Why Those Who Binge Drink May Need an Alcohol Detox

Why Those Who Binge Drink May Need an Alcohol Detox

By Dr. Fourkan Ali

Analcohol detox is something that is required by those who have developed a physical dependence on alcohol. These people experience withdrawal symptoms whenever the effects of alcohol begin to wear off, and these can include headaches, sweating, shaking and nausea.

Physical dependence on alcohol is known as alcoholism, and it is an illness that affects millions of people around the world. Despite this, many are of the opinion that alcohol is harmless because it is legally available. They are aware that drinking too much can affect a person’s judgement and co-ordination, but they are unable to comprehend the fact that it can do a lot of damage to physical and mental health.

Alcoholism can cause illnesses such as cancer and dementia as well as many other conditions, but still many continue to abuse this highly addictive substance. And many do so to the point where they are in danger of developing an addiction that requires an alcohol detox to have some chance at a normal life once more.

Consequences of Excessive Alcohol Consumption

The body can process about one unit of alcohol every hour. When a person drinks more than this, he or she will begin to feel the effects, which can result in a number of negative consequences, particularly considering that alcohol can cause people to lose their inhibitions, make poor decisions, and take unnecessary risks.

Christina Lochhead from Perthshire has received a thirty-month driving ban after getting behind the wheel of a car while being eight times over the legal driving limit. Police have said that Lochhead’s alcohol reading of 177 mg of alcohol per 100 ml of breath was the highest they had ever recorded.

The effects of the alcohol caused her to fall asleep at the wheel and crash into a bridge. The legal driving limit is 22 mg of alcohol per 100 ml of breath. Luckily, nobody was seriously hurt after the accident, which happened at 1pm when there would have been many other drivers, pedestrians and cyclists about. She was also sentenced to 250 hours of community service.

How Excessive Alcohol Consumption Can Cause Addiction

While most individuals drink well below the recommended weekly alcohol guidelines of fourteen units, there are some who regularly drink more than this in one drinking session, putting themselves in danger of developing a number of health problems or having an accident.

However, excessive alcohol consumption can also lead to alcohol addiction, or alcoholism, as the illness is otherwise known. Alcoholism is a progressive illness that will get steadily worse over time. The trouble with it is that many people are unaware that they have crossed the line from habitual drinking to problem drinking.

Drinking a glass of wine with dinner may seem harmless enough, but if this is done every night, or if that one glass becomes two, you could be in dangerous territory. The more alcohol a person consumes, the more their body adapts to the presence of it until it gets to the point where the body actually craves it.

When this happens, a physical dependence occurs and those affected are unable to control their urge to drink alcohol.