Alcohol Information

Alcohol information abounds on the internet. Most of us have tried alcohol. Some of us drink it recreationally. Others among us drink to excess. And let’s not forget binge drinking. But when does drinking alcohol become alcoholism, when does it become detrimental to our health?

Alcohol – physical and mental health.

Alcohol effects be dangerous, if drunk in excess. It can affect our moods, our ability to think, react and remain in control of ourselves. At its worst, it’s addictive. Alcohol can cause immense problems to our physical wellbeing. It can affect the stomach, cardiac system, increase the chances of contracting some cancers, destroy or at least damage the liver and, in the worst cases, result in death.

Mentally it can and does impair our judgement. Alcohol alters our moods and it’s a fact that many suicides can be attributed to alcohol misuse or at least there’s alcohol involved in the actual act of suicide. In short, alcohol is more likely to depress you, to make you less capable of making rational, safe decisions, than it is of improving your mental capacity to think and act in a logical and judicious manner.

Alcohol Info

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Can help you make the right decision – do you or someone you know need help with an alcohol problems?

Alcohol abuse/ alcohol misuse.

Both mean the same and both mean this: using alcohol to the point that it’s causing adverse effects to your life, mentally and physically – not to mention emotionally. Alcohol abuse also has a direct impact on those around you, so the gravity of binge drinking or alcoholism can be devastating.

Binge drinking.

When you drink only on weekends, or maybe ‘x’ amount of times a month, but you drink to excess. Basically, drink excessively over a period of a few days – as opposed to day after day – to the point that you are intoxicated and unable to function correctly. Binge drinking can be just as harmful as alcoholism.

Alcoholism.

You could be classed as an alcoholic or alcohol dependent when you can no longer live without drinking. You experience withdrawal symptoms – sweating, craving alcohol, trembling, feel sick or unwell – and you simply can’t function without drinking on a daily basis. All the alcohol information and statistics point to dependency on alcohol when most or all of the aforementioned symptoms are present.

Alcohol Facts

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Excessive drinking can and does cause problems. Scarey, but true.

Warning signs for alcohol problems and or dependency.

There are several different signs that you may or may not have a problem with alcohol. These can include:

the need to drink in order to prevent feeling unwell
lose interest in other recreational pursuits
lose of interest in life in general
needing a drink on a regular basis i.e. everyday
you wish to stop drinking – but can’t
you find that you need to drink more and more in order to feel intoxicated
irrespective of the effects of alcohol (family, friends, work, health etc) you continue to drink and disregard the warning signs
drink alone, regularly

How much alcohol is safe?

This varies and chiefly depends upon whether you are male or female. Take a seven day cycle as the basis then as follows:

women – 14 units per week
women one unit = one glass of wine or half a pint of beer
men – 21 units per week
men one unit = to one pint of lager

Drinking socially, enjoying yourself and having fun socially are not in themselves a problem. However, all alcohol information points towards suffering from an alcohol problem when you drink to excess, feel generally unwell and start needing support (from alcohol) to help you ‘get through the day.

The simple answer is to be safe and sensible when it comes to alcohol. Drinking doesn’t have to mean to excess.