In this article I will explain the top 10 Effects of alcohol on the nervous system , In the organism and in the body in general.
A beer or two a day will not hurt. What you will do is frequent excesses and drunkenness.
Some effects such as difficulty walking, blurred vision or memory loss are temporary and if they recover again.
The serious problem is when problems become persistent; Is when there is a problem of alcoholism and possible damage to the brain.
There are several factors that influence:
- General health
- The continuity of the habit of drinking
- Age, education, genetics, family history, gender
- The age at which drinking began
How do alterations occur in the nervous system?
Alcohol affects brain chemistry by altering levels of Neurotransmitters , Chemicals that transmit the signals that control the thought processes, behaviors and emotions.
They are excitatory - stimulate brain activity - or inhibitory - decrease brain activity.
Alcohol increases the effects of Neurotransmitter GABA In the brain, which causes slow movements and difficulty speaking.
At the same time, alcohol inhibits the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate , Which increases dopamine, a neurotransmitter that creates the sensation of pleasure in drinking.
The most important effects of alcohol on the nervous system and organism
1-Anxiety, depression, aggression, stress
The brain has a balance of chemicals and alcohol alters that balance.
This can affect:
- Behavior
- Thoughts
- Feelings
- Emotions
Drinking makes most people feel better, less anxious, and more sociable.
However, if you drink too much, the brain begins to be affected and the feelings of pleasure can turn into feelings of anxiety, aggression or depression.
If you drink too much, you are more likely to develop Depressive symptoms .
Drinking regularly lowers your Serotonin In the brain, the neurotransmitter that regulates mood.
Also, drinking too much can have negative consequences In your personal relationships with family, friends, couple and in your work.
This makes the depression even greater and you enter a vicious circle.
Some signs that you have problems with alcohol are:
- Discutes or has problematic behaviors often or after drinking alcohol
- Low mood
- Insomnia
- You feel discouraged all the time
- Feeling anxious when you normally feel calm
- Paranoia
2-Prevent proper brain development in adolescents
Consuming large amounts of alcohol in adolescence can result in major difficulties for the brain to develop properly.
The most notable deficits are difficulties in retrieving verbal and non-verbal information (language comprehension) and visual-spatial functioning.
Adolescents are much more predisposed to develop cognitive deficits as learning disabilities and the memory .
This is because they have not yet fully developed brain , And at that stage the brain is remodeling with changes in neuronal connectivity of different parts of the brain.
3-Damage in memory (hippocampus)
Alcohol affects To the hippocampus , Brain area involved in memory storage.
Even a small amount of alcohol can make you forget what you were doing while you drank.
In drunkenness the brain processes information more slowly and the ability to memorize decreases. It is when the typical memory loss of the night before in hangovers occurs.
This memory loss In the short term does not involve brain damage, although the frequency will.
In other words, having continuous drunks or overeating frequently will damage the brain and its Ability to memorize .
Therefore, if a person has been drinking for too long, he may have difficulty memorizing even one day when he does not drink. It is when the condition can be permanent.
In this article You can know foods that improve memory.
4-Impulsivity-Prefrontal Cortex
The prefrontal cortex regulates the impulsiveness And intervenes in the organization of behavior.
Drinking too much can affect the connections in these areas and cause impulsive things to be done that would not have been done in normal situations.
5-Prevent the growth of new cells
Since 1960 it is known that in the brain new neurons are generated during adulthood in a process called Neurogenesis .
These new cells originate from cells that can be divided indefinitely.
However, with high doses of alcohol, the growth of these new cells is disrupted and in the long run results in deficits in areas such as the hippocampus.
Although the previous process still needs several studies to be confirmed, if it is known that during high intakes of alcohol can lose thousands of neurons.
During a drunkenness you can reduce Number of brain neurons In 1000000.
6-Psicosis
A high level of alcohol addiction can lead to psychosis.
It is a serious mental illness that causes hallucinations, paranoias and illusions.
On the other hand, when the person stops drinking suddenly, he can suffer the so-called" delirium tremens T the abstinence syndrome Of alcohol, which includes: headache , Agitation, severe tremors, nausea and vomiting, sweating, drowsiness, cramps and even hallucinations.
It occurs due to the habituation that has occurred in the brain of the alcoholic person. When he leaves the alcohol, there is an over stimulation by the adrenergic system, studying autonomic excitability and psychomotor agitation.
7-Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome
Approximately 80% of alcoholics are Thiamine And some of that percentage develop the so-called Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome .
It is a disease in which two diseases occur together: Wernicke's encephalopathy and Korsakoff's syndrome, different conditions that are due both to brain damage caused by lack of vitamin B (thiamine).
Wernicke's encephalopathy is caused by damaging changes in the brain, usually due to lack of vitamin B-1 (thiamine).
Its symptoms are:
- Abnormal eye movements
- Loss of muscle coordination
- Confusion
- Loss of mental activity
- Abstinence syndrome
Korsakoff's syndrome or psychosis tends to develop as the symptoms of Wernicke's syndrome disappear.
Its symptoms are:
- Confabulation: inventing stories
- Hallucinations: seeing or hearing things that do not exist
- Symptoms of Korsakoff's syndrome
- Inability to form new memories
- Memory loss
And what effects of alcohol on the nervous system do you know? I am interested in your opinion. Thanks!