Of course, there are too many reasons for the formation of alcohol dependence to be able to list them here, but there is a definite pattern. Most reasons behind excessive drinking are not physical, but rather psychological (mental and emotional) in nature. There is no single factor that accounts for the variation in individual risk of developing alcohol-use disorders. The evidence suggests that harmful alcohol use and bath salts abuse and addiction alcohol dependence have a wide range of causal factors, some of which interact with each other to increase risk. Alcohol is implicated in relationship breakdown, domestic violence and poor parenting, including child neglect and abuse. It is estimated that over 1 million children are affected by parental alcohol misuse and up to 60% of child protection cases involve alcohol (Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit, 2003).
4.1. Family history
Therefore it is impossible to define a level at which alcohol is universally without risk of harm. Alcohol use disorders (AUD) continue to be a concerning health issue worldwide. Multiple options exist for the management of dependence on alcohol, not all of which are approved by drug-regulating agencies. Current practice in treating AUD does not reflect the diversity of pharmacologic options that have potential to provide benefit, and guidance for clinicians is limited.
9. CURRENT CARE IN THE NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE
In human adolescent males but not females, studies have found that alcohol consumption decreases bone density. The influence of genetic background on patient response has been exemplified by the interaction between naltrexone response and polymorphisms in the μ opioid receptor gene OPRM1. The use of genetic information has become standard practice in other areas of medicine, including anticoagulation and oncology. Group meetings are available in most communities at low or no cost, and at convenient times and locations—including an increasing presence online.
- It is not advised to go “cold turkey” or suddenly stop consuming alcohol on your own to treat your physical dependency, as it can lead to dangerous withdrawal symptoms.
- There is evidence that drugs which block the opioid neurotransmitters, such as naltrexone, can reduce the reinforcing or pleasurable properties of alcohol and so reduce relapse in alcohol-dependent patients (Anton, 2008).
- Alcohol use can begin to take a toll on anyone’s physical and mental well-being over time.
- Drinking too much alcohol over time may cause inflammation of the pancreas, resulting in pancreatitis.
Alcohol’s physical effects on the body
Tolerance and dependence can both happen as symptoms of alcohol use disorder, a mental health condition previously referred to as alcoholism, that happens when your body becomes dependent on alcohol. This condition can be mild, moderate, or severe, depending on the number of symptoms you have. The damage that long-term heavy alcohol consumption can do to the health of adults is well documented.
The kudzu root extract appears to be beneficial in lowering alcohol consumption in heavy drinkers. Nalmefene has been recorded to reduce the number of drinks per drinking day in alcohol-dependent subjects;44 however, when measuring days abstinent,44,45 number of heavy drinking days,45–47 time to relapse,44–46 and subjective cravings44,47 the data are controversial. While nalmefene may be superior to naltrexone in its ability to reduce alcohol cravings,48 and does not carry the same hepatotoxicity risk, its role in treating alcohol-dependent patients remains unclear. Marriages where one or both partners have an alcohol problem are twice as likely to end in divorce as those in which alcohol is not a problem. Nearly a million children live with one or more parents who misuse alcohol and 6% of adults report having grown up in such a family.
Alcohol dependence can make you feel unable to function or survive without alcohol. People dependent on alcohol also tend to build a tolerance for it, which biofeedback causes them to drink more to get the same effect of intoxication. Unfortunately, satisfying these cravings increases the risk of alcohol poisoning.
Over time, drinking can also damage your frontal lobe, the part of the brain responsible for executive functions, like abstract reasoning, decision making, social behavior, and performance. Slurred speech, a key sign of intoxication, happens because alcohol reduces communication between your brain and body. This makes speech and coordination — think reaction time and balance — more difficult. For most adults, moderate alcohol use — no more than two drinks a day for men and one for women and older people — is relatively harmless. (A “drink” means 1.5 ounces of spirits, 5 ounces of wine, or 12 ounces of beer, all of which contain 0.5 ounces of alcohol.
Those who are more severely alcohol dependent are less likely to achieve lasting stable moderate drinking and have a higher mortality than those who are less dependent (Marshall et al., 1994). It is important to note that most of the excess mortality is largely accounted for by lung cancer and heart disease, which are strongly related to continued tobacco smoking. Nevertheless, numerous pharmacotherapies have been employed to treat alcoholism, guided principally by advancing knowledge about alcohol’s interactions with various components of the brain’s reward and stress pathways (Heilig and Egli 2006; Litten et al. 2005; Spanagel and Kiefer 2008). It has been postulated that naltrexone may blunt the rewarding effects of alcohol, whereas acamprosate may attenuate adaptive changes during abstinence that favor relapse (Heilig and Egli 2006; Litten et al. 2005). Older people are at least as likely as younger people to benefit from alcohol treatment (Curtis et al., 1989). Clinicians therefore need to be vigilant to identify and treat older people who misuse alcohol.
The health consequences of alcohol, including deaths from alcoholic liver disease, have been increasing in the UK compared with a reduction in many other European countries (Leon & McCambridge, 2006). Further, the age at which deaths from alcoholic liver disease occur has been falling in the UK, which is partly attributable to increasing alcohol consumption in young people (Office for National Statistics, 2003). Alcohol, a prevalent substance in social and cultural settings worldwide, possesses significant sway over both physical and psychological health. While moderate consumption can be a harmless part of social gatherings, excessive intake leads to severe health complications and psychological disorders.
For the European Union, the US and Canada, social costs of alcohol were estimated to be around €270 billion (2003 prices; Anderson and Baumberg, 2005), US$185 billion (1998 prices; WHO, 2004), and CA$14.6 billion (2002 prices; alcoholism: disease or a choice? considered a brain disease Rehm et al., 2006), respectively. Generally, these symptoms are short-lived, but they may worsen or lead to long-term complications. Laryngeal cancer affects the voice box, which contains vocal cords and aids in breathing.
Instead, clinicians may be obligated to match medication strategies to individuals or AUD subtypes, and this approach demands stronger evidence of treatment efficacy in particular patient groups. The kudzu root has been historically studied for its use in alcoholism; of particular interest are the extracts of the plant. The mechanism is not fully understood, but it is proposed that the extracts of the kudzu root may alter alcohol dehydrogenase or monoamine oxidase–acetaldehyde pathways,129,130 leading to reduced alcohol consumption. Tiagabine107 and pregabalin108 both have open-label trials supporting their potential usefulness in alcohol dependence; however, placebo-controlled and head-to-head trials are needed to ascertain their particular place in therapy.
