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Mesa Stamm
11/16/12
English Composition
Alcoholism is a terrible disease that can lead to multiple different problems, all of which
can be helped. Alcoholism is when you have signs of physical addiction to alcohol and continue
to drink, despite problems with physical health, mental health, and social, family, or job
responsibilities.(Pub med health 1) This can become a huge disease among a range of different
people, and can even control one’s life. Many things come with alcoholism, such as addiction,
the negative side effects, the legality of it, and of course, where to get help. The journey of
discovering how alcoholism works starts with the biggest question, what causes alcoholism?
Alcoholism is influenced by genetic, psychological, social and environmental factors that
have an impact on how it affects your body and behavior. (mayo clinic 2) Becoming an alcoholic
happens gradually, depending on the person involved. If drinking is a regular thing for
someone, then the alcohol can start to disrupt a chemical in your brain called GammaAminobutyric acid. This chemical controls many serious functions, such as impulsiveness and
the nervous system. Dopamine also contributes to the addiction of alcohol. This is because
while drinking, dopamine levels are raised, which can make the experience of drinking more
satisfying. Therefore, the body craves alcohol to feel good. Genes, stress, depression, etc. can
also contribute to the addiction of alcohol. It is quite easy to become an alcoholic, especially if
one is being a problem drinker.
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A problem drinker has many problems that can lead to becoming an alcoholic.
Symptoms of a problem drinker are drinking to get drunk, drinking to deal with problems, or
blacking out while drinking. Problem drinkers are much different than social drinkers, which is
the normal drinking level. Social drinking includes drinking slowly, responsibly, and obeying the
laws. Most people that are social drinkers do not develop a drinking problem. But when they
do, it can lead to serious side effects.
Side effects from drinking can be mild to fatal. Alcohol affects your body in many ways
causing health problems. Some of these problems include liver, heart, and kidney problems.
The liver is a very important part of the body. It is the second largest organ in your body. It
removes harmful substances in your body, such as alcohol. But if you are drinking faster than
the liver can process it out, then you will quickly destroy it. This can cause serious liver related
diseases, including liver failure. (Liver foundation 3).
Heart problems can also occur from serious drinking. There are many myths regarding
drinking red wine or beer providing one with protection against heart disease. This is not
necessarily true. The American Heart Association advises people to not start drinking for better
heart health. (Cleveland Clinic 4) Kidneys also have the same type of functioning system as the
liver. Not only does alcohol affect your body, but it also takes its toll on your social life.
Having a social life is very important. Everyone enjoys having friends that they can talk
to and hang out with. When alcohol is thrown into the mix though, it can threaten the social life
of many people. Lots of alcoholics are selfish and tend to put alcohol first, instead of their
friends. Mood swings are very common among alcoholics as well, which can cause them to
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confuse their loved ones. One minute they are happy and extremely lovey-dovey, and the next
minute they can go off on a rant about something very minuscule. This hurts their loved ones
because they are confused and unsure about what mood the alcoholic will be in. Eventually,
when it is hard to deal with everything, an alcoholic will withdraw themselves from everyone as
a whole. This is dangerous, because then they are left with the disease by themselves. Alcohol
is a sneaky substance, but sticking to the legal limit can help prevent alcoholism.
What is the legal limit of alcohol consumption? It is all different throughout different
countries. In the U.S. the legal limit for a twenty one year old who is legal to drink, is 0.08. This
is the limit throughout all fifty states of the U.S. This is the highest and most common drinking
limit there is throughout the world. Other countries such as Europe have different drinking
standards though. The legal drinking age in Europe varies between non-existent and 18. This
depends on the alcoholic beverage, and region. The reasoning behind this law is that the people
of Europe believe giving kids the freedom to drink when their younger will teach them
responsibility with alcohol. Regardless of the drinking laws across the world, lots of people
drink, therefore there are many alcoholics. And there is always help around the corner.
First of all, you cannot help and alcoholic if they are not willing to help themselves. It is
hard to force someone into treatment if they aren’t ready or not willing. There are many
resources that can help an alcoholic though. An alcoholic anonymous is a national group that
helps alcoholics recover by including other alcoholics and telling stories and experiences. It
helps open people up and realize what is important in life. Another group that helps with
sobriety is Al-Anon. Al-Anon includes family members to help bring one to an understanding
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about staying sober. With the same concept as AA, Al-Anon members share their experiences,
strength and hope in order to solve their common problems. (Wikipedia 5)
Looking for help through friends and family can also be good support. It is important to
keep an open mind, and not judge a loved one that needs help. They need all the support they
can get without feeling insecure or judged. Keep an open heart and don’t force them, but keep
the offer open that you want to help. (Digits 6) Alcoholism is a very sensitive subject, and very
serious.
Alcoholism can obviously take a serious toll on a person. Their life, mind and body are all
affected. Bad and serious diseases can take over the body if one drinks too much, which can be
fatal. The mind goes through extreme mood swings and confusion. Eventually, all of this can
make one’s life fall to pieces. Whether they are getting fired from their job, loosing friends, or
insulting loved ones, alcohol can cause rarely any good.
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Works Cited page
1. Board, A.D.A.M. Editorial. "Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse." Alcoholism and Alcohol
Abuse. U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2012.
<http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001940/>.
2. Staff, Mayo Clinic. "Definition." Mayo Clinic. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education
and Research, 09 Aug. 2012. Web. 14 Nov. 2012.
<http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/alcoholism/DS00340>.
3. "Alcohol-Related Liver Disease." Alcohol-Induced Liver Disease. American Liver
Foundation, 4 Oct. 2011. Web. 14 Nov. 2012.
4. "Heart and Vascular Health and Prevention." Alcohol and Your Heart. Cleveland Clinic,
June 2006. Web. 14 Nov. 2012.
<http://my.clevelandclinic.org/heart/disorders/alcoholandheartdisease.aspx>.
5. "Alateen." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 10 Oct. 2012. Web. 20 Nov. 2012.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Anon/Alateen>.
6. Digits. "How to Help an Alcoholic Stop Drinking." - Digits's Column on Newsvine.
Newsvine, 8 Mar. 2008. Web. 15 Nov. 2012.
<http://digits.newsvine.com/_news/2008/03/08/1352460-how-to-help-an-alcoholic-stopdrinking>.