Alcohol Addiction

Where does one draw the line between being a social drinker and having an alcohol addiction?

For many people, the lines aren’t always so clear, especially when everyone around them seems to be binge drinking, drinking on a daily basis or glamorizing alcohol use.

Social drinking can easily progress into a psychological, or even physical, dependence over time, as it becomes habitually ingrained in our behavioral patterns.

Suddenly, we drink to be more interesting, drink to make others more interesting, drink for courage in social settings, drink to give ourselves a boost of energy, or drink to cover up negative feelings like pain, depression or anxiety.

Prior to an addiction to alcohol, there is generally a prolonged time period when the social drinker finds that he or she is drinking more frequently, experiencing more adverse effects and is slightly losing control.

Alcohol abusers start showing signs like drinking and driving, participating in dangerous activities while under the influence, continuing to drink even when problems with friends or family happen as a result of alcohol consumption and getting into physical fights. Drinking alcohol begins to interfere with not only social relations, but also obligations at work and school, and in some cases, drinking may even land an individual in legal trouble. These are early warning signs that alcohol use is crossing over into alcohol abuse.

The next stage is alcohol addiction, or as it is sometimes called, alcoholism or alcohol dependency.

Now the drinker loses all control and the physiological/psychological effects of alcohol surface. Drinkers find that they’re consuming more than they originally intended to, find that they can’t stop or cut back drinking, and find that they need to drink more to get drunk. They may have trouble sleeping, have shaky hands, sweating, nauseousness, nervousness or the feeling of bugs crawling all over them. They likely drink or take medication to avoid hangovers and continue drinking alcohol to cover up sadness, anger or anxiety. The binge drinking bouts become progressively longer and the individual often loses interest in all other hobbies in favor of drinking.

Full story at Cool Kids Stuff

See also;

• What is alcoholism?
• Alcohol & Medication Interactions
• Alcohol intervention may help.
• Subscribe by e-Mail to Alcohol Self-help News

Hepatitis C

The highest rates of hepatitis C are in addicts and alcoholics.

Hepatitis C is a chronic liver disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV). Because many people do not have symptoms when they are infected, it is important for those at risk to take action to avoid infecting others.

Background

Although HCV has existed for a long time, it was only identified in 1989. HCV causes inflammation of the liver, which can progress to cirrhosis (extensive scarring that can affect the normal function of the liver).

Some people recover from their infection, but 75-85% progress to the chronic (carrier) state. People with chronic hepatitis C may not have symptoms for decades. Approximately 35% of those who have chronic hepatitis C, do not know that they are infected.

Other topics in this article are;

• Health Risks of Hepatitis C
• The Health Effects of Hepatitis C
• Minimizing Your Risk

Full story at; Health Canada

See also;

• Hepatitis B
• ABC’s of Recovery
• Abstinence from Heroin Addiction Works
• Subscribe by e-Mail to Alcohol Self-help News

Hepatitis B

Some of the highest rates of hepatitis B are in alcoholics and addicts.

Hepatitis B is a liver disease caused by the hepatitis B virus. The virus is carried in blood and body fluids. It can lead to serious liver damage, life-long infection, liver cancer, liver failure and even death. Fortunately, there is a vaccine that can protect you against hepatitis B.

Background

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is one of a group of viruses that attacks the liver. Six hepatitis viruses have been identified but three - known as A, B, and C - cause about 90% of the acute hepatitis cases in Canada.

HBV is the most common form of hepatitis virus in the world. It is easily transmitted and is significantly more infective than HIV. HBV is primarily transmitted from one person to another through blood or other body fluids, such as vaginal secretions and semen. It is usually spread through sexual contact or by sharing contaminated needles or other drug equipment. It can also be transmitted from mother to child during pregnancy and birth.

The majority of people infected with HBV do not have noticeable symptoms and may unknowingly be experiencing liver damage and infecting others. That is why it is important for those most at risk to be vaccinated against the virus and avoid risky behaviour.

Topics in the linked article include;

• Symptoms of HBV
• Risks of Hepatitis B Exposure
• The Health Effects of Hepatitis B
• Minimizing Your Risk

Full story at; Health Canada

See also;

• 25% of US Teenage Girls Have Sexually Transmitted Disease
• Where do Kids Get Pills
• Subscribe by e-Mail to Alcohol Self-help News

Hospitality Workers Biggest Drinkers

Hospitality Workers Have High Rates of Alcohol Problems

Hospitality workers have the highest rate of serious alcohol problems among U.S. industries, with 15 percent of workers in the federally defined “leisure, hospitality and arts” market segment suffering from alcohol-related problems, a new study finds.

The report, “Workplace Screening & Brief Intervention: What Employers Can and Should Do About Excessive Alcohol Use” — issued by Ensuring Solutions to Alcohol Problems, a research center at the George Washington University Medical Center — found the highest level of serious alcohol problems in the hospitality, construction, and wholesale industries.

“Most employees represented in these numbers are not dependent on alcohol,” said Eric Goplerud, Ph.D., director of Ensuring Solutions. “But they do use alcohol in ways that lead to short-term safety problems and long-term health consequences.”

Alcohol problems were significantly worse among male workers than female workers, researchers found: for example, male construction workers were 50 percent more likely to have alcohol-related problems than women in similar jobs, while men in wholesaling jobs were three times more likely to be problem drinkers than their female counterparts. Alcohol problems also were more common among younger workers (ages 18 to 25) than older workers.

The report recommended that more primary-care doctors, workplace wellness programs, and employee-assistance programs begin screening and brief intervention (SBI) for alcohol problems among workers, which Goplerud called a “proven approach that promises to effectively reduce workplace alcohol problems.”

“The impact of alcohol problems in the workplace is a tremendous hidden challenge, in part because very few people with an alcohol problem are ever identified,” said Andrew Webber, president and CEO of the National Business Coalition on Health. “In the past, employers have led the way to doing more for people with chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease. It’s time for American industry to do the same for people with alcohol problems.”

The findings were based on an analysis of two major government surveys: the National Survey on Drug Use and Health and the National Comorbidity Study.

From; Join Together Online

See also;

• ABC’s of Recovery
• What is alcoholism?

What is alcoholism?

 

Alcoholism is a primary, chronic, progressive disorder that has a predictable course; with inherited, physical, psychological and environmental risk factors; and is fatal if not treated and its progress arrested.

A Disease of the Brain

Alcoholism is also a brain disease because alcohol changes the brain—it changes its structure, how it works and how it thinks. These brain changes can be long lasting, and lead to the harmful behaviors seen in people who are alcoholic.

Primary

Alcoholism is not the result of another disorder but it is a causative factor in other disorders.

Chronic

Alcoholism is a chronic condition that continues over a long time, progresses consistently or intermittently, and can be managed.

Progressive and Predictable

As an addictive drug, alcohol use over time can lead to craving and impaired control. Even if the decision to drink is voluntary at first, what happens after someone takes a drink depends to a large extent on an individual’s genetic vulnerability to alcoholism, and how one’s body and mind react to alcohol.

A patient may not experience many symptoms until alcoholism has advanced. Some patients may relapse more frequently than others.

Each person processes alcohol in a unique way.

Women’s bodies don’t tolerate alcohol as well as men’s. Because of their physiology, they develop alcohol-related medical problems more rapidly than men. Women also develop brain atrophy, cognitive deficits, a higher depression index, alcoholic heart problems, myopathy of skeletal muscle, and alcoholic liver disease faster than men.

Although a single gene or set of genes has not been found that causes alcoholism, the risk for developing alcoholism is estimated to be between 50 to 60 percent inherited.

Many Chinese and Japanese people have a genetic predisposition to alcohol that causes physically unpleasant reactions so strong that they prefer not to drink. They experience early and acute headache, nausea, flushing & rapid heartbeat.

Research has shown that sons of alcoholic fathers very often have a much greater tolerance for alcohol. Their brain chemistry actually encourages heavier drinking.

People use alcohol to feel good, at least initially, and many believe modern society encourages drinking.

Fatal if not Arrested

Alcoholics die, on average, about 12 years sooner than non-alcoholics. This figure does not include suicide, car wrecks, homicide and other accidental death. Nor does it take into account the mixing of drugs that often have a multiplier and/or additive effect.

Treatment

Treatment for alcoholism includes elements of medicine, psychology and sometimes medications. The primary aim is restoration and maintenance of physical and psychological health and well being through abstinence from alcohol. In this context treatment is both harm reduction and harm prevention.

By Robin Foote; BA (Welfare), NCAC, RA. www.BriefTSF.com