It is no surprise that there are many dangers of alcohol, especially alcohol abuse. What is surprising to many people is that it doesn’t take much alcohol to be abusing it, because the “healthy” levels of alcohol are actually quite low. For women, moderate drinking is just one alcoholic drink per day, and for men, it is two. For most, it is completely normal to have two, three, or even more drinks in one sitting, and every time you do this you are abusing alcohol. If you are a serious drinker or alcoholic, the dangers of alcohol quickly escalate to life-threatening consequences. The good news is that if your alcoholism is treated, many conditions can be reversed. Unfortunately, many people don’t get the help they need, and they get very sick or die as a consequence of over-consuming alcohol.

The Dangers of Alcohol You Need to Know

There are so many negative side effects of drinking that it is a wonder that alcohol is still even legal. Not only is it legal, but completely accepted in society as a normal part of any celebration, dinner, date, or event. Many people can sit back and relax with ONLY the moderate amount of alcohol that is suggested to stay healthy, but for the people who cannot, there are serious consequences.

Alcohol affects your heart. Heavy drinking makes you more prone to developing heart disease and cardiomyopathy. It can also raise your blood pressure to dangerous levels. Anything that messes with your heart to this degree puts you at a greater risk for stroke, sudden death, and serious heart problems that restrict you from living a normal life.

Anxiety and depression are influenced by alcohol intake. One of the dangers of alcohol includes the tremendous effect it has on your brain. If you suffer from anxiety or depression, alcohol can make you feel better temporarily, but when you stop drinking, the condition will come back tenfold. This causes you to drink more, and a vicious cycle is born. Aside from that, alcohol can cause memory loss, and in heavy use, it will lead to wet brain, and irreparable condition.

Your liver suffers from excessive alcohol use. Your liver is an incredibly important organ because it breaks down every substance you put into your body to separate it and send it to the right places. When excess alcohol is dumped on the liver, it makes it slow down the rest of it’s work, and it also makes the liver go into overdrive. The toxins introduced by alcohol collect in your liver and can cause fatty liver, and even liver scarring and disease which often requires a transplant, otherwise leading to death.

Alcohol rips apart your stomach. Alcohol is terrible for your entire gastrointestinal tract. From your stomach to your esophagus, to colon health, alcohol really damages your entire system. Think about the last time you got sick from drinking, or maybe you experience diarrhea and were unable to eat. This is because alcohol messes with the lining of your stomach, and is known to cause cancer throughout the entire gastrointestinal tract. Often, people who drink in excess forgo eating for days, leading to extreme vitamin and mineral depletion.

Your appearance will take a turn for the worse. Alcohol doesn’t only affect what you can’t see. While it is ripping you apart from the inside out, at the same time it is making your skin appear dull and dehydrated. Your nails will break and crack, and your hair may begin to fall out and even turn gray from the lack of nutrients. If liver disease is present from alcohol abuse, you may even begin to have a yellow hue and a generally unhealthy appearance.

No matter how you cut it, the dangers of alcohol are so serious that it never pays off to drink more than one or two drinks a week – if that. If you have a problem with alcohol, make sure to get professional help as soon as possible, before any of the negative health effects become permanent.