Alcohol

“That’s the problem with drinking, I thought, as I poured myself a drink. If something
bad happens you drink in an attempt to forget; if something good happens you drink in
order to celebrate; and if nothing happens you drink to make something
happen.” ― Charles Bukowski
There’s nothing wrong with drinking alcohol, providing you consume it in moderation.
Mental and physical health problems arise when you drink too many alcoholic beverages
and become intoxicated, or you make excessive drinking a habit.  This habit can
transform you from a moderate drinker into a problem drinker, abuser of alcohol, or an
alcoholic.

Why do people drink alcohol? In western culture, we drink alcohol in various social
settings because, in small quantities, it creates a mental state of euphoria and lowers
inhibitions, providing us with false confidence to engage in activities we would not
normally carry out. We consume alcohol in many situations, watching a baseball game
at a stadium, eating dinner at a restaurant, celebrating a wedding, relaxing on the deck
with family and friends in the sunshine. There are other reasons why we drink alcohol:
to relax, to escape from stress, to cope with anxiety or depression, to get high, to feel
comfortable in a stressful situation, to escape their problems, to comfort themselves in
times of grief or loneliness, to stop cravings, to prevent alcohol withdrawal.
What are the effects of alcohol? It is a depressant that alters the central nervous
system (brain and spinal cord). When a person drinks, the alcohol is absorbed into the
bloodstream and metabolized by the liver. Potential problems arise when a person
drinks too many alcoholic beverages and becomes intoxicated. The liver is unable to
metabolize the alcohol fast enough, resulting in intoxication. Intoxication impairs
memory and judgement and alters mood and behaviour.
To avoid intoxication and making drinking habitual, you should drink
alcohol in moderation. According to the Centre of Addiction and Mental Health in
Canada, a person should follow these low risk alcohol consumption guidelines: A man
should not drink more than 5 alcoholic beverages in a single sitting, nor should he drink
more than 15 alcoholic beverages in a week. A woman should not drink more than 3
alcoholic beverages in a single sitting or 10 alcoholic beverages in a week. Both men and
women should also avoid drinking alcohol every day.
If you are a man who drinks more than five at one time or a woman who drinks more
than three, you are probably going to end up intoxicated.

Intoxication
It is caused by drinking too many alcoholic beverages at a single sitting. You will have
difficulty remembering. You will slur your speech and have an unsteady walk. You might
show inappropriate behaviour, such as become quarrelsome or angry. If you are severely
intoxicated, you will expressive confusion and black out. If you don’t stop drinking,
you’ll suffer from alcohol poisoning, which can result in death.
How quickly you become intoxicated will depend on several factors:

 Age, sex, weight

 Susceptibility to alcohol
 Types of food and amount of food in your stomach
 Prescription drugs you are taking
 Illegal drugs you are taking\
 How often you drink
 Whether you’re tired or sick

Source: https://writingcreativenonfiction.wordpress.com/2014/04/03/the-affects-of-alcohol-on-your-
health-and-well-being/