Alcoholism Disease And Alcoholism Physical Symptoms
Alcoholism disease and alcoholism physical symptoms should be
understood if there's concern about alcohol abuse. Alcoholism
disease can be defined as a drug addiction where alcohol
consumption is at a level that interferes with the person's
physical and mental health and negatively impacts family, social
or work responsibilities.
Because alcohol consumption can involve many organs in the body,
long-term heavy drinking puts a person at risk for developing
serious health conditions and illnesses. While each of the
health conditions listed below can exist for reasons unrelated
to alcoholism disease, certain conditions and alcoholism
physical symptoms may be indications that alcohol abuse exists
and is affecting the health of the person. Here are examples of
health conditions and related alcoholism physical symptoms that
may indicate alcoholism disease: * Liver Inflammation -
alcoholism physical symptoms for liver inflammation include
abnormal yellowing of the skin, eyeballs and urine, fever and
abdominal pain. Since alcohol destroys liver cells and the
ability of the liver to regenerate new cells, long term abuse of
alcohol can lead to cirrhosis of the liver. * Cirrhosis of the
Liver - symptoms of cirrhosis or scarring of the liver tissue
can be tiredness or even exhaustion, nausea, loss of sex drive
and appetite loss leading to weight loss.
* Malnutrition - a common alcoholism physical symptom is
malnutrition. While the symptoms will vary with the specific
malnutrition-related disorder, general symptoms include
dizziness, tireness, unexplained weight loss and reduced immune
system function. * High Blood Pressure - high blood pressure
symptoms include dizziness, headache, blurred vision and nausea.
And the American Heart Association advises that excessive
alcohol consumption can raise levels of triglycerides in the
blood and related increased risk of heart attacks and strokes. *
Pancreaitis - long term heavy drinking can result in the
development of inflammation of the pancreas which is called
'pancreatitis'. The pancreas are needed for food digestion, and
pancreaitis symptoms include severe abdominal pain and weight
loss. * Erectile Dysfunction - alcoholism disease will likely
affect a man in the bedroom. Heavy drinking can cause sexual
dysfunction, meaning the man may have difficulty getting an
erection. And the likelihood of alcohol-related erectile
dysfunction occurring increases as a man gets older. * Insomnia
- the connection between sleep problems and disturbances and
alcohol abuse has been proven by numerous studies. Alcohol in
the body can interfere with getting to sleep and with enjoying
deep, restful sleep. In fact, insomnia may continue for weeks or
months after alcohol abstinance.
Additional long term alcoholism disease health effects include
damage to the brain, nerve damage, bleeding in the esophagus and
depression. Alcohol consumption can increase the breast cancer
risk in women undergoing hormone replacement therapy, according
to the National Cancer Institute. Alcoholic beverages are
considered cancer-causing by the US Department of Health and
Human Services.
Important note - all of the conditions listed above may be due
to reasons other than alcoholism disease and must not be
considered conditions that should be self-diagnosed. Most of
these conditions can be life-threatening and should only be
diagnosed by qualified health care professionals.
Besides alcoholism physical symptoms, learn more about the
alcoholism warning signs, alcoholism stages and proven resources
available online that can help. It is never too late to begin
recovery from alcoholism disease and alcohol addiction.
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