Alcoholism is a chronic disease which may often be fatal. People with this disease cannot control their drinking habits even when it becomes a serious harm for their health, social status and family life. The exact cause of alcoholism is yet unknown. Researches show that psychological, genetic and social factors influence the development of this disease. Alcoholism is a type of drug dependence with both physical and psychological indications.
Anyone can be an alcoholic. He/she can be any age, profession, ethnic group or social class.
Alcoholism is associated with denial; the person believes that he/she is control of the situation. The recognition of the problem is the first step to the treatment therefore understanding and accepting the symptoms are crucial. Alcoholism is a serious disease and it is best cured if treated in its early stages.
Symptoms of alcoholism are:
-Making excuses to drink
-Lack of control over drinking, an alcoholic may not drink for months or years, but when they do, they have difficulty stopping.
-Excessive alcohol consumption
-Denial of drinking problems
-Tolerance to the effects of alcohol, an alcoholic person is able to consume a great amount of alcohol, before showing any signs of drinking.
-Feeling annoyed when criticized about drinking
-Keeping and hiding alcohol in unlikely places
-Drinking first thing in the morning to avoid hangover
-Showing aggressive behavior while drinking
-Driving under the influence of alcohol
-Solitary drinking
-Unexplained mood swings
-Missing work
-Loosing interest in social activities
-May experience paranoia, unnatural fears or contemplate suicide
-Neglect of physical appearance
-Impaired memory, forgetting what happened during drinking episodes
-Depression
-Difficulty with thinking clearly, confusion
-Irritability
-Eating disorders, poor diet
-Sleeping disorders
-Anxiety
-Abdominal pain
-Nausea
-Vomiting
-Redness and enlarged capillaries in the face (red eyes, puffy face)
-Weakness and numbness in the arms or legs
Alcohol also affects other body parts. Liver disease -hepatic cirrhosis- may develop. The damaged liver becomes unable to remove toxins from the blood. Alcohol consumption during pregnancy can result in fetal alcohol syndrome.
Vitamins can not be absorbed properly. Deficiency of vitamin B12 (thiamine) causes loss of memory and abnormal co-ordination which can be fatal if it is left untreated. Also due to iron and folic acid deficiency anemia can occur.
Large doses of alcohol can raise blood pressure and cause heart problems.
Other health problems that may result from alcoholism are; cardiovascular damage, pancreatic disease, neurological disorders, clotting disorders, weak immunity to infections, low blood sugar, high blood fat content and sexual dysfunction.
Symptoms may vary from person to person. If a person has these symptoms, a physical examination is necessary. The physical examination includes Chem 20, a toxicology screen and liver function tests. Alcoholism may also change the test results of urine, uric acid, osmolality, serum magnesium, ketones, eosinophil count, ALP (alkaline phosphatase) isoenzyme.
Alcoholism is not a weakness or a sign of poor character. It is a dangerous disease that can be fatal. Alcoholism has a good recovery rate with treatment with the support of the loved ones.
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