For more than a few years the alcohol addiction and alcohol abuse research literature has demonstrated the fact that alcohol addiction and serious health problems are highly correlated. For example, a U.S. research project undertaken in 2005 revealed that alcoholism and alcohol abuse cost the U.S. around $220 billion every year. It may be highlighted that these alcohol-related costs were substantially more than the cost connected with cancer ($196 billion) or with obesity ($133 billion).
While this information is important, it is noteworthy to emphasize the interconnection that is present between all three of these health conditions. Stated another way, alcohol addiction and chronic alcohol abuse are also highly correlated with obesity and with cancer.
From a slightly different perspective, medical research has shown that alcoholism and chronic alcohol abuse significantly increase a person's risk for different kinds of cancer such as cancer of the colon, esophagus, throat, liver, kidneys, rectum, and cancer of the voice box (larynx). What is more, repeated heavy drinking can also lead to deformity of the fetus during pregnancy and immune system difficulties.
In a similar manner, the longer a person drinks in a hazardous and excessive manner the more likely it is that his or her organs will be adversely affected. As a case in point, heavy, long term drinking is especially dangerous to the liver because of the livers primary importance in processing the alcohol that has been consumed. In fact, a large amount of alcohol kills liver cells and inhibits the ability of the liver to regenerate. The upshot of this is a progressive inflammatory disease of the liver that can eventually result in cirrhosis of the liver, a serious and potentially lethal disease.
Long term, heavy drinking not only can result in a serious liver disease such as cirrhosis of the liver, but it can also result in damage to the drinkers brain and to his or her heart. When the problem drinker reaches this point, the physical damage may be so severe that it can result in critical health problems or premature death.
It is therefore essential to know how to identify the various signs and symptoms of alcoholism so that the problem drinker can be given the opportunity to seek the professional alcohol rehab he or she requires.
It is fortunate indeed that medical research is constantly seeking and discovering new and important alcohol-related information. For instance, for approximately the past decade, sophisticated brain-imaging scanning devices have revealed that chronic, excessive drinking transforms the brains inner workings so extensively that the resulting brain disease can last months, years, or perhaps as long as the drinker lives.
Stated another way, scientific research has demonstrated that individuals who have been drinking in an excessive and hazardous manner for a relatively long period of time significantly increase their risk for serious brain damage. Damage of this type can be directly associated with serious liver disease or to the alcohols effects on the individuals brain or can be indirectly linked to a person's poor overall health.
As a final instance of diverse health problems that are highly associated with alcohol addiction, it needs to be underscored that careless, heavy drinking can lead to a serious medical problem known as erosive gastritis. Erosive gastritis is a dangerous medical condition that reduces the absorption of essential nutrients and minerals and vitamins. Once a person has this disease, organ malfunctioning can result and in turn lead to a number of critical neurological and mental disorders such as Wernicke's Encephalopathy, Korsakoff's syndrome, memory loss, and malnutrition.
It is clear that continued, abusive drinking is either directly or indirectly associated with numerous medical difficulties that can and do lead to damaging illnesses and diseases and all too frequently, to an early death. It is also apparent that this information and these facts need to be highlighted and taught to every individual in our society so that a substantial number of people will be able to stay away from careless and unhealthy drinking while other people who currently have a drinking problem can obtain the professional rehabilitation they need.
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