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Alcohol and the
Damage it does to Your Organs
The effects of alcohol are very harsh on the stomach and it can
hinder the ability for the digestive juices within it to break
down food for absorption. This can result in food that is not
fully digested. Other symptoms of food not being fully digested
include a feeling of extreme fullness, nausea, heartburn, acid
reflux, belching, flatulence, and appetite loss. The appetite loss
is especially troublesome because the person will want to drink
more and eat less. This condition is also known as dyspepsia and
while dyspepsia is not a disease in and of itself, it is the
result of acidic disturbances in the stomach caused by such things
as too much alcohol intake. The remainder of this article
discusses some ways alcohol damages your vital organs:
Damage to the Liver
Alcohol affects pretty much the entire body but it is especially
hard on the liver. The liver actually goes through dramatic
physical changes because of alcohol. To put it simply, the liver
is the organ within our body whose purpose is to filter toxins.
Alcohol is a toxin. When we drink even small amounts of alcohol it
affects our liver. The cellular components of a healthy liver are
able to retain active foreign substances. These foreign substances
can also be poisonous compounds. Alcohol affects the liver in the
same way. When the liver gets saturated with alcohol faster than
it can metabolize it, a person becomes drunk. With the alcoholic,
the liver is rarely free from saturation and damage occurs. There
is increased pressure in the liver’s blood vessels causing what is
known as portal hypertension. Because the vessels get dilated, the
liver begins to enlarge, discharges fluid, and its tissue gets
thick. The organ’s ability to function decreases with the
introduction of scar tissue internally. The alcoholic will also
suffer from swelling in the lower parts of the body partly due to
the obstruction for blood to return in the cardiovascular system.
The liver will also progress into a stage known as “fatty liver”
because of the increase in fatty cells that saturate it.
Damage to the Kidneys
Included in the organs that are damage due to excesses in alcohol
consumption are the kidneys. They are normally elastic and lose
this characteristic. Losing elasticity affects their ability to
contract. Fatty changes result in the tiny structures of the organ
as well. A condition of low albumin occurs as the blood begins to
pass easily through the membranes of the organs. The effect is the
same as the body slowly losing its blood supply because albumin is
essential in maintaining blood volume.
Damage to the Lungs
On the lungs, alcohol relaxes them. The problem with forcing their
relaxation is that they are defenseless to variations outside heat
and cold. This kind of defenseless exposure to the elements can
cause congestion in the lungs. The alcoholic is at even greater
risk in the harsh winters because the congestion in the lungs can
at times be fatal.
Damage to the Heart
The intake of alcohol has very significant effects on the
functioning of the heart. Membranes surrounding the heart lining
get thickened in a calcareous or cartilaginous manner because of
the alcohol. The heart valves also go through a loss of
flexibility and become permanently damaged with valvular
disorders. The linings of the main artery stemming from the heart
also loses elasticity and cannot recoil after pressure from within
is relieved from normal blood pumping. In other words, the artery
does not flex as it is filled with blood and then relaxed due to a
normal heart pump cycle.
These changes to the heart tissue break down the muscular
structure of the heart and cause it to fail. Further changes
include replacement of the muscle fibers with fatty cells as well
as other changes that alter the structure of the muscles and
reduce their ability to contract.
These changes also progress so silently and the victim does not
realize there is a problem until it is too late and the damage is
done. During the time the damage is occurring, the person is aware
of things like tiring easily, inability to sleep through the
night, and changes in eating habits. This person also feels like
there is some impending doom but finds relief through alcohol and
other stimulants. So they continue to consume alcohol unawares
that it is damaging their heart until this organ fails. It just
wears out and even before it fails, its inability to adequately
supply tissues in the body with oxygen-rich blood causes damage in
other organs.
Original Article
Source:
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