Most of us must have had experience of alcohol intake, for different reasons. You might have taken it just to feel excited as wrongly believed or as one of the escapades of youthful exuberance. It might as well be from one of the parties, get together or meet-up. Hope you enjoyed the experience. Of course I will not leave out those that make it daily routine.
Have you also heard about the popular saying "Alcohol is good for your health" usually said more often than not by those that consume much alcohol? Anyway, we are not here to argue if alcohol is beneficial to your health or not. Just know that it's risk outweighs whatever benefit.
The truth is that occasional consumption of mild to moderate quantity of alcohol is safe and could have some health benefits, but when consumed on a regular basis and in much quantity, it becomes harmful to you. That daily gulp could mean an addiction of one or more health risks. A wide range of organ/system in your body could be affected, and some of such damage might be irreversible.
What is more dangerous, quantity or concentration?
Both quantity, frequency and concentration of the alcohol is all important when considering the health risks. Small qauntity of concentrated alcohol might be more dangerous than consuming a larger quantity of less concentrated alcohol. This explains why those people abusing (local) gin and rum usually come down with problems than those consuming much beer and it's like. Of course age, sex and individual genetic differences can affect how much effect alcohol has on individuals.
Note: Alcoholism is a disease characterized by: inability to control alcohol use, a need to consume increasingly larger amounts of alcohol, and/or a constant impulse to consume alcohol. If this sounds familiar, please seek professional treatment immediately. With the right help, alcoholism is a 100% curable disease. source
Harmful effects of alcohol to your Health
A large percentage of the alcohol you take in is absorbed into your body and has the ability to penetrate into every organ of your body. It can cause damage when the level builds up from continuous and large consumption.
Gastrointestinal Tract
Stomach
Alcohol can cause irritation of your stomach lining, increase secretion of acid and juice thus predisposition you to gastritis and peptic ulcer. It can also aggravate pre-existing ulcer and long term effect might include stomach cancers.Liver
The liver is an important organ in the body that detoxifies most of the harmful substances we eat. Things we ingest through the mouth is first passed through the liver.
Alcohol can cause inflammatory of the liver (hepatitis) and deposition of fats in the liver. This can lead to impaired liver function. Prolonged inflammation, cellular damage and attempt at repair leads to replacement of the liver cells by scar tissue with the end result of liver cirrhosis.Pancreas
Alcohol can cause inflammation of your pancreas and impair its function. This can lead to impaired insulin production and predispose one to type 2 diabetes mellitus.
Cardiovascular system
Alcohol can cause increased fat deposition in blood vessel (atherosclerosis).
It can increase your blood pressure and cause irregular beating of your heart( arrhythmia).
Alcohol also cause weakening of heart muscle and enlargement of the heart. The overall effect is increasing your risk of heart diseases.
Reproductive and urinary systems
Infertility has been linked to excessive alcohol intake. There is also increased risk of birth defects associated with alcohol intake. It has also been indirectly linked to increase transmission of sexually transmitted infections from unprotected intercourse.
Alcohol suppresses the secretion of ADH, a substance produced in the brain that help your kidney hold back urine. This accounts for increase urination experienced after alcohol consumption and predisposes you to dehydration.
Central Nervous System
Alcohol intoxication is associated with obvious CNS changes like slurred speech, impaired memory, loss of coordination and balance and even loss of consciousness. Alcohol is a CNS depressant.
Social vices
Alcohol increase the risk of social vices like rape and unwanted pregnancy, theft and other violent behaviors.
Increased Risk of injury
Alcohol exposures one to array of injuries. This could be in the form of RTA from wreckless driving, falls from loss of balance, etc.
Conclusion
Some health benefits have been associated with consumption of mild to moderate alcohol but much more harmful effects have also been documented. The degree of these effects vary in individuals mainly due to differences in their genetic makeup. If you can not control the frequency and amount of alcohol you take, it's better to avoid it completely.
References
Healthline : The Effects Of Alcohol On Your Body
Quitalcohol.com: The Truth About What Alcohol Does To Your Body