Alcoholism is a chronic disease in which the body of a person becomes dependent on alcohol. According to Medline Plus, alcoholism has four main features. These include a craving to drink, inability to stop drinking once started, withdrawal symptoms on stopping stopping and a steady increase in the amounts of alcohol required to get drunk. An individual with alcoholism continues to drink even though the person is fully aware that it is causing problems in relationships, health, finances and work. The MayoClinic.com reports that alcoholism may cause certain health complications.
Liver Disease
The MayoClinic.com notes that cirrhosis is a complication of alcoholism and advises that when an individual drinks heavily, it can lead to alcoholic hepatitis or inflammation of the liver. When the individual continues drinking for many years, hepatitis may lead to irreversible damage and scarring to the liver tissue, known as cirrhosis. Alcohol can also cause an inflammation in the lining of the stomach called gastritis. It can also interfere with the absorption of essential vitamins such as the B vitamins. The pancreas of an individual may also become damaged due to excessive drinking causing problems in metabolism regulation and the digestion of fats, proteins and carbohydrates.
Hypoglycemia
Alcohol also interferes in the release of glucose from the liver. This increases the risk of low blood sugar or hypoglycemia in an individual. The condition becomes more dangerous for people who have diabetes and who are taking insulin to lower their blood sugar level.
Osteoporosis and Other Complications
Alcohol interferes with the production of new bones and it can cause the bones of an individual to become thin. This increases the risk of developing fractures. Excessive drinking also leads to high blood pressure. It increases the individual's risk of getting a heart failure or stroke. Alcoholism can also cause erectile dysfunction in men and menstrual problems in women. It can also cause dementia, numbness, short-term memory loss, and mental confusion. Weakness and paralysis of the eye muscles is another complication of alcoholism.
Women who drink excessively during their pregnancies may cause fetal alcohol syndrome. This condition results in the birth of a baby with physical and mental disabilities.
