Fact:
Around the UK under 18's are consuming 11.4 pints a second
Opinion
Binge drinking is an escape route from life
Question
Do you binge drink to escape life?
One statement made by a 17 year old boy in relation to my original research made an impression on me. He said he was using drinking as an escape route. This metaphor made me think of 'dead-ends' which then made me think of death, on the road to nowhere.
My initial research is all about road signs as they are instantly recognisable
As I want this mail shot to make people question why they binge drinking also may include some hard facts bout the health issues involved.
NHS live well
Key health stats associated with high risk drinkers
Compared to non-drinkers, if you regularly drink above higher-risk levels:
- you could be 3-5 times more likely to get cancer of the mouth, neck and throat
- you could be 3-10 times more likely to develop liver cirrhosis
- men could have four times the risk of having high blood pressure, and women are at least twice as likely to develop it
- you could be twice as likely to suffer from an irregular heartbeat
- women are around 50% more likely to get breast cancer
You’re likely to have the same problems as increasing-risk drinkers: feeling tired or depressed, or gaining extra weight.
You may be sleeping poorly or having sexual problems. And, like increasing-risk drinkers but possibly more so, you’re almost definitely in worse physical shape than you would be otherwise, whatever your age or gender. You could also suffer from high blood pressure.
At these levels, your drinking may make you argumentative, which might damage your relationships with family and friends.
Liver damage
Alcoholic liver disease (ALD), especially cirrhosis, is one of the leading causes of alcohol-related death.
How is alcohol linked to liver damage?
Alcohol is processed by your liver. This uses up oxygen and releases substances that can damage or kill your liver cells. Drinking can also cause bacteria in the gut to release toxins. And alcohol may cause your immune system to attack your liver cells as it becomes less able to recognise them. Heavy drinking for as little as a few days can lead to a condition called ‘fatty liver’ (although this might be reversed if you stop drinking).
After a few years of regularly drinking more than the NHS advises, you could suddenly develop liver cirrhosis. Those affected often don’t realise they’re at risk because they are not alcoholics or alcohol dependent.
Long-term heavy drinking is also linked to liver cancer. The role of alcohol isn’t completely understood, but studies have found a small but consistent link, which depends on how much you drink.
Alcoholic liver disease
ALD includes three conditions: fatty liver, alcoholic hepatitis and cirrhosis. Fatty liver is reversible if you stop drinking, but otherwise it leads to alcoholic hepatitis (inflammation of the liver). While this may cause symptoms in some, especially after very heavy drinking, it can also develop without symptoms. This means you can find yourself with cirrhosis without warning, where healthy liver cells have been gradually replaced by scar tissue.
Can drinking increase your risk of liver damage?
If you regularly drink more than the NHS advises, you’re more likely to suffer cirrhosis or liver cancer than non-drinkers. Men who are increased risk drinkers have around twice the risk of cirrhosis and 1.3 times more risk of liver cancer. Women have around 1.7 times the risk of liver cirrhosis and 1.2 times the risk of liver cancer.
Higher risk drinkers of both sexes can be three to ten (or more) times more likely to suffer cirrhosis. Their risks of liver cancer also increase.
- nausea
- weight loss
- loss of appetite
- jaundice (yellowing of the eyes and skin)
The liver
With the exception of the brain, the liver is the most complex organ in the body. It has more than 500 functions, most of which are essential for living.
The functions of the liver include:
- filtering toxins from the blood
- producing important chemicals, such as proteins and hormones
- producing blood-clotting agents that prevent excessive bleeding
- regulating cholesterol levels in the blood
- helping to fight infection and disease
- storing energy for use when the body needs an immediate energy boost
Alcohol and the liver
The liver is a very tough and resilient organ. It can endure a high level of damage that would destroy other organs. It is also capable of regenerating itself. Despite this resilience, prolonged alcohol misuse over many years can damage the liver.
Every time you drink alcohol, your liver filters out the poisonous alcohol from your blood.
Each time your liver filters alcohol, some of the liver cells die. The liver can regenerate new cells, but if you drink heavily for many years, your liver will lose its ability to regenerate new cells, causing serious damage.
A heavy drinker is someone who regularly exceeds the recommended weekly limit for alcohol consumption. This is 3-4 units of alcohol a day for men, and 2-3 units for women.
Women are more likely to develop alcoholic liver disease, but men are more likely to die from it, possibly because men tend to be heavier drinkers.
In 2008, there were 4,764 deaths in England and Wales due to alcoholic liver disease. Three-quarters of these were men.
I have lots more issues that this raises - but not on a blackberry!! Hope that this is useful.
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