 ALCOHOL is the most
commonly used
psychoactive (mind-altering) substance used in the
United
States.
AKA: Booze, Sauce,
Brews, Brewskis, Hooch, Hard Stuff,
Juice
In today's world, alcohol is not often thought
of as a drug -
largely because its use is common for both
religious and
social purposes in most parts of the world. It is
a drug,
nonetheless, and drinking in excess has become one of
modern society's most serious and pandemic problems.
- Ethyl alcohol
is the active psychoactive drug found in
alcoholic
beverages. It is produced as a waste
product of the
fermentation of carbohydrates, and is
consumed worldwide for
the social and
psychological effects it produces.
- Beer is a low
potency alcoholic beverage made by
fermenting grains and
then extracting the liquid from
the mash.
- Wine is a
relatively low potency alcoholic beverage
made by fermenting
fruit juices (or other sugary
liquid).
- Distilled
spirits are high potency alcoholic beverages
that are
made by fermenting grains or fruit juices and
then
distilling the resulting liquid to reduce its water
content
and to concentrate its alcohol.
Effects:
The effects of alcohol can range from mild intoxication; a
feeling of warmth; flushed skin; impaired judgment;
decreased
inhibitions to extreme intoxication, coma and
death. The effect
will vary according to body size, amount
consumed and time frame
of consumption. Combining
alcohol with other drugs can intensify
the effects of these
other drugs. Many accidental deaths have
occurred after
people have used alcohol combined with other
drugs.
Long-term effects of alcohol appear after repeated use over a
period of many months or years. The negative physical and
psychological effects of chronic abuse are many and some
are
potentially life threatening. Some of these problems are
primary
(they result directly from prolonged exposure to
alcohol's toxic
effects), such as heart and liver disease,
pancreatitis, ulcers
and inflammation of the stomach.
Others are secondary (indirectly related to chronic alcohol
abuse), they include loss of appetite, vitamin deficiencies,
infections, social problems and sexual impotence or
menstrual
irregularities. The risk of serious disease
increases greatly
with the amount of alcohol consumed ove
time.
Dependency:
Physical and psychological dependence occurs in
consistently
heavy drinkers. Alcohol is an extremely poten
drug and when the
user's body has adapted to the presence
of alcohol, he or she
will suffer withdrawal symptoms if
alcohol use is stopped
suddenly. Withdrawal symptoms
range from jumpiness,
sleeplessness, sweating, and poor
appetite, to tremors (the
"shakes"), convulsions,
hallucinations, and sometimes death in
those with an
already deteriorated physical condition. It is a
little-known
fact that alcohol is one of the most difficult and
dangerous
drugs to detoxify from after an extended period of
heavy
use.
Physical Dependence: Severe with frequent, heavy use
Psychological Dependence: moderate
Tolerance: Strong with frequent, heavy use
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