ALCOHOLISM DISEASE - LEARN ABOUT ALCOHOLISM SYMPTOMS, STAGES AND HOW ARE ALCOHOLISM TREATED

Alcoholism

Alcoholism interventions should be carefully planned and developed by professional substance abuse counselors who are experienced in such procedures. The most essential purpose of an alcoholism intervention is to get the alcoholic to seek professional alcohol addiction treatment.

Alcohol. Friend or foe?

High levels of alcohol consumption can lead to physical illness and psychological and social distress. Alcohol has therefore always had an ambivalent position in society.

In moderation, it can be the oil that makes a social occasion go with a bit more flow or helps a shy person overcome their inhibitions.

Small, regular amounts of alcohol also seem to have a positive effect on the heart and circulation. But too much alcohol is often a recipe for disaster.

The increasing use of alcohol, along with other drugs of abuse, is a serious public health problem across all age ranges, but especially so in the young.

What is alcohol dependence?

Alcoholism, or alcohol dependence is a medical term with a deliberately more precise meaning than the problems that can occur, sometimes as one-offs, through an uncharacteristic binge.

In alcohol dependence a number of features come together in the behaviour of the person affected.

• Withdrawal symptoms such as anxiety and tremor develop after a short period without a drink, and are reduced by taking more alcohol.
• Tolerance develops, so it takes more alcohol to produce drunkenness.
• Drinking begins to take priority over other activities. It becomes a compulsion.

Often alcohol dependence remains undetected for years. Both the availability of alcohol and the way it is used (the social patterns) appear to be major factors in influencing the likelihood of a person becoming alcohol dependent.

There may also be a genetic component, because alcohol dependence clusters in some families. However, it’s hard to be sure that this is not because of learned behaviour.

Alcoholism Symptoms - First Stage

The following represents some of the alcoholism symptoms and behaviors in the first stage of alcoholism:

• Increasing tolerance;
• A conscious effort to seek out more drinking opportunities;
• Gross Drinking Behavior - more frequent drinking of greater amounts;
• Boasting and a "big shot" complex;
• An ability to drink great amounts of alcohol without any apparent impairment;
• Lack of recognition by the person that he or she is in the early stages of a progressive illness.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), each year in the United States, between 1,300 and 8,000 babies are born with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). Fetal alcohol syndrome is a combination of physical and mental birth defects that affects about 6% of the babies born to women who are alcohol abusers or alcoholics.

» Learn more: Alcoholism

Written by Dr Dan Rutherford, GP

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