What Is Alcohol?

The term alcohol refers to ethyl or grain alcohol. Ethanol is the chemical name for the active ingredient found in alcoholic beverages. It is the only member of a large family of chemical compounds that can be safely consumed by humans – and only within limits.

Other members of this chemical family, methanol for example, are extremely poisonous. Alcohol forms naturally when a few key ingredients ferment. Fermentation occurs in ripe fruits, berries and honey. The natural fermentation process stops when the alcohol concentration reaches about 12 percent by volume.

Alcohol is a depressant, not a stimulant. The effect of alcohol on the central nervous system is similar to that of other depressants. In small to moderate amounts, alcohol slows the reflexes, coordination, and motor activity – which can seriously impair one’s driving skills and ability to react.

In large amounts alcohol poisoning can lead to death. Alcohol affects the body in two ways. First, alcohol enters the mouth, esophagus, stomach and intestines, creating a numbing effect. Second, alcohol rapidly enters the bloodstream from the stomach and even faster from the small intestine. The rate at which alcohol enters the bloodstream is a key factor in the Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) exposed to the brain. Alcohol has almost no vitamins, minerals, protein, or fat – just large amounts of carbohydrates. The body’s cells cannot use alcohol. Only an enzyme in the liver can metabolize alcohol from the body. Since alcohol does provide calories, drinkers are likely to not eat properly, which often leads to malnutrition.

What Is Alcohol’s History?

People have consumed alcohol since the beginning of history. The first alcoholic beverage may have been fermented honey called mead. The Egyptians had breweries 6,000 years ago, and credited the god Osiris with introducing wine to humans. Ancient Babylonian tablets document the process of brewing beer from malted barley. The ancient Greeks used a large amount of wine and credited the god Bacchus (or Dionysus) with introducing the drink. Even the Bible says that Noah, just nine generations after Adam, made wine and became drunk. Ancient man’s original use for alcohol was not recreational, but rather practical- to preserve food. Man discovered grape juice would soon spoil, but fermented juices, or wine, would keep. They noticed too, that persons who drank fermented juice did not become sick as often as people who drank water. This was not because alcoholic beverages were healthful, but because they were less dangerous than water. Many of the springs and wells of Europe and Asia contained contaminated water. Some early people, like North American Indians who lived in less populated areas, never learned to make alcoholic beverages because there was simply no need. Hundreds of years ago people discovered that they could distill fermented products and increase alcohol concentrations much higher than the 12 percent found in the natural process. Distillation of fermented products is the way beverages such as whiskey, gin, and rum is made. These beverages may contain as much as 45-50% alcohols.

What Is Alcoholism?

Most people think of an alcoholic as a skid row bum or home- less person. However, this type of alcoholic makes up less than five percent of America’s problem drinkers. Most alcoholics work, have families, and lead relatively normal lives. Alcoholism is a mental and physical addiction to ethanol. It is one of the world’s oldest social problems, with a history running from the drunken depravity of ancient Rome to today’s college campuses. Society once believed, that alcoholism was sinful and a sign of a morally weak person. Today, alcoholism is often viewed as a drug addiction and an illness.

Alcohol Is The Most Commonly Abused Drug In Society Today!

Alcohol is the most commonly abused substance in the United States. The most common reasons people drink alcohol are socializing, peer pressure, anxiety or tension, and addiction. Many Americans over the age of 21 drink alcohol occasionally; others may drink alcohol moderately on a more regular basis. However, even moderate drinking under certain circumstances is risky. Drinking that exceeds moderate levels puts you at risk for serious health problems as well as social problems with family, friends, co-workers, and law enforcement.

What Is The Difference Between Alcohol Abuse And Alcoholism?

Many people may become intoxicated, but are not alcoholics. Alcohol abuse occurs when a person drinks large quantities of alcohol at one time. Alcoholism when the drinking of alcohol becomes compulsive. Alcoholism is characterized by a person’s inability to choose whether or not to drink and how much to drink.

Even though other people drink for such reasons as socializing, experimenting, or enjoyment, alcoholics must drink. They may dislike the beverage, but the urge to drink is so strong they cannot control it. The more heavily and often alcoholics drink, the greater the potential for problems at home, at work, with friends, and even strangers. These problems may include:

• .Frequent arguments with or estrangement from spouse and other family members
• Strained relationships with coworkers
• Frequent absences or tardiness from work
• Decreased productivity and loss of job
• Increase of violent behavior.

Alcoholism affects more than the individual himself, it damages the alcoholic’s friends and family as well.

The people who care the most, frequently find themselves excusing the alcoholic’s behavior and enabling them to drink.

Does Alcohol Interact With Medications?

Alcohol interacts negatively with more than 150 medications. For example, if you drink alcohol while taking cold medications with antihistamines, the alcohol will increase the drowsiness the medication causes. This mixture can make driving, operating machinery, and equipment very dangerous. If you drink alcohol while taking large doses of acetaminophen, you risk serious damage to your liver. Check with your doctor or pharmacist before drinking alcohol with any over-the- counter or prescription medication.

What Are The Long-term Risks Of Alcohol Use?

Heavy drinking contributes to liver disease, heart disease, certain forms of cancer, pancreatitis, high blood pressure, heart disease, and some kinds of stroke. Since alcohol affects many organs in the body, long-term heavy drinking puts a person at high risk for developing serious health problems. More than two million Americans suffer from liver disease caused by alcohol. Some drinkers develop alcoholic hepatitis, an inflammation of the liver. Its symptoms include fever, jaundice (an abnormal yellowing of eyes, skin and urine), and abdominal pain. Alcoholic hepatitis can cause death if the person continues to drink. If the person stops drinking, alcoholic hepatitis is often reversible. Ten to 20 percent of heavy drinkers develop cirrhosis or scarring of the liver. Cirrhosis can also cause death if the person continues to drink. Although cirrhosis is not reversible, the person’s life expectancy will increase if he or she stops drinking.

Alcohol Affects Everyone Differently

The effects of alcohol on behavior are unpredictable. A drinker’s behavior depends on his or her mental state and social setting. For example, alcohol can cause one person to become friendly and talkative, while another may become angry and violent. Often, these symptoms are not apparent to the drinker. Alcohol increases the heart rate and dilates the blood vessels. Taken in large amounts, alcohol makes walking, talking, and thinking difficult. It also causes drowsiness. A person consuming large amounts may lose coordination, become confused and disoriented. In some cases, a person can fall into a coma or even die. Remedies such as coffee, cold showers, or eating will not make a person sober. Coffee may keep a drinker awake, but will not improve the side effects. Nothing but time will lessen the effects of alcohol. The liver eliminates ninety percent of alcohol at a constant rate of .015 percent per hour – one drink per hour.