People Develop an Addiction for Alcohol

Since before the 1800s, Alcohol has been used at formal balls, on national holidays, as well as at small parties. Even today people around the world continue to consume it and sometimes in heavy quantities. However, most people that drink it fail to recognize the massive effects that it has on them with each sip that they take. As people continue to ingest alcohol in large amounts, many times, they end up growing an addiction and can't seem to stop. According to Talbot Recovery, more than 15 million people are dependent on alcohol and less than 8% get the help that they need (2018 Alcoholism Statistics). And with that comes dangerous consequences to them biologically, mentally, and socially, that may keep them from functioning properly within society and could possibly put them in the hospital.

First, as people develop an addiction for alcohol, it creates biological effects on the human body that are extremely dangerous. For example, as many may know, alcohol can dramatically kill the heart and liver. When it comes to the heart, drinking can cause drooping and stretching of its muscles. In other terms, this is called cardiomyopathy. This is when the heart itself begins to weaken, its chambers enlarge, and then it has weaker contractions according to Alcohol and Cardiovascular Disease by alcoholthinkagain. Overall, this can make it really difficult for blood to circulate throughout the body.

In addition, not only can alcohol induce cardiomyopathy, but also arrhythmia, a change in the heart's rhythm. This may cause people to have a stroke or go into cardiac arrest, which in some cases lead to death (Alcohol and Cardiovascular Disease). On the other hand, severe damage is also made to the liver as well. Drinking alcohol in copious amounts can cause lifelong liver dysfunction as well as acute or chronic liver disease. According to Alcohol-related Liver Disease by drinkaware, when our liver tries to breakdown alcohol, it induces a chemical reaction that kills healthy liver cells in the process and creates permanent scarring.

Furthermore, this causes people to have fatty liver and ultimately produces these liver diseases. Not only does alcohol deteriorate the heart and liver, but it also weakens the body's immune system as well. For instance, drinking can suppress the adaptive immune systems that fight off antigens and outside bacteria that make people sick. According to Alcohol's Effects on the Body by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Alcoholism prevents white cells to engulf harmful bacteria and it disturbs the balance of cytokines, the chemical messengers that inform the body and white cells of harmful bacteria. If the human body obtains too many of these, it will damage our tissues and possibly leave people vulnerable to infection.

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