Alcohol

The subject of alcohol is quite a controversial one, especially in religious matters. While some believe you are going straight to hell for its consumption, others say hell won’t freeze over if you take a little portion while some others think you can take as much as you want as long as you don’t walk on your head or profess that London is the capital of Nigeria.

Let’s examine alcohol outside the context of Sin and talk about its effects, briefly.

According to Wikipedia, Alcohol is a depressant which in low doses causes euphoria, reduced anxiety, and sociability and in higher doses causes intoxication (drunkenness), stupor and unconsciousness. For a drink to be termed alcoholic, it must have at least 3% alcohol by Volume (ABV). There are three broad classifications of alcoholic drinks. We have beers, Wines and Spirits. The typical range is from 3% to 40% ABV. There are further classifications though. Cider, Mead, Sake, etc are examples.

Beer is a type of alcoholic beverage obtained from the fermentation of grains, specifically Barley. It contains other ingredients but it derives it characteristically bitter flavour from Hops, a medicinal herb with quite some benefits and flavour. According to studies, Beer is the most consumed alcoholic beverage in the World. Distilled and unsweetened alcoholic drinks with at least 20% ABV are referred to as Spirits. Whiskey and Vodka, the common ones possess about 40% ABV.

Going by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), alcoholic drinks are termed as a Group 1 carcinogen. Still wondering why Cancer is on the rise? Breast, Larynx, Liver, Oesophagus, Colorectal, pancreatic, Oral Cavity Cancers have been linked to the consumption of alcohol. One thing you might not know is that alcohol in carbonated drinks is absorbed faster than alcohol in non-carbonated drinks and mixing the two can intoxicate faster.

There are long and short term effects of alcohol consumption and the different concentrations of alcohol in the human body have different effects on a person. These effects are determined by the amount of consumed alcohol, ABV, Body size, blood volume, gender, food eaten, drugs taken, timespan of consumption and many other factors.

Blood Alcohol Concentration is expressed as the weight of alcohol, in grams, in 100 millilitres of blood, or 210 litres of breath. BAC can be measured by breath, blood, or urine tests. Drinking enough to cause a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of 0.03%-0.12% typically causes an overall improvement in mood and possible euphoria, increased self-confidence and sociability, decreased anxiety, and fine muscle coordination. A BAC of 0.09% to 0.25% causes lethargy, sedation, balance problems and blurred vision. A BAC from 0.18% to 0.30% causes profound confusion, impaired speech (e.g., slurred speech), staggering, dizziness and vomiting. A BAC from 0.25% to 0.40% causes stupor, unconsciousness, anterograde amnesia, vomiting (death may occur due to inhalation of vomit (pulmonary aspiration) while unconscious) and respiratory depression (potentially life-threatening). A BAC from 0.35% to 0.80% causes a coma (unconsciousness), life-threatening respiratory depression and possibly fatal alcohol poisoning. Owing to this, there are laws in different countries to put alcohol consumption in check especially when driving or flying, as the case may be.

Drinking small quantities of alcohol (less than one drink in women and two in men per day) is associated with a decreased risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes mellitus, and early death. Drinking more than this amount, however, increases the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, atrial fibrillation, and stroke.

Some folks advocate the consumption of wine and misquote a part of the Bible to justify the action. But I tell you, no professional medical association recommends that people who are non-drinkers should start drinking wine.

As touching the long term effects, alcohol, when consumed with Tobacco acts as a solvent which gives room for the entrance of harmful chemicals and carcinogens into the cells of the body, particularly, the cells lining the digestive tracts.

Alcohol also slows these cells' healing ability to repair the damage to their DNA caused by the harmful chemicals in tobacco, through this, cancerous growth might be favoured.

Alcoholic drinks contain food energy alongside Carbohydrates, especially in Beers. Excessive daily calorie intake of this contributes to an increase in body weight and gives rise to Visceral Obesity or “one pack”

Because of the differing levels of hormones and enzymes in the body, women tend to get higher BAC than men on consuming alcohol. In lay terms, women get “high” faster than men. For people of the same weight, even the same gender, individuals with a lower percentage of body fat will have lower BAC than those with a higher percentage of body fat.

Because alcohol is regarded as a drug, there exists a somewhat drug-drug interaction when an over-the-counter drug is taken with alcohol and could come with its adverse effects. And since the liver is responsible for metabolizing these, excessive consumption could result in a disease over time.

Value your health. Be Wise

References

Wikipedia

Rev. James E. McDonald, C.S.C., Centre for Student Well-Being University of Notre Dame

About the Author

Oluwaseun R. Olusegun is a Clinical Nutrionist with a knack for knowledge. She is a Social Entrepreneur, a Public Health and Behavioural Change Advocate. By the side, she is a content creator and compere. She is currently the performance Management Specialist for Nirmala Chellarams Centre for Entrepreneurship Skills. She can be reached via olusegunseun20@gmail.com