Each year, December is designated as national Drugged and Drunk Driving month. Given the number of holiday parties that occur every year, a reminder about the dangers of mixing drugs (including alcohol) with motor vehicle use is always a good idea. But it is also important to consider the numerous additional health effects that result whenever drugs and alcohol are abused.
Not only is alcohol involved in the injury and death of 1 million people every year in motor vehicle accidents, the damage it causes results in both long and short term physical and mental problems. Like other drugs, alcohol is addictive. An alcoholic shares the same characteristics demonstrated by other types of drug addicts: uncontrollable drug craving, compulsive seeking and use of the desired substance (even in the face of negative consequences), altered brain function with resultant behavioral changes. These are chronic conditions, typified by relapses even after longs periods of abstinence. Drug and alcohol addiction are both diseases of the brain.
Alcohol is a drug that depresses the central nervous system’s ability to function, and affects every system of the body by entering the bloodstream. Damage occurs to the brain and the liver, vision, speech, and hearing are impaired, coordination and motor skills are reduced, reflexes are slower, and memory lapses and blackouts can occur. Negative behavioral changes are typical as well, since the resulting lowered inhibitions and impaired judgment lead to risk-taking behavior.
Excessive use of alcohol can be fatal. Serious alcohol-related liver diseases are progressive and often lead to death; cirrhosis and hepatitis are two of these conditions. Memory, learning, and other cognitive skills are adversely affected when alcoholic dementia occurs. And for the first time, alcoholic beverages are now classified as a known human carcinogen by the U.S. Depart-ment of Health and Human Services. A causal relationship has been found to exist between alcohol use and cancers of the esophagus, pharynx, and mouth. Associations also have been found between the use of alcohol and the development of liver, breast, and colorectal cancers.
Despite reports indicating that moderate use of certain alcoholic beverages (mainly wine) may in fact yield health benefits, even modest alcohol consumption has been shown to raise blood pressure in two recent studies conducted in Japan. These findings may have implications for nearly 1 in 4 Americans who have high blood pressure, which can cause stroke, heart disease, and kidney failure.
Besides alcohol, a variety of other drugs are used for recreational purposes. These, too, have negative health consequences, some of which continue for many years. Researchers at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York recently revealed their findings that frequent use of alcohol, marijuana, and other illegal drugs during the teen years and early adulthood were strongly associated with alcohol dependence, episodes of major depression, and other substance-use disorders 10-15 years later.
Drugs, both legal and illicit, may be misused and lead to addition. Some commonly misused drugs are sedatives, stimulants, and steroids. In terms of similar health effects, the effects of sedative drugs most resemble those associated with alcohol. Large doses produce slurred speech, impaired motor skills, poor judgment, slowed reflexes, and eventually, unconsciousness and death.
Stimulants, including amphetamines and cocaine, increase heart and respiration rates. The eyes become dilated, appetite decreases, and blood pressure becomes elevated. Anxiety, blurred vision, sleeplessness, dizziness, and irregular heartbeat can occur. Stimulant abuse can lead to hallucinations, delusions, paranoia, and even can cause the body to collapse.
Steroid abuse, most commonly found in athletes and people interested in enhancing body image, can result in over 70 different negative side effects. These range in severity from acne to liver cancer and cardiovascular disease. Sterility and impotence may result. Psychological effects such as depression or aggressive, combative behavior occur in both men and women.
The abuse of drugs impacts not only the person using them, but their family members, friends, work associated, and the community around them. Sadly, even their unborn children can be harmed, especially if the abuser is female and pregnant. Many substances, including alcohol, nicotine, and most drugs that are commonly abused, pass directly to the fetus through the placenta.
Drug and alcohol abuse leads to addiction, and addiction is a brain disease. Observable and often irreversible physical changes occur in the brain that impair basic functioning and may last a lifetime. Some people become addicted more quickly than others, since the biology of each body is unique. But all drugs, even those prescribed for medical purposes, are potentially life threatening if misused.
The Central Connecticut Health District (721-2822) has information available about alcohol and drug abuse. The staff extends our wishes for a safe, happy, healthy, and sober holiday season.