All drugs exert their effects by entering the bloodstream and affecting different parts of the body. Our body reacts to alcohol in a predictable way that provides us with clues about alcohol consumption; let's follow the alcohol trail.
1. Alcohol enters the body through the mouth. Have you ever felt a burning sensation in your throat after drinking alcohol? Alcohol is a poison and irritant to our body. Alcohol irritates the lining of our esophagus causing a burning sensation. As alcohol continues throughout our body, it continues to irritate the lining of our internal organs.
2. Next, alcohol moves to the stomach. Have you ever drunk alcohol on an empty stomach? That unpleasant sensation is alcohol irritating your stomach lining. It is reduced if alcohol is consumed along with food. When the stomach digests food, the pyloric valve closes keeping the food in the stomach, blocking the intestinal passage. Thus, if alcohol is consumed with food, it slows down the rate of absorption causing your BAC to rise steadily rather than rapidly. Alcohol contains "empty calories" meaning it contains no nutrients, minerals or vitamins causing a person to feel full from alcohol and possibly gain weight without any nutritional value.
3. Once alcohol passes through the stomach, it goes directly into the intestines where it is completely absorbed into the bloodstream. This can take 10-30 minutes after consumption.
4. Immediately, the alcohol present in your blood is pumped throughout the body by your heart. It takes approx. one minute for the blood to circulate throughout the body. At this point, alcohol produces effects on all your organs including your brain as it circulates. This is also how BAC is determined. There are many factors that affect BAC such as how quickly alcohol is consumed, how much alcohol is consumed and gender. Women always have a higher BAC than a man of the same size because women have a higher body fat/water ratio, hormones and fewer enzymes in the stomach to metabolize alcohol.
5. Once alcohol reaches the brain, the psychological effects of alcohol begin to show. Alcohol is a depressant which means it slows down the central nervous system. For the brain this means that alcohol slows down its functioning. Moderate BACs (.02-.08) result in mild euphoria, relaxation, lowered inhibitions and a sense of well-being. High BACs (.08+) result in decreased judgment and self-control, compromised reasoning, disorientation, slurred speech and motor impairment. Coma or death can occur at higher doses (.25+).
6. Alcohol is eliminated from the body through metabolism by the liver. The liver can only process alcohol at a constant rate of about one drink per hour. Also, the liver can only perform one function at a time. The liver may not be able to perform its other functions if there is more than one drink of alcohol in the system. In addition, alcohol that has not yet been metabolized waits in the blood to irritate other organs until the liver has processed it.
Most people use the psychological effects of alcohol (the effect of alcohol on the brain) to tell when they have had too much to drink. However, alcohol impairs a person's judgment and perceptions. The body can provide solid clues about when someone has had too much to drink. What parts of your body can you pay attention to to help determine when you have had too much alcohol? Vomiting is one of the most obvious symptoms. It occurs when your body has been "poisoned" by too much alcohol.
However, only the alcohol in one's stomach is excreted. Alcohol in the blood will continue to affect your body, brain, and BAC.
Fatty Liver And Liver Disease
With moderate drinking, the liver can process alcohol quite safely. However, binge drinking puts an overload on the liver resulting in serious consequences. A fat-filled liver causes liver cells to become less efficient in performing their necessary functions, resulting in impairment of a person's nutritional health. Fatty liver is the first stage of liver damage in heavy drinkers, and interferes with the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to the liver cells. If the condition persists for a long time, liver cells will die, forming fibrous scar tissue (the second stage of liver damage or fibrosis). Some liver cells can regenerate with good nutrition and abstinence. However, in the final stage of deterioration, or cirrhosis, the damage to liver cells is the least reversible.Alcohol and Malnutrition
For moderate drinkers, alcohol does not suppress food intake and may actually increase appetite. Long-term alcohol consumption has the opposite effect. Alcohol causes euphoria, which reduces appetite, causing heavy drinkers to eat poorly and become malnourished. Alcohol is full of energy, packing 7 calories per gram. But like pure sugar or fat, calories do not contain nutrients. The more calories a person consumes in alcohol, the less likely he or she is to eat enough food to get adequate nutrients. To make matters worse, long-term alcohol consumption not only displaces calories from essential nutrients, but also interferes with the body's metabolism of nutrients, causing damage to the liver, digestive system, and nearly every bodily organ.Health effects of alcohol consumption
1. Arthritis - Increases the risk of gouty arthritis2. Cancer - Increases the risk of cancer in the liver, pancreas, rectum, breast, mouth, pharynx, larynx and esophagus
3. Fetal alcohol syndrome - Causes physical and behavioural abnormalities in the foetus
4. Cardiovascular disease - Heavy drinkers have increased blood pressure, blood lipids and increased risk of stroke and heart disease. Heart disease is generally less common in light to moderate drinkers.
5. Hyperglycemia - Increases blood sugar
6. Hypoglycemia- Lowers blood sugar, especially for people with diabetes
7. Kidney disease - Kidneys become enlarged, hormone functions altered and risk of kidney failure increased
8. Liver disease - Causes fatty liver, alcoholic hepatitis and cirrhosis
9. Malnutrition - Increases risk of protein-energy malnutrition, low intake of protein, calcium, iron, vitamin A, vitamin C, thiamine, vitamin B6 and riboflavin. Impairs absorption of calcium, phosphorus, vitamin D and zinc
10. Neurological disorders - Causes neuropathy and dementia; impairs balance and memory
11. Obesity- Increases energy expenditure, but is not the primary cause of obesity
12. Psychological disturbances- Causes depression, anxiety and insomnia
