The Stages of Alcohol's Effects on the Body

For those who drink alcohol excessively, you may bring devastating repercussions onto your body. Alcohol impacts almost every aspect of the human body, including major organ functioning, mental health through brain functioning, and physical appearance. Every person has a different tolerance for alcohol, but the results of drinking are similar for all.

Cerebral Cortex

• Alcohol first affects the brain by lowering inhibitions, which can affect the judgment of the person drinking. It damages their ability to perform a task accurately and consistently and slows their reaction time-- all good reasons why a drunk person is dangerous behind the wheel of a car. You can develop r memory loss if you consume excessive alcohol; you can even suffer blackouts. Alcohol alters your emotional state and can make the drinker irritable, angry, sad or manic. Long-term drinking can lead to the shrinking of brain cells.

Heart

• The heart is immediately affected by drinking. With binge drinking, the heartbeat can speed up, slow down, become erratic or even cause irregularity of the heart, which is called arrhythmia. Long-term drinking weakens the heart muscle and can lead to heart disease, heart attack, stroke, high blood pressure or death. It also creates blood flow shortages because the heart cannot pump effectively, leading to organ and tissue damage.

Circulatory System

• In the circulatory system, alcohol can temporarily increase blood pressure or cause rapid heartbeat. Another change to the body is the dilation of the peripheral blood vessels, which causes the body to lose heat while making the drinker feel warm. Over time,alcohol weakens the circulatory system and can cause problems with walking and mobility.

Liver

• The liver is essential to health because it breaks down and eliminates toxins. The body recognizes alcohol as a toxin, and the liver maximize its capacity by breaking down alcohol. Over time, the liver can become fatty because of all this extra work, which can lead to inflammation and make the liver more vulnerable to disease. Chronic drinking also inhibits the liver's ability to receive enough blood.