Impact Of Lifestyle Factors: Alcohol Flashcards
What is meant by alcohol?
Drug that affects every organ in your body
CNS depressant that’s readily absorbed from stomach & small intestine into bloodstream
What is meant by binge drinking?
AKA Excessive alcohol consumption
Drinking heavily in short space of time to get drunk/feel effects of alcohol
Consuming large quantities of alcohol in single session
What does the NHS recommend for drinking limits?
Men shouldn’t regularly drink more than 3-4 units of alcohol per day
Women shouldn’t regularly drink more 2-3 of alcohol per day
If you’ve had heavy drinking session, avoid alcohol for 48 hours
‘Regularly’ - drinking these amounts every day/most days of week
It’s advised to spread alcohol intake throughout week to avoid binges & include 2-3 alcohol free days per week
What is meant by a unit?
1 unit = 10ml/8g of pure alcohol, which is average amount adult can process in hour
Idea of counting alcohol units first introduced in UK in 1987 to help people keep track of drinking
Therefore, within hour, there should be little/no alcohol left in blood of adult, although will vary from person to person
What are the risks of alcohol consumption?
Liver problems
Reduced fertility
High blood pressure
Increased risk of various cancers
Malnutrition
Psychological health problems
Heart attack
Fully explain some of the negative physical effects of alcohol consumption
Stroke - Brian tissue dies as result of sudden & severe disruption of blood flow to brain
Cirrhosis - chronic abuse of alcohol over long time can lead to cirrhosis of liver, which may result in liver failure & death
Hypertension - relationship between alcohol use & blood pressure important as hypertension is key factor in risk of CHD & stroke. Hypertension = systolic blood pressure above 140mm Hg & diastolic above 90mm Hg
Depression - alcohol dependence may occur together & depression commonly reported in those being treated for alcohol dependence
Fully explain some of the negative social effects of alcohol consumption
Damaging relationships with family, friends, work colleagues
Being involved in anti-social or criminal behaviour, e.g. fights, domestic violence, vandalism & theft
Becoming involved in accident, e.g. road accident, accident at work or accidental fire
Loss of job, e.g. repeated absence or poor performance, major financial consequences
Becoming victim of crime, e.g. rape, domestic violence, mugging or assault
Fully explain some of the positive physical effects of alcohol consumption
Alcohol consumed in moderation thought to help reduce risk of HD
Research study published in 1992 suggested low death rates from CHD could be due to relatively high consumption of wine in France. Similar pattern of diet & alcohol consumption has also been found in other south European countries where HD rates lower compared to rest of world
These observations prompted long series of research studies analysing relationship between wine & CHD
Red wine, in particular, also contains flavonoids that act as antioxidants, which help to reduce build up of atherosclerosis (fat building up in inner walls of arteries)
Red wine helps maintain flexibility of blood vessel walls
Fully explain some of the positive social effects of alcohol consumption
People who abstain from alcohol more likely to be depressed, according to Norwegian study from 2009
This, however, could be from social & personality factors, rather than anything to do with alcohol
