April 2008
NHM Health Focus:
Alcohol
Awareness Month
April is Alcohol
Awareness Month. Often, people who are not alcoholic do not understand
why an alcoholic can’t just “use a little willpower”
to stop drinking. However, alcoholism has little to do with willpower.
Alcoholics are in the grip of a powerful “craving,” or uncontrollable
need, for alcohol that overrides their cognitive ability to stop drinking.
This need can be as strong as the need for food or water. (NCADI, SAMHSA, USDHHS)
National
Alcohol Screening Day® (NASD), Thursday, April 10, 2008, "is
an annual event that provides information about alcohol and health as
well as free, anonymous screening for alcohol-use disorders. Event sites
are located in community, college, primary health care, military and
employment settings. The program is designed to provide outreach, screening
and education about alcohol’s effects on health for the general
public." Screenings tell the participants whether or not consultation
with a professional would be useful. To participate, you can go to a
screening site
near where you live, or you can go to the Internet for an online screening. (NASD)
Regular, long term use of alcohol can:
- "Damage the frontal lobes of the brain.
- Cause an overall reduction in brain size and increase in the size
of the ventricles.
- Lead to alcoholism (addiction to alcohol) and result in tolerance
to the effects of alcohol and a variety of health problems.
- Cause a vitamin deficiency."
Neuroscience
for Kids
"Alcoholism, also known as 'alcohol dependence,' is a disease
that includes four symptoms:
- Craving: A strong need, or compulsion, to drink.
- Loss of control: The inability to limit one’s drinking on any
given occasion.
- Physical dependence: Withdrawal symptoms, such as nausea, sweating,
shakiness, and anxiety, occur when alcohol use is stopped after a
period of heavy drinking.
- Tolerance: The need to drink greater amounts of alcohol in order
to 'get high'.”
(NCADI, SAMHSA, USDHHS)
"Alcoholism, like other addictions, is a brain disorder. Research
has shown that genes shape how an individual experiences alcohol–how
intoxicating, pleasant, or sedating it is–and how susceptible he
or she is to developing alcohol use disorders. Research has also shown
that chronic heavy drinking causes long-term, and perhaps permanent, changes
in the way the brain responds to alcohol. These parallel insights from
neuroscience research are paving the way for new medications that will
improve alcoholism treatment and relapse prevention." (NIAAA)
"Research shows that more than 40 percent of individuals who start
drinking before the age of 15 will develop alcohol abuse or alcohol
dependence at some point in their lives."(SAMHSA, USDHHS)
For those who drink but have not been specifically identified as at
risk for alcoholism, or alcohol abuse, screening is a first step.
Access Excellence @ the National Health Museum resources related to
alcohol and alcohol use:
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