Consuming alcohol more than three times per week may harm your health. You are likely at a high risk of early death even if you drink alcohol moderately, such as three or more times a week.
According to the CDC and other federal agencies, moderate intake of alcohol refers to drinking no more than a single drink per day for women or two drinks per day for men. So, there is a substantial difference between the recommended alcohol dose for men and women. But why is that so? This is because of the way your body metabolizes alcohol.
Let’s understand the difference between the metabolization of alcohol in men and women.
The bodies of women are generally smaller and have a lower percentage of body water. Women also tend to have a higher liver-to-lean-body-mass ratio. As a result of these two factors, women reach their peak blood alcohol levels faster as compared to men. This means that women metabolize alcohol faster as compared to men. That is why the recommended weekly dose of alcohol for women is significantly lower than that for men.
Furthermore, according to some research and studies, women are more sensitive to organ damage due to alcohol consumption as compared to men. It has also been seen that men become more mentally and physically dependent on alcohol than women.
What are the risks of excessive alcohol consumption?
Excessive consumption of alcohol has never been kind to anyone’s brain and body. And when you drink too much, you might get health issues. Alcohol consumption has negative effects on almost every organ in your body, including the nervous system. The intensity of these negative effects has a direct relationship with the quantity of alcohol consumed.
Your brain has neurotransmitters that are disrupted due to excessive alcohol consumption. This has serious effects on the functioning of your nervous system and the impairment of your motor skills. Similarly, your liver metabolizes alcohol, but it can process one alcoholic beverage per hour. So, if you drink alcohol excessively, the drink is likely to be saturated and circulating within the body. This causes potential liver damage, including cirrhosis, fibrosis, steatosis, and alcoholic hepatitis.
Excessive alcohol consumption can also be linked to heart diseases and cancers.
Excessive alcohol consumption is associated with permanent heart damage. It can cause heart-related issues such as Arrhythmia/irregular heartbeat, cardiomyopathy, heart attack or stroke, and increased blood pressure. Furthermore, when you consume more than recommended amounts of alcohol regularly, you are at an increased risk of cancer development in certain areas of your body,including the liver, mouth, breast, and throat.
Excessive alcohol consumption ultimately becomes an addiction.
Heavy alcohol use can become an addiction for many people. This addiction is often termed an alcohol use disorder. This disorder is often associated with the inability of an individual to limit drinking and continue drinking despite its negative impact on their lives, obtaining the desired effect that requires you to drink more and more, or wanting to drink so badly that you can not think of any other option.
So, how many times a week should you drink?
It varies from person to person. However, you should keep one important thing in mind: your liver is only able to metabolize a single drink per hour. If you consume more than one drink per hour, this can cause serious damage to your vital organs.
Furthermore, according to the NIAAA, drinking for women is considered heavy when women consume 7 or more drinks per week, whereas 15 or more drinks per week have been considered heavy drinking for men.
It is important to know that consumption of large amounts of alcohol for a long period disrupts the connection between your brain, immune system, and endocrine system, as a result of which you face hormonal imbalances. This further ends up in various kinds of complications.
Visit Fantastic Life and get all the important information regarding various conditions and their effects on your body. You may also consult the best nutritionists and health care experts who will guide you regarding different aspects, including your diet and lifestyle changes, to help you live a better and healthier life.