Alcoholism – Comprehensive Overview, Treatments, Complementary And Alternative Therapies
Generals
As far as the body is concerned, alcohol is a poison. Some of the effects of chronic alcohol consumption include damage to the brain (women may be more vulnerable to chronic alcohol consumption), liver, pancreas, duodenum, and central nervous system. Alcoholism causes metabolic damage to every cell in the body and depresses the immune system. It may take years before the consequences of excessive drinking become evident, but if an alcoholic continues to drink, his or her life span may be shortened by ten to fifteen years or more.
Alcohol is broken down in the liver. The repeated consumption of alcohol inhibits the liver’s production of enzymes, impairing the body’s ability to absorb proteins, fats, and the fat-soluble vitamins (vitamins A, D, E, and K), as well as B-complex vitamins (especially thiamine and folic acid) and other water-soluble vitamins. Many essential nutrients are not retained for use by the body; they are rapidly eliminated through the urine. The toxic effect of alcohol on the liver is very serious. First, excessive amounts of fat accumulate in the liver, a result of alcohol’s effect on the body’s ability to digest fats properly. Next, the alcoholic may develop hepatitis, a condition in which liver cells become inflamed and may die. The final, usually fatal, stage of alcoholic liver damage is cirrhosis of the liver, a disease characterized by inflammation, hardening, and scarring of the liver This prevents the normal passage of blood through the liver, inhibiting the organ’s ability to filter out toxins and foreign substances.
The liver is one of the most robust organs of the body. It is the only organ that has the ability to regenerate itself after certain types of damage. Up to 25 percent of the liver can be removed, and within a short period of time, it will grow back to its original shape and size. It continually takes abuse, but if cared for properly, it will function more than adequately for decades. Alcohol is one of the toxins that the liver doesn’t handle as well as others. The liver cannot regenerate after being severely damaged by alcohol.
There are many other health consequences of alcoholism as well. Alcoholics often experience damage to their peripheral nervous systems. This damage may show up initially as a loss of sensation in the hands or feet, with an accompanying difficulty in walking. Chronic drinking also causes inflammation of the pancreas. This further hampers the body’s ability to digest fats and other nutrients, and can lead to diabetes.
Alcoholics face an in creased risk of mouth and throat cancer due to the direct toxicity of the alcohol. They may also experience high blood pressure, reduced testosterone production, visible dilation of blood vessels just beneath the skin’s surface, and pathological enlargement of the heart that can progress to congestive heart failure.
The social consequences of alcoholism can be very destructive as well. Alcohol abuse takes a tremendous toll on society through traffic and other accidents, poor job performance, and emotional damage to entire families.
Alcoholism and pregnancy
Drinking during pregnancy is particularly dangerous. The consumption of alcohol during pregnancy can cause birth defects and increases the chance of miscarriage. Alcohol passes through the mother’s placenta and into the fetal circulation. This toxic substance depresses the central nervous system of the fetus. Further, the fetal liver must try to metabolize the alcohol, but since the fetus’s liver is not fully developed, the alcohol remains in the fetal circulation. Women who drink during pregnancy generally give birth to babies with lower birth weights. Their growth may be retarded or stunted; their brains may be smaller than normal, and there may be mental retardation as well. Limbs, joints, fingers, and facial features may be deformed. Heart and kidney defects may occur. Some children exposed to alcohol in uterus become hyperactive at adolescence and exhibit learning disabilities. Every drink a pregnant woman consumes increases her child’s risk of being born with fetal alcohol syndrome, and also increases her chances of miscarriage. Even moderate amounts of alcohol may be harmful, especially in the first three to four months of pregnancy.
Signs and Symptoms
Alcoholism is often accompanied by the following signs and symptoms. Symptoms vary with the amount of alcohol taken and how long it has been abused.
Craving for alcohol
Inability to control drinking habits
Withdrawal symptoms, such as nausea, sweating, shakiness, and anxiety, when alcohol use is stopped after a period of heavy drinking
Tolerance (the need for increasing amounts of alcohol in order to feel its effects)
Psychological, social, occupational dysfunction
Malnutrition, anorexia
Cardiovascular symptoms (leading cause of death)
Increased levels of cancer (second leading cause of death)
Repeated infections—for example, tuberculosis, urinary tract infections
Lung conditions—complicated by smoking; for example, respiratory failure, pneumonia
Central nervous system disorders—unsteady gait or stance; cognitive impairment; psychiatric manifestations (for example, mood, anxiety, psychotic disorders); blackouts; coma; sleep disruptions
Diarrhea, vomiting
Gastrointestinal bleeding
Men—increased sexual drive with decreased ability to maintain an erection
Women—miscarriage, stopping of menstrual periods
Inflammation of the pancreas
Hepatitis (a disease of the liver)
Poor wound healing
Buildup of fluid in the body
Swollen, painful muscles, paralysis, lack of reflexes
Increased bone fractures
Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar)
Hypothermia (reduction of body temperature)
Moderate drinking
Alcoholism is caused by chronic over-consumption of alcohol.
Moderate drinking is probably best defined as the level of drinking that poses a low risk of alcohol-related problems, both for the drinker and for others. It is difficult to give a quantitative definition of moderate drinking because alcohol can have different effects on different individuals.
The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health of Ontario and the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse defines moderation, or ‘low risk drinking guidelines’ as follows: ‘Healthy adults who choose to drink should limit alcohol consumption to 2 or fewer standard drinks per day, with consumption not exceeding 14 standard drinks a week for men and 9 standard drinks per week for women.
Who’s Most At Risk?
People with the following conditions or characteristics are at a higher-than-average risk for developing alcoholism.
Genetically predisposed
Preexisting psychiatric disorder
Began consuming alcohol at an early age
Stress
What to Expect at Your Health Provider’s Office
If you or someone you care for is experiencing symptoms associated with alcoholism, you should see your health care provider. He or she can help make a diagnosis and guide you in determining which treatment or combination of therapies including alternative therapies will work best.
Your provider will take a history and do a physical exam to look for specific organ damage or trauma and to evaluate if your muscles are tender or weak. Laboratory tests will reveal any indicators of alcoholism, such as high blood alcohol. Imaging techniques may be used to diagnose alcohol-related disorders.
Treatment Options
– prevention
The nature of treatment depends on the severity of your alcoholism and available resources, and must address both medical issues and rehabilitation. Treatments may be provided in a hospital, a residential treatment setting, or on an outpatient basis.
- treatment plan
To understand treatment and make the right treatment choices, it helps to have an overview. Treatment is often seen as having four general phases:
Getting started (assessment and evaluation of disease symptoms and accompanying life problems, making treatment choices and developing a plan)
Detoxification (stopping use)
Active treatment (residential treatment or therapeutic communities, intensive and regular outpatient treatment, medications to help with alcohol craving and discourage alcohol use, medications to treat concurrent psychiatric illnesses, 12-step programs, other self-help and mutual-help groups)
Maintaining sobriety and relapse prevention (outpatient treatment as needed, 12-step programs, other self-help and mutual-help groups)
Promising types of counseling and complementary alternative medicine teach people to identify situations and feelings that trigger their urge to drink and to find new ways to cope without using include alcohol use. In addition, because the involvement of family members is important to the recovery, many programs also offer marital counseling and family therapy as part of the treatment process. Some programs also link up individuals with community resources, such as legal assistance, job training, child-care, and parenting classes.
Here are 12 questions to consider when selecting an alcohol or substance abuse treatment or rehabilitation program, according to the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (USA):
1. Does the program accept your insurance? If not, will they work with you on a payment plan or find other means of support for you?
2. Is the program run by accredited, licensed and/or trained professionals?
3. Is the facility clean, organized and well-run?
4. Does the program encompass the full range of needs of the individual (medical:
