Many alcoholics are unaware of the debilitating conditions that alcohol can bring about to their brain. Decades of abusing alcohol can cause dementia in later years of life, says a study. The degree of alcohol-induced dementia varies in individuals, depending on the severity of their alcohol use disorder, say doctors.
Alcohol does more harm than you think
Heavy drinking produces far-reaching effects on the brain. It could start with simple memory slips and end up with an irreparable condition like dementia. Knowledge about this can help alcoholics take their condition seriously and seek treatment at places like the South Carolina drug rehab center.
Being a socially acceptable, legal thing, alcohol is available everywhere and even encouraged for consumption. However, there is a difference between taking a few drinks once in a while during celebrations or events and drinking daily or heavily.
There are two kinds of alcohol addicts:
- People who drink heavily from morning to evening, lose all interest in their professional and personal life, stay ill-groomed in their own world, and slowly but surely, destroy themselves.
- People who drink daily, but have a successful career, family life, and social life. In fact, they are popular, take responsibilities admirably, and appear well-groomed and charming. Experts call them “high-functional alcoholics.”
In both kinds of alcohol addiction, health takes a beating. In the first example, you can see the signs of deteriorating mental and physical health.
In the second example, the addict is skilled enough to not show the world his/her alcohol-induced side effects. But, sooner or later, the destruction becomes too much to hide.
How alcohol impacts the brain depends on:
- How much and how often a person drinks
- At what age the person started drinking
- For how long he or she is drinking
- The genetic makeup of the person
- Gender
- Family history of alcoholism
- Whether they are an addict because of prenatal alcohol exposure
- General health of a person
If you can’t do even a single day without alcohol, you must sit up and take notice. Why is this so? Perhaps a drug rehab program can give you the answer and also help you become sober.
Alcohol-induced dementia
Alcohol-induced dementia can lead to loss of memory, difficulty in doing complex tasks, and, over a period of time, difficulty in doing daily tasks.
Research reveals that too much drinking can alter the structure of the brain. These alterations increase the risk of different kinds of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
Although there are other factors that lead to these brain diseases, alcohol use disorder is a significant factor.
A recent study suggests that heavy drinking raised the risk of developing dementia by three times. And this can happen to both young and old.
Crux:
The human brain has about 100 billion neurons. Neurons connect with each other to make memories. That’s how we learn things. The brain may also create new neurons and new connections.
However, a person who drinks alcohol excessively is destroying his/her neurons and brain capacity. No wonder they suffer from memory loss and impaired cognitive function.
Alcohol abuse is more of a brain abuse. You are destroying one of the marvels of nature inside your body. Stop now! Call the alcohol addiction hotline.