10 Ways Alcohol Is Slowly Killing You

Each time you pour that drink , you might be pouring more than just liquid into your body . Beyond the buzz and the relaxation lies a cascade of effects , some subtle and some glaringly obvious . In today's video , we're going to be uncovering the 10 often overlooked ways that alcohol is chipping away at your health .

Listen , it's not just about the hangovers or the occasional missteps . There's a bigger picture and today we're bringing it into focus . I hope you're ready to face this sobering truth . So at number one , we've got compromised bones . Basically , your bones are in a permanent state of flux .

Old bone is constantly being broken down in order to be replaced by new bone . Specialized cells called osteoclasts do the destruction bit and different cells called osteoblasts carry out the rebuilding . Now , sadly , alcohol interferes with the bone building cells , the osteoblasts , suppressing their activity .

The end result is an imbalance between the bone being destroyed and recreated , in other words , bone loss . Scientists first noticed that heavy drinkers have reduced bone mass . More than half a century ago they then discovered that drinkers also suffer from reduced bone minimal density , or BMD . This is the measure of the quality and strength of one's bones .

The lower the score , the poorer the quality . When BMD falls below a certain point , it is classed as full blown osteoporosis , and heavy drinkers are up to 63% more likely to be diagnosed with osteoporosis . As a result of these extensive changes in bone mass and quality , heavy drinkers are especially prone to fractures .

Now this can get so bad that these people can be walking around with multiple fractures and not even know it . Most often these are located in the ribs , with some people having as many as three fractured ribs without even knowing . But it's not just the ribs . More or less every single bone in the body becomes more susceptible .

The harmful effects of alcohol on the bones become more pronounced with age . In other words , the older the drinker , the more weakened and susceptible to fractures . The bones are At number two . We've got brain shrinkage . Years of heavy drinking will also invariably take a toll on your brain . You see , alcohol is a neurotoxin .

It attacks and eventually kills your brain cells , and it does it in ways that scientists haven't completely figured out . What they do know for sure is that , after chronic alcohol abuse , your brain will shrink .

The number of dead brain cells eventually reaches such dimensions that you can literally see the differences in before and after images of the brain using techniques like MRI or CT . Some parts of the brain are particularly prone to this shrinkage .

They include the frontal lobe , which controls higher level cognitive processes like executive functioning , as well as parts of the so-called limbic system , which regulates emotions and memory . Now , the sad news is that whatever cells your brain loses , it cannot generally replace .

The good news , though , is , after stopping drinking , you will be able to regain some of the lost brain mass , but this is mostly due to the existing cells making additional connections . The cells that have already died are gone forever . What's more is that the recovery in brain mass is very fragile .

So as long as you stay abstinent , you keep your gains , but even a relatively brief relapse , say a few weeks of heavy drinking , is enough to shrink your brain back to its previous size , it says , if its innate defenses against ethanol are permanently compromised . Even if you've abstained for years . At number three , we've got cognitive decline .

You can't expect to lose all this brain mass and function without problems . Psychologists and psychiatrists describe what happens to the mental faculties of chronic drinkers as quote generalized cognitive deficits . What this actually means is that your mind's ability to process and act on information is compromised across the board .

First and foremost is the damage to your memory . Listen , if you're like me , you've probably had your fair share of mornings where you literally wake up and cannot really remember what happened the night before . This is called episodic memory , but it's far from the only type of affected memory .

Drinking alcohol also impacts prospective memory , namely remembering to do something in the future , as well as semantic memory , for example remembering the capital of Malta . It also impacts major memory .

This is how well one understands and controls their own memory performance , and heavy drinkers , for example those who present for treatment , are generally unaware of just how much their memory is compromised . They don't understand there's a problem in the first place . But perhaps even more worrying is alcohol's effect on so-called executive function .

This is an umbrella term that encompasses several distinct but related cognitive processes . It refers to our ability to plan , control and monitor goal-directed actions . Executive function comprises faculties like attention , working memory , inhibiting a response when necessary , deducing rules , being flexible and solving problems .

This executive function suffers in chronic drinkers , and it might be part of the reason why they find it so difficult to stop . You see , their ability to process all relevant information relating to their drinking , resist impulsive behaviors and plan their way out of this highly problematic situation is compromised .

You already have the problems with the addiction and withdrawal symptoms , and then to these you add an impaired executive function . So it's no wonder that so many chronic drinkers just find it impossible to stop . But here's the crazy thing . There's more , actually much more , which we simply do not have time to look into in today's video .

But if you click the link up here , there'll be another video that you can watch that explains how it affects the brain in much more detail . And in closing this section , I will mention briefly that social cognition and emotional processing also suffer .

This means that , compared to non-drinkers , drinkers show deficits in processing emotions like humor , irony or identifying emotions from another person's face . This difficulty is particularly prevalent when the other person's face is signaling a negative emotion like disgust or anger . So much for alcohol as a social lubricant .

Now the good thing is after you stop drinking , your cognitive abilities will start to recover , to varying degrees and speeds . Now , at number four , we've got mental health decay . So alcohol is almost unique among drugs in just how many different brain circuits that it affects . You see , our brain cells communicate via specialized molecules called neurotransmitters .

One brain cell produces the neurotransmitter , which is then picked up by another brain cell , prompting it to do something . And that is communication . And it's this simple communication between billions of our neurons that gives rise to all of our thoughts , emotions and behaviors .

So the problem with alcohol is that it artificially enhances or suppresses the activity of these various neurotransmitters , including those that regulate our emotions . So eventually this leads to semi-permanent changes in various brain circuits and a skyrocketing risk of developing depressive or anxiety disorders .

These here can get quite murky for scientists to tear apart , because the relationship is dynamic and bi-directional . In other words , not only does alcohol lead to deteriorating mental health , but many people with mental health issues turn to alcohol as a support mechanism .

Be that it is may , it is almost certain that even in these latter cases , the alcohol usage only exacerbates the mental health problems Rather than helping . It simply increases the severity and duration of the disease . Just a few numbers will give you a pretty good handle of the close link between alcohol and mental health . Numbers , and here they are .

Approximately one out of three men and women who are hooked on alcohol report at least one severe depressive episode , and 40% will report a history of panic attacks , which are a severe episode of anxiety where the person might have difficulty breathing and even feel like they're dying .

Other types of anxiety disorders are also very prevalent and , sadly , in response to these mental health problems , the drinker will often turn to the one thing that they know well , that which contributed to these issues in the first place , the bottle Number five . We've got whole scale liver destruction .

So one of the many functions of the human liver is acting like a detoxification sensor for our body . Most of our blood passes and is filtered through the liver , so the toxins that we ingest , usually through food , are trapped in the liver , broken down and eventually expelled through urine or feces . It's the same with alcohol .

The large majority of what we drink is broken down or metabolized in the liver . Now the problem is that when the liver metabolizes alcohol , it first converts it into an even more toxic molecule called acetaldehyde . So , because of its chemical structure , acetaldehyde is a highly reactive molecule .

In other words , it likes to interact with anything that it encounters inside a cell , including proteins and DNA , and whatever acetaldehyde interacts with it basically destroys . Over time , this action of acetaldehyde on the molecular level leads to visible and often life-changing liver disease .

Alcoholic liver disease can progress through three separate but largely overlapping stages . First there is fatty liver disease . This is almost universal among heavy drinkers and it's the stage where excess fat begins to be deposited in the liver . The liver swells up as it literally becomes fat , but there aren't any other visible symptoms .

Now the second stage is alcoholic hepatitis . Here the liver becomes inflamed and the damage to the liver cells becomes so extensive that scar tissue begins to form , replacing previous healthy tissue . If left untracked , this may progress to suorosis . This is irreversible end-stage liver disease .

Here the liver's scarring becomes so extensive that the liver actually ceases to function properly and , depending on the severity , at this point you basically have a few months or years left to live . At number six we've got metabolic deterioration , including weight gain .

Now the metabolic syndrome refers to a constellation of related symptoms that include high blood pressure , obesity , high blood sugar and elevated triglycerides .

It signifies a fundamental dysregulation in the way that a person processes food and consumes energy and is linked to a higher risk of cardiovascular disease and shortened life expectancy Due to poor eating habits and an increasingly sedentary lifestyle . Up to one-third of the US population is now estimated to suffer from this .

But the problem is now global , a major public health concern in more or less all developed countries , and there is increasing evidence that alcohol is contributing to this . According to one perspective study out of Korea , with nearly 4,000 participants , the risk of metabolic syndrome goes up with heavy drinking .

The effect seems to be more pronounced if the person consumes heavy liquors compared to lighter alcohol like wine or beer . Now , one of the signs of metabolic syndrome , as we saw , is being overweight , particularly around the waist . With up to 200 calories in a drink , the link between alcohol and obesity should not come as a surprise .

While there is some disagreement between scientists on this point , most are probably of the opinion that the calories that you consume from alcohol are additive to your regular food . In other words , you don't compensate for the excess booze calories by eating less .

You eat as much as you would in the first place , if not more , and this is because alcohol appears to stimulate the appetite , and typically not towards the healthiest of foods . I can't remember a single day where I found myself drunk , you know , craving a salad . Typically it was fast food kebabs , pizza , this kind of stuff .

Now , at number seven , we've got cardiovascular decay .

Alcohol and acetaldehyde affects your cardiovascular system in a variety of ways and , despite what your evening news might be trying to feed you , I can assure you that none of it is pleasant . So , for starters , heavy drinkers are prone to hypertension . According to some estimates , up to 16% of hypertension cases in the general population may be linked to alcohol .

While hypertension has no symptoms per se , it dramatically increases your risk of dying prematurely from complications like heart disease and stroke . Speaking about strokes , researchers have found that heavy drinking can increase one's chance of getting a stroke by up to 82% . Considering the potentially life-altering consequences of a stroke , this figure is truly sobering .

Heavy drinking is also linked to atrial fibrillation , which is a scientific name for a type of irregular heartbeat . This can come about as a result of a short bout of heavy drinking . Doctors actually used to call this holiday heart , because it was so common among people who were coming back from holidays with heavy drinking .

Atrial fibrillation probably happens through alcohol directly attacking the heart , as well as indirectly , by raising hypertension . According to one estimate , heavy drinkers are as much as 50% more likely to develop this confed to non-drinkers .

If left unchecked , this atrial fibrillation can progress to its chronic form , which is not only more difficult to reverse , but can also be very dangerous . In extreme cases , chronic drinking can completely compromise the structural integrity of the heart . Imagine a rubber band that's been stretched to the point of losing its shape .

This is so-called alcohol-induced cardiomyopathy and can affect up to 2% of heavy drinkers . Symptoms include difficulty breathing , chest pain and weakness . There is no cure for this condition other than stopping drinking , but even this might not be enough to fully reverse it .

At number 8 , we've got lowered fertility levels , so if you are trying or intend to start trying for children , then kicking the bottle will probably be one of the best things that you could possibly do . I say this because we now have a mountain of evidence that heavily drinking affects fertility , not just in men , but also in women .

According to various studies , up to 40% of women trying to get pregnant with IVF are also drinkers , and among these women , those who drink at least 4 drinks a week have a 16% lower probability of a live birth . Alcohol basically throws a wrecking ball to a woman's reproductive system .

It can cause alternations in ovulation and lead to an irregular menstrual cycle , whilst also upsetting the balance of various hormones , including estradiol , testarone and the luteinizing hormone . It's no surprise that women who drink will hit the menopause on average at a younger age compared to non-drinkers .

Drinking also directly impacts the so-called ovarian reserve , which is a measure of the quantity and quality of a woman's remaining eggs . So if you're a woman watching this video , there's even vaguely considering having children in the future . I have one piece of advice for you right now Stop drinking now and listen .

If you think that men have it better , think again . Just like ladies , men can also expect their hormonal balance to be seriously compromised . Studies with long-term drinkers reported lower testosterone levels , as well as an increase in estradiol , a form of estrogen .

Other studies find decreased sperm production , accompanied by a wide range of qualitative declines in the remaining sperm cells . And then , of course , there's the big elephant in the room Men have not only their hormones and sperm to worry about , but also the added headache of not functioning properly .

Predictably , sexual dysfunction and erectile problems are widespread amongst heavy drinkers . One study found that a whopping 54% of heavy drinkers attaining a treatment center had issues with decreased libido . 36% of men in this sample also had erectile dysfunction , while 13% experienced difficulty ejaculating . Pretty depressing .

At number nine , we've got impaired immune function . The observation that heavy drinkers have compromised immune systems goes back a couple of centuries . The doctors already then noticed that these individuals were far more likely to come down with diseases like tuberculosis and pneumonia compared to non-drinkers .

According to some estimates , heavy drinkers are almost three times likely to come down with TB compared to non-drinkers . They also fare worse in terms of recovery and they are more likely to die .

Scientists suspect that this is down to a combination of factors , including the destruction of immune cells like CD4 and CD8 T cells , damage to the lungs , oxidative stress and malnutrition . Another important factor is the alteration of the gut microbiome as alcohol passes through the gastrointestinal tract .

Now this microbiome consists of countless beneficial microorganisms living in our gut , and their interactions with the immune system are crucial in maintaining our immune system's homeostasis and preventing inflammation . Now , at number 10 , we've got a skyrocketing cancer risk . So alcohol is a proven carcinogen .

It attacks and mutates more or less any cell that it comes into contact with . According to the National Cancer Institute , this is probably due to a variety of factors . These include the generation of acetaldehyde , which , as we saw , is a highly destructive metabolite of alcohol and can seriously damage the DNA in our cells .

There are also other highly reactive molecules generated through drinking , called reactive oxygen species . These are oxygen containing molecules that are highly reactive in a similar fashion to acetaldehyde . Drinking also affects our absorption of various vitamins and minerals that probably offer some protection against cancer .

Most notably , we've got vitamin D , but micronutrients like vitamin C and folic acid have also been suggested to protect against cancer . So , regardless of the exact mechanism , what we know for sure is that heavy drinkers have a massively increased risk of developing cancer in a variety of sites .

Now these include liver cancer , with a two-fold risk compared to non-drinkers , larynx with a 2.5-fold increase , liver with a two-fold increase , and breast cancer in women , where the risk is raised by a massive 60% .

A 60% increase might not seem like a lot compared to , say , the five-fold risk to the increase in the pharynx , but given that breast cancer accounts for 30% of all new cancer cases in the US , this 60% rise translates to an untold amount of human pain . Now , after you stop drinking , your cancer risk will start to decline , but not immediately .

Some researchers have actually suggested that there is a temporary spike in risk . However , the risks do start to decline , and after several years , it'll eventually resemble that of a non-drinker .

Now I know that we said that we'd be looking at 10 ways that alcohol can ruin your health , but I could not resist the temptation to add a bonus 11 point , perhaps the most important of all , and it is this as long as you are drinking , you can never develop a truly healthy lifestyle .

The bottle will always be a kind of heavy bowl , keeping you chained to various other unhealthy habits . For example , heavy drinkers are more likely to also be smokers compared to the general population . They're also more likely to abuse a variety of other drugs , both illicit and prescription . As long as you're drinking , your diet is also likely to suffer .

Heavy drinkers are notorious for having unhealthy eating habits and are commonly deficient in a variety of vitamins and minerals that we covered earlier . And , of course , as long as you're drinking , it's unlikely that you'll be able to sustain long periods of regular exercise .

Think about the last time you hit a gym after a drink and a night out , and your sleep will also suffer , as will your mood .

In one sentence , alcohol will prevent you from reaching your full potential as a human being your lifestyle as it relates to health will never be what it could be , and this will have a knock-on effect on your productivity , your finances , your relationships and more or less every other aspect of your life .

Thanks for checking out the Stop Drinking podcast by SoberClear . If you want to learn more about how we work with people to help them stop drinking effortlessly , then make sure to visit wwwsoberclearcom .