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3 reasons to limit alcohol
Alcohol is part of many different types of celebrations. Whether it be a wedding, sports game, or holiday there’s always a drink in hand. While alcoholic beverages are a norm in our society, they can also be bad for your health and overall wellbeing. Here are 3 reasons limit alcohol.
Alcohol increases risk of injury
Alcohol is a depressant, which means it slows down your body and brain. It can cause you to feel relaxed and uninhibited, but these feelings are temporary and can lead to risky decisions that you may regret later. For these reasons, alcohol increases your risk of injury. In fact, alcohol use is linked to several types of injuries, including falls, burns, drownings, and alcohol poisoning.
The more alcohol you consume, the greater your risk of injury. If you drink too much alcohol or drink on an empty stomach, you’re at higher risk for alcohol poisoning — a potentially fatal condition that occurs when someone consumes enough alcohol to impair their central nervous system (brain) and respiratory system (lungs).
Alcohol can affect your judgment and motor skills.
Even low doses of alcohol impair judgment and motor skills — skills needed for driving safely. In fact, driving under the influence is illegal in every state because it increases crash risk by up to 300 percent.
Keep yourself and others safe by being mindful of how often and how much alcohol you consume to avoid injury.
Alcohol interferes with concentration
When you drink alcohol, it’s absorbed into your bloodstream and travels to your liver where it’s broken down by enzymes. The liver can only break down a small amount of alcohol at a time, so if you have more than one drink, the alcohol remains in your bloodstream and can accumulate over time. This is known as blood alcohol level (BAL).
Drinking too much alcohol can make you feel drowsy and affect your concentration. It may also cause you to lose track of time, forget things, and make bad decisions. In addition, consuming alcohol interferes with your ability to be present. This means that you are less likely to listen to others or interact with them in a meaningful way.
The effects of alcohol are so powerful that it can change your personality, according to a study published in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research.
Researchers asked 744 participants to rate how much they agreed with statements like “I feel more outgoing after a glass of wine,” and “I have more fun when I drink alcohol.”
The researchers found that those who drank alcohol described themselves as being more extroverted than non-drinkers. However, this was only true if they had consumed at least one alcoholic drink in the past year — which suggests that people may not be aware of their true personalities until they’ve had a drink or two.
Alcohol reduces the effectiveness of immune health
The consumption of alcohol reduces the effectiveness of immune health. Evidence suggests that alcohol consumption leads to an increase in stress hormones, which can suppress an individual’s immune system. This results in people developing a weakened ability to fight off infections and diseases. Alcohol also has an impact on the body’s ability to heal itself naturally after an injury or illness occurs.
Consumption alters the composition of intestinal microbiota, which contributes to the development of colitis, gastritis, liver disease and cancer. Drinking alcohol also leads to an increase in oxidative stress and inflammation, which are also associated with increased risk for developing cardiovascular disease and other chronic conditions such as diabetes mellitus type 2 (DM2).
There is no escaping the fact that alcohol can, indeed, have a negative effect on our lives. The problem is that it is so easy for us to forget these downsides, especially when we’re having a good time. Because of this, there are 3 reasons to limit alcohol. Everyone likes to have a drink, or two, now and then with friends or on a special occasion. There’s no problem with that–in moderation, of course. As with most things in life, though, too much of a good thing can be bad for you. Alcohol is more complicated than people think, affecting almost every organ in your body and your brain. That being said, if you’re going to enjoy some drinks, at least help yourself avoid the negative effects of alcohol by limiting consumption.
