is believed that it is easily passed down through generations of families (Medical Library, 2003). In the last thirty years of research the theory that genetics play a part in alcoholism has been proven. One type of research done to prove this theory was that of adopted children. It showed that children who had alcoholism throughout their biological families and who were separated at birth from their parents seemed to have a higher risk of becoming addicted to alcohol then other children in the same situation whose biological parents were not alcoholics (Cross,
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
Alcohol damages the pathways that connect different parts of the brain and can affect the way the brain looks and works. These pathways, when affected, can change a person’s mood and behavior, and not only make them an entirely different person, but also make it harder for them to think clearly an...