Alcohol's damage to the human body can be staggering. A person who drinks puts physical and mental health at risk - the internal organs suffer, the work of the most important systems that control the human body is disorganized (the influence of alcohol on the immune system is especially dangerous), personality degradation occurs, the which is due to the effect on the human nervous system.
The effects of alcohol on the body affect:
- Liver;
- Brain;
- The nervous system and the psyche;
- Cardiovascular system;
- Kidneys;
- The digestive system;
- The immune system;
- Muscles and joints;
- Endocrine system;
- Spleen;
- Respiratory system;
- Visual organs;
- External appearance.
To avoid negative consequences, you first need to know how alcohol affects the human body.
The Harmful Effects of Alcohol on the Liver
To find out how alcohol affects the liver, it's worth finding out what it's for. The liver is an organ responsible for eliminating toxic substances from the body, several metabolic processes require its participation. For people who drink alcohol frequently, it's important to know why alcohol is dangerous to the liver and how it works. Talking about the dangers of alcohol, it can be pointed out that it gradually destroys the liver. The ethyl alcohol that enters it is oxidized, forming a very strong toxin - acetaldehyde. Building up in the liver, it modifies the organ and stops its functioning.
The effects of alcohol on the liver are truly devastating. Liver cells die from alcohol, are replaced by scar tissue or fatty tissue, so the liver cannot function normally (toxins build up in the body and eventually poison it).
The most serious consequence of how alcohol is harmful to the human body with immeasurable consumption is liver cirrhosis. With this disease, the structure of the organ starts to change, the size decreases, the vessels suffer from it: they shrink, the pressure rises, the blood stagnates. The natural result in this situation is the rupture of vessel walls and bleeding, which is the cause of many deaths.
The Effects of Alcohol on the Brain
The effect of alcohol on the body mainly affects the brain. In a state of intoxication, a person's cerebral cortex is destroyed, while gradually some of its parts go numb and die.
If you like to drink alcohol, the brain changes - it becomes full of ulcers, scars and edema, the blood vessels dilate, ruptures appear in some places, cysts appear in the dead areas. These consequences prove once again the negative effect of alcohol in any dose on the human body.
The effect of alcohol on the nervous system and the psyche
People addicted to alcohol need to know how alcohol affects the psyche. Regular consumption of alcoholic beverages, especially in excessive doses, leads to the destruction of the psyche. A person's personality and behavior change completely, mental and moral degradation begins. Alcohol and the nervous system interact to destroy the personality. The effects of alcohol on sleep can cause insomnia. There are other significant consequences - mental disorders and violations of the proper perception of reality. Alcohol is detrimental to memory, concentration and motor coordination. It is concluded that the influence of alcohol on the human psyche causes great damage to the entire body.
<3_img_rightxx>It is necessary to understand in more detail why alcohol is harmful to human mental health. The harmful effect of alcohol on the human body and on the nervous system in particular is that the nerve fibers are damaged and their conductivity worsens; in medicine, this violation is called polyneuritis. The person loses sensitivity to pain and changes in temperature, numbness in the legs and arms, weakness and "swab" occur. Other signs: swelling, increased sweating, "shivering" in the skin, itching and burning, sharp and sharp pain, muscles seem to be contracted, as if they have been pricked by needles.
The most common effects of alcohol consumption on the central nervous system are:
- Delirium tremens. It's worth knowing why this condition is dangerous. Appears after cessation of prolonged alcohol use, accompanied by hallucinations, delirium, fever and fever, suicidal tendencies;
- Encephalopathy. Caused by an acute lack of B vitamins in chronic drinkers. Its symptoms are vision and vestibular problems, confusion;
- Alcoholic dementia syndrome. Loss of elementary mental abilities, problems with counting, speaking, perception, concentration, memory;
- Alcoholic epilepsy. It manifests itself in convulsions and attacks in a hangover state;
- Korsakov's psychosis. Loss of sensation in the limbs is combined with significant memory impairment.
No doubt the mental consequences of alcoholism lead to personality degradation, the psychology of their behavior is disturbed.
cardiovascular problems
Alcohol is harmful to the health and normal functioning of the heart muscle. Heart disease is one of the most common causes of countless deaths among drinkers.
This muscular organ can expand in volume with regular exposure to alcohol. In addition, the consequences of high doses of alcohol are arrhythmia, increased risk of developing hypertension, myocardial infarction, stroke, ischemic damage to the heart muscle, and atherosclerosis.
kidneys and alcoholic beverages
The kidneys are a very important organ. It works in the following way: it removes fluids from the body, cleans the blood of toxic substances and participates in metabolic processes. Regular consumption of alcoholic beverages forces the kidneys to work at their maximum intensity.
This threatens a whole range of pathological conditions - dehydration, metabolic disturbances, intoxication, the appearance of stones, pyelonephritis, development of kidney failure, urinary tract inflammation, the appearance of cancer.
How alcohol affects the digestive tract
Alcoholic beverages are poisonous to the digestive system. The walls of the esophagus are affected, heartburn appears, the gag reflex intensifies, the esophageal vessels become thinner and dilated, and during vomiting, the venous walls may rupture, causing bleeding.
In addition, alcohol causes irreparable damage to the stomach's protective membrane. The result is premature aging of the organ, impairment of its functions. The typical illnesses of people who drink are gastritis, ulcers and even stomach cancer.
The Effect of Alcohol on Immunity
The information about how alcohol affects immunity is twofold. Drinking in moderation can help you cope better with colds. However, with more frequent consumption of alcohol, a person's immunity is inhibited.
Reduced immunity manifests itself in a decrease in the amount of a special protein - lysozyme, which is part of saliva, tears and other secretory secretions. This protein neutralizes harmful microbes entering the body and prevents the development of various infectious diseases. Thus, we can safely say that alcohol reduces immunity.
Effects of Alcohol on Joints and Muscles
Muscle tissue suffers from any dose of alcohol, which is very harmful to muscle health. It slows down or completely stops the growth of muscles, they atrophy, they become flaccid, alcohol can even destroy them completely. This can increase body fat stores. Alcohol and joints are not compatible concepts. The effect of alcohol on the health of the skeletal system is very significant, as it destroys bone tissue, expels calcium from the body, bones age rapidly, become fragile, and fractures often occur. After drinking alcohol, joints often ache.
Joint problems are common in the lives of alcoholics. People who drink often develop arthritis, an inflammation of the joint formations. Signs of Arthritis: The joints start to ache, especially the knees. After another binge, the pain intensifies.
Alcohol retains fluid in the body, edema appears, uric acid is no longer excreted normally and accumulates in the form of salts that settle in the joints, which causes the appearance of gout. Excess fluid enters the joint, presses on the walls of the joint cavity, touches nerve fibers, pain appears in several joints after alcohol. Over time, due to the action of alcoholic beverages, deformations and complete destruction of joint formations occur.
How Alcohol Affects Your Appearance
A person addicted to alcohol is easily recognizable in a crowd. Typical appearance of the drinker:
- bluish nose;
- red and swollen face;
- bags under the eyes;
- bruises from bruises or falling;
- sloppy clothing;
- tousled hair.
The effect of alcohol on the skin is also negative. A red tint appears, which is explained by increased blood flow under the influence of alcohol. A large load on the vessels causes their damage, disruption of small capillaries, this causes bruises in the form of blue and red dots on the face. A bluish tinge is the result of severe vascular damage, blood does not supply oxygen to these areas.
To remove alcohol from the body, it involves a large amount of liquid, dehydration sets in, a person who has consumed a lot of alcohol feels a strong thirst, tries to quench it. The fluid builds up and is gradually removed, as the body seeks to protect itself from repeated dehydration and makes water reserves, from which the face and other parts of the body swell.
The effect of alcohol on the endocrine system
Alcohol and its effects on human health are also associated with the functioning of the hormonal system. Its main bodies:
- Thyroid gland (regulates metabolism);
- Pituitary gland and hypothalamus (controls the functioning of the entire system);
- The pancreas (responsible for insulin production);
- The pineal gland (produces hormones that affect sleep, blood circulation, and the nervous system);
- Adrenal glands (produce adrenaline);
- Thymus (regulates the growth and development of immune cells);
- Gonads (produces male and female hormones).
The effect of alcohol on the thyroid gland and other organs of the endocrine system is such that it decreases the production of some hormones and increases the production of others. For example, in men there is a predominance of female hormones and a decrease in the level of male hormones. For women who drink, the opposite is true. Hormonal disturbances negatively affect the state of the entire body. Some endocrine disorders are associated with congenital genetic mutations, and these mutations also often arise from drinking too much alcohol. The normal interaction of alcohol and the thyroid gland, as well as other endocrine organs, is impossible.
How alcohol can affect the spleen
Often, the spleen hurts from frequent alcohol consumption. This organ plays the role of a user of aged and damaged blood cells in the body. It is a reserve "depot" of blood that, if necessary, supplies the blood vessels of the circulatory system. In addition, this organ cleans the blood of pathogenic microorganisms.
Pain in the left hypochondrium can indicate spleen problems caused by excessive alcohol consumption. It's easy to explain why drinking alcohol is dangerous and why the spleen hurts. In most cases, this organ is enlarged, infarction of the spleen, abscess, in severe cases that require the removal of this organ, are also possible. The consequences of excessive consumption of any type of alcohol can severely impair the functioning of the spleen and lead to death.
Effects on the respiratory system
Drinkers should be aware of how alcohol affects lung health. Alcohol vapors affect the respiratory mucosa, which contributes to the development of pneumonia, bronchitis, chronic pharyngitis and laryngitis (hence the hoarseness of drunks). Furthermore, these diseases are difficult and long-term. Pneumonia can progress to pneumosclerosis (the lung tissue hardens). Alcohol in the blood causes the destruction of lung tissue and its pathological expansion (emphysema).
In the example of the lungs, you can see what irreparable damage alcohol does to the human body. Large doses of alcohol impair the respiratory activity of the lungs; in some cases, breathing may stop completely. Delirium tremens is usually accompanied by inflammation and pulmonary edema. There is also a link between alcohol and the occurrence of lung cancer.
The effect of alcohol on human vision
Not everyone is sure whether alcohol is harmful to vision and why alcoholics have eye pain. Under the influence of alcohol, intracranial pressure increases. This causes damage to the vessels of the eyes and numerous small hemorrhages, the supply of oxygen to the muscles is cut off, they are in a state of permanent tension. The consequence of this condition can be atrophy of the muscles of the eyeball and deterioration in the quality of vision.
In addition, alcohol can affect fundal nerve fibers, impairing optic nerve function. The most serious effect of alcohol on the visual system is blindness.
Alcoholism and its consequences have a destructive effect on the body and the psyche can also change significantly. Only by stopping drinking can you stop the process of destroying your body.