Drug Rehab
September 24th, 2008
Over Drinking and Its Hazards to Your Health
Over drinking over a period of many years can lead to a multitude of health problems. Some people develop health problems that they do not attribute to their heavy drinking habit but doctors can easily identify drinking as the culprit. Heavy drinkers may see no immediate harmful effects of their habit but over time the damage will make itself known.
Statistics
To look at some statistics from outside of the United States, in England an estimated 6,000 deaths in men are from coronary heart disease that can be attributed to heavy alcohol use over the course of many years. Approximately 400 out of 1,700 deaths that result from mouth cancer are linked to a habit of heavy drinking. That works out to be one in four deaths. During the run of a year in both England and Wales, 33,000 individuals are admitted to the hospital for liver disease that can be traced back to overuse and misuse of alcohol.
Complications of Long-Term Misuse
If you consistently misuse and abuse alcohol and refuse to stop at one or two drinks you put your body, and the state of your future health, in terrible jeopardy. There are many long-term complications that can make themselves known but it could take many years. Some of these complications include:
-Brain damage, dementia and varied levels of memory loss
-Increased risk of having a stroke and of developing heart disease
-Damage to the lining of the stomach
-Susceptibility to any number of types of cancer (in particular breast cancer)
-Diseases of the liver, such as liver cancer or cirrhosis of the liver
-Potentially fatal alcohol poisoning risk
Other Causes for Long-Term Concern
But the long-term hazardous effects of over drinking do not end there. As a person ages and their body becomes wearier, the risks of drinking too much also become greater. The body then has a difficult time processing alcohol as the years pass. The concern that you could stumble and fall and therefore hurt yourself increases as well. Other unfortunate effects you may notice include:
-Loss of body hair
-Lower sperm count
-Lower rate of fertility
-Irregular menstruation
-Long-term damage to a fetus you are carrying
-Weight gain
-Skin and complexion problems