Binge drinking is a dangerous habit, and the CDC says binge drinking is “the most common, costly, deadly pattern of excessive alcohol use in the U.S.” Daily drinking is also just as dangerous because if you have one drink a day, it can still bring about harm to your body that can build up over time to bigger problems. By going into treatment now for alcoholism, you can learn how to control your cravings and live a healthier life.
How Binge or Daily Drinking Affects Your GI Tract
Binge drinking and chronic drinking tend to affect the GI tract first which includes the esophagus, intestines, and stomach. When you binge drink or drink daily, cells in the tract are directly exposed to high alcohol concentrations. Even if you do not binge drink, you can experience problems in your gut over time. When alcohol enters cells in the digestive system, they act as breakdown products that damage the cells and proteins in the gut. Bacteria and toxins that stay in the gastrointestinal system can invade the bloodstream and make bacteria overgrow. While it is good for the gut to be filled with bacteria, too much of it can lead to inflammation of the mucosa with gut cells not working.
How Binge or Daily Drinking Affects Your Immune System
When your body needs help from alcohol’s damages to your gastrointestinal system, it calls out to your immune system. People who drink daily have problems with skin wounds as it is hard to close wounds properly without an effective immune system. You would be more prone to developing diseases like pneumonia or tuberculosis. Binge drinking also causes problems as one study showed even one episode of binge drinking can trigger the immune system. The flow of bacterial toxins continuously activating the body’s defenses can make the immune system exhausted and dysfunctional constantly fighting off these harmful infections.
How Binge or Daily Drinking Affects Your Brain
Binge drinking can affect your brain in its decision-making, blackouts, and loss of consciousness. Binge drinking can also be dangerous to teens because those who binge drink have decreased gray matter, allowing humans to function normally. Drinking every day may not cause these problems as rapidly as binge drinking, but can still happen over time. Binge drinking and daily drinking both pose great problems to your life, but treatment can help fix them.
Whether you drink a lot of alcohol all at once or you have one drink daily, problems will accumulate that can be irreversible. Your stomach, brain, immune system, and quality of life can be affected in ways you did not imagine. Located in Georgetown, Texas, Alta Loma understands how much of a struggle it can be to stop drinking. We have the tools you need for a successful recovery such as individualized therapy, 12-step programs, therapeutic recreational activities, life coping skills education, and more. Please give us a call at (866) 457-3843 for more information about our services.
