Drugs Of Abuse - Alcohol

Question 1

What is a drug

Answer 1

Anything that altered the normal course of body functioning.

Question 2

What determines alcohol intoxication?

Answer 2

Amount of ethyl alcohol consumed, NOT amount of drinks consumed.

Question 3

Define Alcohol Use?

Answer 3

Consumption within some socially prescribed or ritualistic context.

Question 4

Define Alcohol Misuse.

Answer 4

Unintentional/inappropriate use resulting in impaired physical, mental, emotional, and social well being of user.

Question 5

Define Alcohol abuse.

Answer 5

Not only affects the user (Misuse), but it’s a deliberate choice and affects users family, or society in general.

Question 6

Define Alcohol Dependence.

Answer 6

Psychological and/or physical need; causes compulsive use, tolerance, and physical dependence manifested by withdrawal system.

Question 7

What factors slow the rise of Blood Alcohol Content in the body and it’s absorption?

Answer 7

1. Food/mixed drinks delay BAC.
2. Negative emotions delay BAC (anger, fear, stress, fatigue.)
3. more H20 in body lowers rise of BAC
4. Higher body weight lowers BAC

Question 8

What factors speed up the rise of Blood Alcohol Content in the body and it’s absorption? Also, which kind of organs reach BAC faster?

Answer 8

1) rate of consumption - gulping, shots.
2) Positive emotions - Happiness, excitement.
3) less H20 in body
4) organs with more water or richer blood supply.

Question 9

How is alcohol eliminated from the body and how much is left unchanged?

Answer 9

Through detox and oxidation.
2-5% of all alcohol eliminated is unchanged and removed through urine, sweat, respiration.

Question 10

How does alcohol affect the digestive system? Short-term effects? Long-term?

Answer 10

Irritates the stomach
Produces larger than normal hydrochloric acid.
Creates gas and indigestion in short term.
Creates ulcers in the long term.

Question 11

How does alcohol affect the heart and circulation?

Answer 11

Low doses initially increase the heart rate & BP. The more you drink pumping power is decreased causing an irregular heartbeat.

Question 12

How do moderate doses of alcohol affect the body?

Answer 12

Causes rapid heat loss, decreased internal body temperature and impairs the body’s ability to regulate heat.

Question 13

Name one form of irreversible damage that alcohol causes involving Red blood cells.

Answer 13

Alcohol kills red blood cells but is not able to keep up with the demand of removing the dead BC. So they are stored in small vessels creating sludge.

Question 14

How does alcohol consumption affect the endocrine system?

Answer 14

Cause the pancreas to release additional insulin, which depletes blood sugar causing hypoglycemia.
If it’s mild, sweating, nervousness, weakness, confusion
If severe, abnormal behavior, loss of consciousness, severe confusion or coma
Can cause brain damage if sugar is dropped long enough.

Question 15

How does the body remedy hypoglycemia caused by drinking? How could this affect a diabetic?

Answer 15

The liver produces additional supplies of glycogen causing hyperglycemia. Could put a diabetic into a coma or cause death.

Question 16

Why do you pee a lot when you drink alcohol?

Answer 16

Alcohol prevents vasopressin, tells the kidneys to reabsorb water, causing the kidneys to produce a greater amount of diluted urine to pass.

Question 17

Which neurotransmitter is affected by alcohol that could have dire effects on a pregnant woman? What will it do?

Answer 17

Production of oxytocin is prohibited and may prevent natural labor and delivery. Also dries up milk production.

Question 18

How does the brain protect the body’s vital functions when drinking alcohol.

Answer 18

It depresses the different functional levels of the brain.
1. Intellect- loss of intellect and moral reasoning. say/display behavior we don’t usually exhibit.
2. Emotion- emotions take charge. That’s why they see the “real you”.
3. Motor functions- driving, loss of balance
4. Semi-voluntary- swallowing/drinking. Alcohol has stopped the body from salivating and stopped the eyes from blinking.
5. Involuntary- the body stops digesting food. That’s why you wake up and you throw up. Body is resetting. Also sexual ability.
6. Vital- period of unconscious or coma.

Question 19

What can slow down the body’s ability to detox alcohol from its system?

Answer 19

Caffeine and any other drug. While alcohol still takes precedent, it slows down to detox others as well

Question 20

What is the Reticular Activating System and how does alcohol affect it?

Answer 20

Tells the body when to be active, supplies neurochemicals to activate the system. It’s a function of the medulla oblongata.
If alcohol is consumed prior to the body’s sleep schedule it forces RAS to slow down. When alcohol leaves the body, RAS works twice as hard.

Question 21

How does alcohol affect the body’s REM cycle and how does the body recover from this?

Answer 21

Alcohol suppresses REM sleep.
When recovering, it causes a REM rebound. REM sleep increases dramatically for several days due to recovery.

Question 22

Explain alcohol blackouts.

Answer 22

It’s a period in the heavy drinking phase where the body’s memory processing stops working for some time and you are “unconscious” but awake. Blackouts are not dependent on quality or tolerance of alcohol.

Question 23

Why do hangovers happen? And what could increase the intensity of hangovers?

Answer 23

Cause mainly due to dehydration and suppression vasopressin. (Hormone that conserves water)
Higher amount of Congeners, leftover natural products of fermentation and prep process. Whiskey, scotch, Rum have high amounts.
Aging distilled spirits/wine increases congeners by 3-fold.

Question 24

What contributes to nausea/headache and fatigue when you drink?

Answer 24

Accumulation of acetaldehyde
And fatigue is the high blood sugar after 1 hr of drinking then several hrs later low blood sugar.

Question 25

What is the 3rd leading cause of death?

Answer 25

Alcoholism, behind cancer and heart disease.

Question 26

How do most other ppl define alcoholism in regards to if they have a drinking problem or not?

Answer 26

“if I’m not doing as much as the next guy, I’m not an alcoholic.”