Alcoholism is present when a person craves alcohol and cannot limit or contain his or her drinking. If someone experiences withdrawal symptoms such as nausea, sweating, shakiness, or anxiety when alcohol consumption has ceased, or if there is a need to drink greater amounts of alcohol in order to feel a high, that person is most likely alcoholic. 

Some may think that it’s just a matter of having the will to stop drinking, but alcoholism is more complicated than that. An alcoholic’s craving for alcohol is so great that it suppresses their ability to stop drinking. The majority of alcoholics need assistance to stop drinking. With treatment and support from family and friends, many have been able to stop drinking and rebuild their lives. It is a sad fact however that there are still some who are unable to stop in spite of these aids. 

Alcohol Addiction – What are the causes and effects of alcoholism? 

Alcoholism can lead people into serious trouble, and can be physically and mentally destructive. Currently alcohol use is involved in half of all crimes, murders, accidental deaths, and suicides. There are also many health problems associated with alcohol use such as brain damage, cancer, heart disease, and diseases of the liver. Alcoholics who do not stop drinking reduce life expectancy by 10 to 15 years. 

Too much alcohol can destroy brain cells, possibly leading to brain damage. 

Alcohol greatly disturbs the structure and function of the central nervous system, hindering the ability to retrieve, consolidate, and process information. 

Moderate consumption of alcohol can affect cognitive abilities while large amounts interfere with the oxygen supply of the brain causing a blackout when totally drunk. 

Alcohol addiction may also inflame the mouth, esophagus, and stomach, and could cause cancer in these areas, especially in drinkers who also smoke. 

Splurge drinking may produce irregular heartbeats, and abusers experience a higher risk of high-blood pressure, heart attacks, and other heart damage. 

Alcohol also can harm vision, damage sexual function, slow circulation, be the grounds for malnutrition, and water retention. 

It can also lead to skin and pancreatic disorders, weaken the bones and muscles, thus, decreasing immunity 

A large portion of alcohol taken in is broken down in the liver. It is important to note that the liver has a fixed rate of breaking down the alcohol, so as the liver is overused, disorders and malfunctions can result, making the liver the primary location of alcohol’s damage. Liver damage can occur in three stages. The first stage is liver enlargement whereby liver cells are penetrated with abnormal fatty tissue. The second stage is the alcoholic hepatitis whereby liver cells swell, inflame, and eventually die. The third stage is cirrhosis in which fibrous scar tissues are formed, hindering the flow of blood through the liver. 

Alcohol Addiction – What to do with alcoholism? 

Have a desire to stop the alcohol addiction. You must have a serious desire to stop from being an alcoholic. 

Have the initiative to identify the cause of your being alcoholic. Knowing the cause of one problem is an important part to its solution. If being alcoholic is due to some traumatic experiences, you must let go and be delivered from it. Forgiveness is a good thing to do. Seek counseling to aid in healing. 

Make the decision to get help. Recognizing the need for help is one important thing to do. There are a lot of alcohol rehabilitation centers that could give you assistance for your treatment. You can also get different kinds of help from your family, friends, and above all from God. 

Keep reading to find two inspiring success stories of recovery from alcohol addiction. 

 Read Alcohol Addiction Page 2 Now!  
Scientists say that someone who has alcoholic addiction in his/her family is more likely to develop alcoholism if they choose to drink. Alcoholism can also develop or worsen based on a person’s environment and traumatic experiences in life. These factors may include culture, family, friends, peer pressures, and the way the person lives. 

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Alcoholism is present when a person craves alcohol and cannot limit or contain his or her drinking. If someone experiences withdrawal symptoms such as nausea, sweating, shakiness, or anxiety when alcohol consumption has ceased, or if there is a need to drink greater amounts of alcohol in order to feel a high, that person is most likely alcoholic. 

Some may think that it’s just a matter of having the will to stop drinking, but alcoholism is more complicated than that. An alcoholic’s craving for alcohol is so great that it suppresses their ability to stop drinking. The majority of alcoholics need assistance to stop drinking. With treatment and support from family and friends, many have been able to stop drinking and rebuild their lives. It is a sad fact however that there are still some who are unable to stop in spite of these aids.  

Alcohol Addiction – What are the causes and effects of alcoholism?
Scientists say that someone who has alcoholic addiction in his/her family is more likely to develop alcoholism if they choose to drink. Alcoholism can also develop or worsen based on a person’s environment and traumatic experiences in life. These factors may include culture, family, friends, peer pressures, and the way the person lives. 

Alcoholism can lead people into serious trouble, and can be physically and mentally destructive. Currently alcohol use is involved in half of all crimes, murders, accidental deaths, and suicides. There are also many health problems associated with alcohol use such as brain damage, cancer, heart disease, and diseases of the liver. Alcoholics who do not stop drinking reduce life expectancy by 10 to 15 years.  

• Too much alcohol can destroy brain cells, possibly leading to brain damage.
• Alcohol greatly disturbs the structure and function of the central nervous system, hindering the ability to retrieve, consolidate, and process information.
• Moderate consumption of alcohol can affect cognitive abilities while large amounts interfere with the oxygen supply of the brain causing a blackout when totally drunk.
• Alcohol addiction may also inflame the mouth, esophagus, and stomach, and could cause cancer in these areas, especially in drinkers who also smoke.
• Splurge drinking may produce irregular heartbeats, and abusers experience a higher risk of high-blood pressure, heart attacks, and other heart damage.
• Alcohol also can harm vision, damage sexual function, slow circulation, be the grounds for malnutrition, and water retention.
• It can also lead to skin and pancreatic disorders, weaken the bones and muscles, thus, decreasing immunity

A large portion of alcohol taken in is broken down in the liver. It is important to note that the liver has a fixed rate of breaking down the alcohol, so as the liver is overused, disorders and malfunctions can result, making the liver the primary location of alcohol’s damage. Liver damage can occur in three stages. The first stage is liver enlargement whereby liver cells are penetrated with abnormal fatty tissue. The second stage is the alcoholic hepatitis whereby liver cells swell, inflame, and eventually die. The third stage is cirrhosis in which fibrous scar tissues are formed, hindering the flow of blood through the liver.   

Alcohol Addiction – What to do with alcoholism?  

• Have a desire to stop the alcohol addiction. You must have a serious desire to stop from being an alcoholic.
• Have the initiative to identify the cause of your being alcoholic. Knowing the cause of one problem is an important part to its solution. If being alcoholic is due to some traumatic experiences, you must let go and be delivered from it. Forgiveness is a good thing to do. Seek counseling to aid in healing.
• Make the decision to get help. Recognizing the need for help is one important thing to do. There are a lot of alcohol rehabilitation centers that could give you assistance for your treatment. You can also get different kinds of help from your family, friends, and above all from God.

Keep reading to find two inspiring success stories of recovery from alcohol addiction.   

Read Alcohol Addiction Page 2 Now!  

• Do you have a problem with Alcohol?
• Have you ever felt you should cut down on your drinking?
• Have people annoyed you by criticizing your drinking?
• Have you ever felt bad or guilty about your drinking?
• Have you ever had a drink the first thing in the morning to steady your nerves or get rid of a hangover?

If you answered ?yes? to one question, you may have a problem with alcohol.  More than one ?yes? answer makes it highly likely that a problem exists.  If you feel you have a problem with alcohol, please see your health professional right away.  Effective treatment is available.

For more information:

The National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence ? Information on alcoholism and traditional treatment methods

The alcohol dehydrogenase enzyme breaks down alcohol by removing hydrogen in two steps:

1.      Alcohol dehydrogenase oxidizes alcohol to acetaldehyde

2.      Acetaldehyde dehydrogenase oxidizes the acetaldehyde to acetyl CoA. These reactions produce hydrogen ions (acid). The B vitamin niacin (in its role as the coenzyme NAD) picks up these hydrogen ions (becoming NADH).  Thus when alcohol is metabolized, NAD diminishes and NADH increases.

• During alcohol metabolism, NAD becomes unavailable for the many other vital body processes for which it is needed, including glycolysis, the TCA cycle and the electron transport chain.   Without NAD, the energy pathway is blocked, and alternative routes are taken, with serious physical consequences:
• The accumulation of hydrogen atoms shifts the body?s balance toward acid.
• The accumulation of NADH slows the TCA cycle, resulting in a build up of pyruvate and acetyl CoA.  Excess acetyl CoA results in fatty acid synthesis and fat begins to clog the liver.   (An accumulation of fat in the liver can be observed after only a single night of heavy drinking).

Fatty Liver and Liver Disease

With moderate drinking, the liver can process alcohol fairly safely.  However, heavy drinking overtaxes the liver resulting in serious consequences.  A liver clogged with fat causes liver cells to become less efficient at performing their necessary tasks, resulting in impairment of a person?s nutritional health.  Fatty liver is the first stage of liver deterioration in heavy drinkers, and interferes with the distribution of oxygen and nutrients to the liver?s cells.  If the condition persists long enough, the liver cells will die, forming fibrous scar tissue (the second stage of liver deterioration, or fibrosis).  Some liver cells can regenerate with good nutrition and abstinence, however in the last stage of deterioration, or cirrhosis, the damage to the liver cells is the least reversible.

Alcohol and Malnutrition

For moderate drinkers, alcohol does not suppress food intake, and may actually increase appetite.  Chronic alcohol consumption appears to have the opposite effect.  Alcohol causes euphoria, which depresses appetite, so that heavy drinkers tend to eat poorly and become malnourished.

Alcohol is very rich in energy, packing 7 calories per gram.  But like pure sugar or fat, the calories are void of nutrients.  The more calories an individual consumes in alcohol, the less likely it is that they will eat enough food to obtain adequate nutrients.  To make matters worse, chronic alcohol abuse not only displaces calories from needed nutrients, but also interferes with the body?s metabolism of nutrients, leading to damage of the liver, digestive system, and nearly every bodily organ

Beer, wine and other liquor contain different amounts of alcohol.  The amount of alcohol in distilled liquor is known as ?proof?.  Proof refers to the amount of alcohol in the liquor; for example, 100 proof liquor contains 50% alcohol, 40 proof liquor contains 20% alcohol, and so on.  Traditional wine has approximately 8-14% alcohol, while regular beer has 4-6% alcohol.

Recent studies show that moderate use of alcohol may have a beneficial effect on the coronary system.  In general, for healthy people, one drink per day for women and no more than two drinks per day for men would be considered the maximum amount of alcohol consumption to be considered moderate use.  (By ?healthy? people, we are referring to non-pregnant women, individuals not addicted to alcohol, and people without pre-existing medical conditions, among others).  However, the amount of alcohol that a person can drink safely is highly individual, depending on genetics, age, sex, weight and family history, etc.  A ?drink? is considered to be:

• 4-5 ounces of wine
• 10 ounces of wine cooler
• 12 ounces of beer
• 1-1/4 ounces of distilled liquor (80 proof whiskey, vodka, scotch, or rum)

How Alcohol Travels Through the Body

Alcohol is metabolized extremely quickly by the body.  Unlike foods, which require time for digestion, alcohol needs no digestion and is quickly absorbed.   Alcohol gets ?VIP? treatment in the body ? absorbing and metabolizing before most other nutrients.  About 20 percent is absorbed directly across the walls of an empty stomach and can reach the brain within one minute.

Once alcohol reaches the stomach, it begins to break down with the alcohol dehydrogenase enzyme.  This process reduces the amount of alcohol entering the blood by approximately 20%.  (Women produce less of this enzyme, which may help to partially explain why women become more intoxicated on less alcohol than men.). In addition, about 10% of the alcohol is expelled in the breath and urine.

Alcohol is rapidly absorbed in the upper portion of the small intestine. The alcohol-laden blood then travels to the liver via the veins and capillaries of the digestive tract, which affects nearly every liver cell.  The liver cells are the only cells in our body that can produce enough of the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase to oxidize alcohol at an appreciable rate. 

Though alcohol affects every organ of the body, it?s most dramatic impact is upon the liver.  The liver cells normally prefer fatty acids as fuel, and package excess fatty acids as triglycerides, which they then route to other tissues of the body.  However, when alcohol is present, the liver cells are forced to first metabolize the alcohol, letting the fatty acids accumulate, sometimes in huge amounts.  Alcohol metabolism permanently changes liver cell structure, which impairs the liver?s ability to metabolize fats.  This explains why heavy drinkers tend to develop fatty livers.

The liver is able to metabolize about ½ ounce of ethanol per hour (approximately one drink, depending on a person?s body size, food intake, etc.).  If more alcohol arrives in the liver than the enzymes can handle, the excess alcohol travels to all parts of the body, circulating until the liver enzymes are finally able to process it. (Which is another good reason not to consume more than one drink per hour.).

Dr. Young states, “Osteoporosis is a known risk of celiac disease and has been explained by a failure to absorb calcium or vitamin D and more importantly the inability to manufacture stem cells in the crypts of the small intestine due to congestion from animal proteins and damage to the intestinal villi from dietary acids – especially from protein.”

A study in the New England Journal of Medicine suggests celiac patients produce antibodies which attack a key protein that maintains bone health.  According to Dr. Young, “these antibodies are created to buffer dietary acids, especially from animal protein to protect the alkaline design of the small intestine.”

Damage to the intestinal villi due to dietary acidosis explains why osteoporosis in those with the digestive disorder may not respond to calcium and vitamin D supplementation.

Celiac disease is caused by a an over-acidic lifestyle and diet and from gluten, a congestive acidic protein found in wheat, barley, rye and oats which damage the small finger-like villi that line the small intestine and play a key role in the production of stem cells and red blood cells.

When damaged and inflamed, the villi are unable to created needed stem cells for red blood cell production.  The damage to the intestinal villi also leads to the acidic symptoms of diarrhoea iron deficiency and then malnutrition.

It affects one in 100 people, and of these a significant proportion may go on to develop osteoporosis – a symptom of the bones in helping to maintain the alkaline design of the blood that leads to an increased risk of painful and disabling fractures.

Scientists at the University of Edinburgh say it may be a protein called osteoprotegerin which holds the key to the link between celiac disease and osteoporosis.

According to Dr. Young, “the protein osteoprotegerin is a by-product of bone degeneration and the release of calcium ions into the blood to maintains its iso-structure.”

   
Traditional understanding of its cause has left some people with the condition with little hope that their symptoms and quality of life will improve.  But with Dr. Young’s discovery of what causes  celiac dis-ease there is finally hope.
 
In the UK 20% of the celiac patients tested, antibodies were produced which stopped this protein – crucial for maintaining bone strength – from working effectively.

Lead researcher Professor Stuart Ralston from the Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine, said: “This is a very exciting step forward. Not only have we discovered a new reason to explain why osteoporosis occurs in coeliac disease, but we have also found that it responds very well to drugs that prevent bone tissue removal.

“Testing for these antibodies could make a real and important difference to the lives of people with coeliac disease by alerting us to the risk of osteoporosis and helping us find the correct treatment for them.”

Sarah Sleet, head of Coeliac UK said: “Osteoporosis is a damaging complication of coeliac disease and our traditional understanding of its cause has left some people with the condition with little hope that their symptoms and quality of life will improve.

“This new breakthrough in understanding and treatment will give renewed hope to our members struggling with their condition.”

Dr Claire Bowring, medical policy officer with the National Osteoporosis Society said: “We already know that coeliac disease is a risk factor for osteoporosis and that early diagnosis and treatment of coeliac disease gives the best chance of improving bone density.

“A better understanding of the relationship between coeliac disease and osteoporosis will enable clinicians to manage both conditions more effectively.

“Although this research is at an early stage it is certainly interesting and we look forward to more extensive work to identify how prevalent this antibody is in people with coeliac disease.”

Over the last 200 years, the rate of the acid fructose intake has directly paralleled the increasing rate of obesity, which has increased sharply in the last 20 years since the introduction of HFCS. Today, Americans consume 30% more fructose than 20 years ago and up to four times more than 100 years ago, when obesity rates were less than 5%. While this increase mirrors the dramatic rise in the prevalence of hypertension, studies have been inconsistent in linking excess acidic fructose in the diet to hypertension.

Diana Jalal, MD (University of Colorado Denver Health Sciences Center), and her colleagues studied the issue in a large representative population of US adults. They examined 4,528 adults 18 years of age or older with no prior history of hypertension. Fructose intake was calculated based on a dietary questionnaire, and foods such as fruit juices, soft drinks, bakery products, and candy were included.

Bottom-line according to Dr. Robert O. Young, Director of Research at the pH Miracle Living Center, “there are NO safe dietary levels of the acid fructose.  Fructose is a toxic acid from the fermentation of corn and other high sugar fruits that will compromise the delicate pH balance of the body and set the stage for sickness and dis-ease.  If you want to be healthy stay away from ALL sugars including the fruit sugar fructose.  You will live longer and healthier.”
In Love and Healing Light,

Robert O. Young, Ph.D., D.Sc.