The fact that excess alcohol consumption can cause numerous health problems is not new to us. But the question now is
"What are the health problems caused by excess alcohol consumption?"
Below are some health conditions linked to chronic heavy alcohol consumption.
1. Cancer
Consistent consumption of alcohol in excess can cause cancer.
Alcoholic beverages are classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as a Group 1 carcinogen (carcinogenic to humans).
"Habitual drinking increases the risk of cancer," says Jurgen Rehm, PhD, chairman of the University of Toronto's department of addiction policy and a senior scientist at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto.
Researchers believe the increased risk comes when the body (precisely the liver) converts alcohol into acetaldehyde, a potent carcinogen.
Researchers have shown excess alcohol consumption as a cause of mouth, pharynx (throat), larynx (voice box), esophagus, liver, breast, and colorectum cancer.
The risk is even higher in heavy drinkers who also smoke.
2. Cardiovascular disease
Heavy alcohol consumption increases your risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Heavy alcohol consumption makes platelets more likely to clump together into blood clots, which can lead to heart attack or stroke.
In 2005, researchers from Harvard found that binge drinking doubled the risk of death among people who initially survived a heart attack.
3. Anemia
Excess alcohol consumption can cause the number of oxygen-carrying red blood cells to be abnormally low.
This condition, known as anemia, can trigger a host of symptoms, including fatigue, shortness of breath, and lightheadedness.
NOTE: Sickle cell anemia is different.
4. Liver diseases
Alcohol is toxic to liver cells (hepatocytes). Heavy alcohol consumption can cause liver disease such as Hepatitis which eventually grows into liver cirrhosis.
5. Dementia
Heavy alcohol drinking can cause rapid shrinking of certain key regions in the brain, resulting in memory loss and other symptoms of dementia.
Though, as people get older their brains shrink, on average, at a rate of about 1.9% per decade. That's considered normal.
6. Seizures
Excess alcohol consumption can cause epilepsy and can trigger seizures even in people who don't have epilepsy.
It can also interfere with the action of the medications used to treat convulsions.
7. Infectious disease
Heavy alcohol drinking suppresses the immune system, giving infectious diseases the opportunity to prevail in the body.
People who drink heavily also are more likely to engage in risky sex. "Heavy drinking is associated with a three-fold increase in the risk of contracting a sexually transmitted disease," Rehmn says.
8. Gout
Gout is a painful condition caused by the formation of uric acid crystals in the joints.
Alcohol and other diets play a role in development of gout. Alcohol also seems to aggravate existing cases of Gout.
Although, in some cases Gout is hereditary.
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