Alcohol Poisoning: Symptoms, Causes, Complications, and Treatment

For example, this means that someone who usually has three drinks a week could reduce their cancer risk by limiting themselves to two drinks a week instead. “We know for certain cancers, like breast cancer, the risk increases with each additional drink,” she says. Bevers acknowledges that most Americans are not going to avoid drinking alcohol completely. Because of this, she believes it is important to share examples of what drinking less, or moderately, might look like. Ensuring that you drink responsibly can prevent alcohol poisoning. Always drink in moderation, and keep track of the amount of drinks you’ve had.

When it comes to preventing cancer, not drinking alcohol is the safest choice. If a drink or two leaves you ready for bed, you might be surprised to learn that drinking alcohol is linked to insomnia, or trouble falling — and staying — asleep. Celebrating at parties, cheering a favorite sports team, and enjoying get-togethers after work are common ways to relax or be with friends. For some people, these occasions may also include drinking—even binge or high-intensity drinking. Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a chronic brain disorder that makes it difficult to control alcohol use, even when it’s causing problems. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) has information on how alcohol impacts your health.

Age, sensitivity to alcohol (tolerance), gender, speed of drinking, medications you are taking, and amount of food eaten can all be factors. As of 2021,  29.5 million people aged 12 and older had an alcohol use disorder in the past year. If you’ve drunk a dangerous amount of alcohol, doctors may “pump” your stomach. This keeps any leftover alcohol from getting into your bloodstream. Even when it’s not fatal, alcohol can cause some unpleasant — and sometimes dangerous — symptoms. The effects of alcohol are felt a little differently from person to person as a number of factors influence the amount of alcohol each person can withstand.

Stage 1: Occasional Excessive Alcohol Use or Binge Drinking

1. Some examples include behavioral treatments, support groups, and FDA-approved medications.
2. An occasional alcoholic drink every now and then can be fine.
3. Many people assume the occasional beer or glass of wine at mealtimes or special occasions doesn’t pose much cause for concern.
4. Like alcohol, these drugs suppress areas in the brain that control vital functions such as breathing.

Alcohol can damage the cells in your mouth, throat, voice box, and esophagus. It can lead to cancers in your liver, breast, and intestines. Alcohol can help cancer-causing chemicals in tobacco and other sources enter your cells more easily.

This chemical also interferes with the liver’s ability to break down and metabolize fats. This causes that fat to accumulate and may lead to fatty liver — an early stage of alcohol-related liver disease. Once someone reaches end-stage alcoholism, the brain, heart, kidneys, and liver have already experienced significant damage. The individual might also be experiencing severe malnutrition, making it difficult for the body to heal itself.

From there, toxins can move into the bloodstream and on to the organs. This can increase the risk of cancers both within the gastrointestinal tract and beyond. When you drink alcohol, your body is less able to absorb and use a variety of nutrients that can protect it from cancer, Lee says. In fact, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) writes that an estimated 5.5% of new cancer diagnoses and 5.8% of cancer deaths worldwide are linked to drinking alcohol.

Health Categories to Explore

Know the danger signals, and if you suspect that someone has an alcohol overdose, call 911 for help immediately. Do not wait for the person to have all the symptoms, and be aware that a person who has passed out can die. Don’t play doctor—cold showers, hot coffee, and walking do not reverse the effects of alcohol overdose and could actually make things worse. Using alcohol with opioid pain relievers, such as oxycodone and morphine, or illicit opioids, such as heroin, is also a very dangerous combination. Like alcohol, these drugs suppress areas in the brain that control vital functions such as breathing. Ingesting alcohol and other drugs together intensifies their individual effects and could produce an overdose with even moderate amounts of alcohol.

Drinking alcohol can impact many stages of the journey to parenthood. Beyond its link to cancer, alcohol is also linked to a variety of other health concerns, especially when consumed in excess, Karam-Hage says. Alcohol can also alter the body’s oral and gut microbiome, which Daniel-MacDougall describes as the balance of bacteria, viruses and fungi that help to keep the body healthy.

Binge drinking

If you think that someone has alcohol poisoning, get medical attention right away. “Excessive alcohol consumption can cause nerve damage and irreversible forms of dementia,” Dr. Sengupta warns. Long-term alcohol use can change your brain’s wiring in much more significant ways. Ways that your standard hangover cures won’t even begin to touch. Steatotic liver disease used to go by the name fatty liver disease. If alcohol continues to accumulate in your system, it can destroy cells and, eventually, damage your organs.

Chronic drinking can affect your heart and lungs, raising your risk of developing heart-related health issues. The pancreas helps regulate how your body uses insulin and responds to glucose. If your pancreas and liver don’t function properly due to pancreatitis or liver disease, you could experience low blood sugar, or hypoglycemia. A standard drink size looks different depending on the type of alcohol you choose. In addition to the risk of fetal alcohol syndrome disorders, the CDC writes that drinking alcohol while pregnant Nortriptyline Oral Route Precautions can lead to miscarriage or stillbirth. Over time, she explains that an unhealthy gut microbiome can wear down the gut’s protective lining.

This is primarily because drinking is linked to high blood pressure and obesity, both of which contribute to heart conditions. However, drinking also increases the level of triglycerides (harmful fats) in the blood. This can result in high blood pressure, increased caloric intake, and heart failure. It is dangerous to assume that an unconscious person will be fine by sleeping it off. One potential danger of alcohol overdose is choking on one’s own vomit.