Effects Of Alcohol Consumption According To The Level Of Consumption

What are the harmful effects of alcohol consumption? Each level of consumption carries with it symptoms. From small dehydration to being at risk of certain types of cancer. What symptoms or effects are associated with each level of alcohol consumption?

Many people enjoy the pleasure of drinking beer, wine, and other alcoholic beverages every day: they like its taste, in some cases and in the short term it does not cause them obvious or very serious damage, it disinhibits them, it helps to socialize and it causes a release of dopamine that causes addiction. These reasons mean that in the world right now millions of people are thinking of sitting down to drink at a bar.

So far, what may be making you want or need to consume alcohol? But the harmful effects of alcohol on our body can be many and diverse, in addition, the amount and frequency with which we drink it plays a very important role in terms of its effects.

Harmful Effects Associated With Alcohol Consumption

I am going to explain what happens to your body when you drink alcohol according to the amount you drink:

• Sporadic alcohol consumption
  If you only drink alcohol sporadically, it will not bring you anything good and there are people who, even with this sporadic intake, can already suffer nausea, heartburn, slightly looser stools, and dehydration the next morning.

• Periodic consumption of alcohol
  What happens frequently when this consumption reaches almost all your moments of socialization? Terrace with friends, dinners on weekends, etc. Here, in addition to suffering all or some of the above effects, gastritis may appear and this intake may already be implicated in a possible weight gain and a dependency may also begin to be experienced by associating alcohol with any moment of socialization or fun.

• Frequent or habitual consumption of alcohol
  And what happens when that alcohol reaches your fridge and your table and instead of water you eat every day with wine or beer? Well, in addition to the above consequences, you will have more numbers of suffering from high blood pressure, obesity, memory problems, depression, dependency, gastric ulcers, and cardiovascular diseases that can put your life at risk. This risk will increase depending on your age, weight, physical activity, and the sum of possible pathologies that you may suffer.

• Alcohol addiction
  Let’s go one step further if your alcohol consumption is compulsive and you can’t limit it, we are already talking about an addiction. In addition to being able to suffer the symptoms described above, you will have a higher risk of suffering from certain types of cancer, mental health problems such as psychosis, sexual dysfunction, liver diseases such as cirrhosis, sleep disturbances, slowing in the flow of nutrient absorption and fluids and therefore malnutrition.

These are the changes that can happen to your body from alcohol consumption. As we have seen, when consumption is habitual, the health risks become very serious.

By not consuming alcohol or greatly reducing your consumption, you are less likely to suffer the symptoms and serious illnesses described.

Is A Glass Of Wine Healthy?

Finally, mention that it is important not to get carried away by the confusing message of “a drink a day is healthy” because these are messages that reach us through marketing campaigns designed by the wine industry. You can be sure that the beneficial effects present in the grape do not compensate, by any means, the detrimental effects of the consumption of this alcohol present in wine or any other alcoholic beverage.

So if you really like a certain alcoholic drink and want to enjoy it sporadically, it is better that you do so knowing its risks because this will help you limit its consumption.

WHO Recommendation

However, the World Health Organization (WHO) indicates that there is no “safe” amount of alcohol consumption below which there are no risks. Therefore, as a health professional, my consumption recommendation is 0.

Finally, remember that there are many alternatives to alcohol consumption that can be just as pleasurable, without the negative effects on health and well-being. For example:

Non-alcoholic beverages, such as lemon ice water, sparkling water, smoothies, teas, and lemonade
Mocktails: If you like the taste of alcoholic beverages, try making a mocktail.
Remember, you do NOT need alcohol to have fun or relax.

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