The Effects Of Excessive Alcohol On The Body

Alcohol is harmless if consumed with moderation. However, being regarded as the world’s number one celebratory and abused substance, the ability to drink too much is unfortunately common. If one consumes alcohol on the daily, they are putting their brain, heart, and liver at risk for extreme or irreversible damage and can find themselves possibly going down the path of binge drinking and substance abuse with continued behavior.

Proverbs 20:1 Amplified Bible (AMP) says, “Wine is a mocker, strong drink a riotous brawler; and whosoever is intoxicated by it is not wise.”

Below are the consequences of alcohol affecting the body negatively.

1.) Brain­

Within the brain, multiple circumstances occur, such as: the loss of brain cells, thinning blood, and brain injury. First, binge drinking ultimately contributes to the cause of losing brain cells. It impairs judgement, speech, and memory by diminishing cognitive abilities. Alcohol also causes the drinker to make erratic decisions and lose basic motor skills. Furthermore, alcohol thins the blood – which in turn could lead to potential fatal and internal bleeding if the user finds themselves suffering an injury along with the immense alcohol consumption. Regarding thinning blood, a person can also suffer a “blackout”, a form of alcohol-induced amnesia as a result.

As mentioned before, long term alcohol abuse and binging can also lead to brain injuries, such as a stroke or delirium tremens. Severe and long-term alcoholics develop a “wet brain”, which is irreversible brain damage due to excessive drinking. Drinking at a young age, on the other hand, causes permanent damage on the developing brain. It limits cognitive abilities, IQ, motor skills, and memory – the symptoms that are a result of binge drinking. No matter what age an individual begins drinking routinely, they will develop an addiction to alcohol and eventually show alcoholic tendencies.

“And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery [wild living], but be filled with the Spirit [of God].”~ Ephesians 5:18 English Standard Version (ESV)

2.) Heart

If one has a history of heart conditions, alcohol contributes to a higher risk of stroke, cardiovascular failure, cardiomyopathy (the heart muscle disease), and diabetes. By binge drinking, one also causes arrhythmias, an irregular heart rhythm and drastically increasing blood pressure. Diabetes can come into play due to the high-calorie nature of alcohol, thus resulting in the possible development of obesity.

Related: 5 Ways Drugs And Alcohol Affect The Aging Process

3.) Liver

Additionally, right after the brain and heart – the liver equally suffers just as much damage. Alcohol abuse can cause permanent liver damage, destroying the enzymes within the organ which allow its user to be more prone to hepatitis, cirrhosis, and even an alcohol-induced coma from liver disfunction. Commonly within the alcoholic community, it is necessary to eventually require liver transplant, surgery, or other artificial devices due to the incredible destruction of the liber.

A disorder called hepatic encephalopathy frequently occurs in the liver as well. It entails a disturbance in sleep patterns, mood, and the personality of an individual. Furthermore, it impacts cognitive function and attention, and puts the user at risk for psychiatric conditions such as anxiety and depression.

4.) Drinking While Pregnant

Drinking while pregnant is extremely detrimental to the fetus, resulting in miscarriage and severe birth defects. The formal term used is “Fetal Alcohol Syndrome”, in which the baby is born with distinctive facial features such as: a smaller head, nose, eyes, and skin that folds at the corner of the eyes. Permanent brain damage not only affects the mother, but the baby as well – heavily preventing proper development of cognitive abilities, motor skills, and memory function.

Treatment for Excessive Alcohol Consumption

Currently, there are cures for hepatitis and routes of treatment for liver disease, but treatments for the brain are still in the works. However, for several years, there has been rapid and increased research on the regeneration of stem cells to encourage brain cell growth and repair damage caused by alcoholism.

Furthermore, there have been studies that brought the idea of stem cells treating and curing alcoholism to light. Scientists believe stem cells can rejuvenate areas of the brain that cause a person to drink excessively or blackout.

The future is bright for alcohol treatment, considering that alcoholism can truly be prevented and cured, in conjunction with the negative injuries that come from alcohol abuse.

Final thoughts

The intake of alcohol or beverages containing alcohol has been and continues to be a topic strongly argued and discussed among Christians. While the Bible does not entirely forbid the use of it, such as found in 1 Timothy 5:23 ISV “Stop drinking only water, but use a little wine for your stomach because of your frequent illnesses,” when taken in excess it can be really harmful to the body.

Over to you

Was this post enlightening? What are your thoughts on this subject? Should Christians drink alcohol other then when it is used for medicinal purposes? Please share this post on social media for the benefit of others.

About Author

Trevor is a freelance writer and recovering addict & alcoholic who has been clean and sober for over 5 years. Since his recovery began he has enjoyed using his talent for words to help spread treatment resources and addiction awareness. In his free time, you can find him working with recovering addicts or outside enjoying about any type of fitness activity imaginable.