Author: Alex Thompson

Alcohol use: Weighing risks and benefits

Individuals in the young adult subtype make up 31% of people addicted to alcohol in the U.S. They drink less frequently than the other subtypes, but when they do drink, they’re likely to overdo it and binge. They typically come from families with low rates of alcoholism. Alcohol use disorder has been identified as something that happens when a person drinks so much or so often that it changes the chemical makeup of their brain. In the United States, people younger than age 21 are not legally able to drink alcohol. For example, any amount of drinking increases the risk of breast cancer and colorectal cancer.

“The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders” provides diagnostic criteria for identifying alcohol use disorder. For a person to be diagnosed with the condition, three of the following factors must have been present for at least twelve months. Daily drinking can have serious consequences for a person’s health, both in the short- and long-term. Many of the effects of drinking every day can be reversed through early intervention.

Can People With Alcohol Use Disorder Recover?

Screening tests are available to help you assess your drinking habits and relationship with alcohol. And the same goes for driving or if you need to be alert and able to react to changing situations. Heavy drinking also has been linked to intentional injuries, such as suicide, as well as accidental injury and death.

Consuming large amounts of alcohol over a long period is most likely to result in alcohol use disorder. However, the time it takes for the condition to develop is highly individual. A person with AUD can lose control over the amount of alcohol they consume and continue to drink despite any adverse health, social or occupational consequences.

When consuming alcohol, dopamine levels are raised just as high as they would with other drugs. The brain categorizes this activity in the same way that a gratifying reward would be. When it comes to alcohol, if you don’t drink, don’t start for health reasons. A  causal relationship has been established between harmful drinking and incidence or outcomes of infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and HIV. Heavy regular drinking can seriously affect a person’s ability to coordinate their muscles and speak properly.

You might be prescribed medication to help with your condition in severe cases. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), which equips you with the tools to turn negative habits into positive ones, is often used. Sign up for free and stay up to date on research advancements, health tips, current health topics, and expertise on managing health.

Treatment Options for Alcohol Addiction

Roughly 80% are from families that struggle with multigenerational alcoholism. During pregnancy, drinking may cause the unborn baby to have brain damage and other problems. Heavy drinking also may result in alcohol withdrawal symptoms. Find out how this disease affects your body and brain, why people become addicted to…

1. Like many other substance use disorders, alcohol use disorder is a chronic and sometimes relapsing condition that reflects changes in the brain.
2. Sign up for free and stay up to date on research advancements, health tips, current health topics, and expertise on managing health.
3. While cirrhosis scars from excessive drinking are irreversible, quitting alcohol and leading a healthier lifestyle can help your liver heal from alcohol-related liver disease.
4. People with an alcohol use disorder continue to use alcohol despite its many negative effects.

Carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT) is a blood test that helps detect heavy alcohol consumption. Binge drinking refers to drinking more than five drinks on a single occasion, although they may not drink every day. People who have AUD may continue to use alcohol even though they know it is causing social, health, economic, and possibly even legal problems in their life. Sometimes, alcoholics consume too much alcohol that they black out.

AUD includes alcohol dependence, which professionals used to consider separate from addiction. Medications can make detoxification safe while avoiding the worst symptoms of withdrawal. And medications and behavioral therapies can help people with AUD reduce alcohol intake or abstain from alcohol altogether. Reviva, Vivitrol Campral, are relatively new drugs that help reduce alcohol cravings, and can also help reduce some people’s desire to consume alcohol. Vivitrol and Revia can help people drink less alcohol even if they don’t want to stop drinking entirely.

0-1-3 Guidelines for Responsible Drinking

There is no one-size-fits-all solution for alcohol use disorder (AUD). A certain addiction treatment program may work for someone but may not necessarily work for another person. For them, drinking is a priority and they tend to neglect all their other obligations such as family and work. People with an alcohol use disorder continue to use alcohol despite its many negative effects.

Treatment can be outpatient and/or inpatient and be provided by specialty programs, therapists, and health care providers. A health care provider might ask the following questions to assess a person’s symptoms. In some people, the initial reaction may feel like an increase in energy. But as you continue to drink, you become drowsy and have less control over your actions. The harmful use of alcohol can also result in harm to other people, such as family members, friends, co-workers and strangers. If a blood test reveals that the red blood cells have increased in size, it could be an indication of long-term alcohol misuse.

People who drink too much alcohol are at risk of developing a host of health conditions and disorders including certain types of cancer, liver disease, and heart disease. Excessive alcohol consumption can damage the brain and other organs, and it also increases the chances of developing sleep problems, depression, and other mental health problems. Alcohol can interfere with a person’s ability to care for their other medical conditions or make other medical conditions worse. We publish material that is researched, cited, edited and reviewed by licensed medical professionals. The information we provide is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. It should not be used in place of the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare providers.

With the use of appropriate medications and behavioral therapies, people can recover from AUD. The NIAAA has identified five subtypes that can help you better understand alcohol use disorder and how it affects different individuals. In the United States, 14.5 million people ages 12 and above had alcohol use disorder in 2019. People with substance use disorders do so for emotional reasons. People who misuse alcohol, in the same vein, drink to find relief from anxiety, depression, stress, or sadness.

Alcohol use disorder

This is the rarest subtype, making up only 9% of people addicted to alcohol in the United States. Most individuals in this subtype are middle-aged and started drinking early. Of the five subtypes, they rate highest for other psychiatric disorders and abuse of other substances.

Labels such as ‘alcoholic’ do nothing to help a person with the disorder get the help they need. As soon as the warning signs of alcoholism have become apparent, it is best to seek treatment right away and not wait for the disease to progress further. When alcoholism starts to affect day-to-day life, an intervention is needed. Jellinek has contributed to how medical professionals understand alcoholism to this day.