Medical experts have known for a long time that smoking in all forms by expectant mothers will cause effect and damage to the foetus .So usually these children turn to have physical body problems.
The development of the baby’s cells and organs can be affected differently by alcohol at different stages during pregnancy – so it’s hard to predict the outcome
- Some babies exposed to high levels of alcohol will die before they are born
- Some of these factors include when in the pregnancy alcohol was consumed, how much and how often
- Some other factors include the genetics of the baby and the mother as well as
2 . ALCOHOL CAN CLOSE THE BRAIN :
Difficulty walking, blurred vision, slurred speech, slowed reaction times, impaired memory: Clearly, alcohol affects the brain. Some of these impairments are detectable after only one or two drinks and quickly resolve when drinking stops.
On the other hand, a person who drinks heavily over a long period of time may have brain deficits that persist well after he or she achieves sobriety. Exactly how alcohol affects the brain and the likelihood of reversing the impact of heavy drinking on the brain remain hot topics in alcohol research today.
We do know that heavy drinking may have extensive and far–reaching effects on the brain, ranging from simple “slips” in memory to permanent and debilitating conditions that require lifetime custodial care. And even moderate drinking leads to short–term impairment, as shown by extensive research on the impact of drinking on driving.
A number of factors influence how and to what extent alcohol affects the brain (1), including
- how much and how often a person drinks;
- the age at which he or she first began drinking, and how long he or she has been drinking;
- the person’s age, level of education, gender, genetic background, and family history of alcoholism;
- whether he or she is at risk as a result of prenatal alcohol exposure; and
- his or her general health status.
3 . ALCOHOL USE AND CANCER :
Most people know that heavy alcohol drinking can cause health problems. But many people might not know that drinking alcohol can raise their cancer risk.Alcohol is a known cause of cancers of the:
Alcohol may also increase the risk of cancer of the pancreas.
For each of these cancers, the risk increases with the amount of alcohol consumed.
Cancers of the mouth, throat, voice box, and esophagus: Alcohol use clearly raises the risk of these cancers. Drinking and smoking together raises the risk of these cancers far more than the effects of either drinking or smoking alone. This might be because alcohol can act as a solvent, helping harmful chemicals in tobacco to get inside the cells that line the digestive tract. Alcohol may also slow down these cells’ ability to repair damage to their DNA caused by chemicals in tobacco.
Liver cancer: Long-term alcohol use has been linked to an increased risk of liver cancer. Regular, heavy alcohol use can damage the liver, leading to inflammation. This, in turn, might raise the risk of liver cancer.
Colon and rectal cancer: Alcohol use has been linked with a higher risk of cancers of the colon and rectum. The evidence for such a link is generally stronger in men than in women, although studies have found the link in both sexes.
Breast cancer: Even a few drinks a week is linked with an increased risk of breast cancer in women. This risk may be especially high in women who do not get enough folate (a B vitamin) in their diet or through supplements. Alcohol can affect estrogen levels in the body, which may explain some of the increased risk. Drinking less alcohol may be an important way for many women to lower their risk of breast cancer.
Does the type of drink matter?
Ethanol is the type of alcohol found in alcoholic drinks, whether they are beers, wines, or liquors (distilled spirits). These drinks contain different percentages of ethanol, but in general a standard size drink of any type — 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine, or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof liquor — contains about the same amount of ethanol (about half an ounce). Of course, larger or ‘stronger’ drinks can contain more ethanol than this.Overall, the amount of alcohol consumed over time, not the type of alcoholic beverage, seems to be the most important factor in raising cancer risk. Most evidence suggests that it is the ethanol that increases the risk, not other things in the drink.
4 .Infertility and alcohol - find out the physical effects of alcohol on our fertility health!
Alcohol has been part of human culture throughout the world from the earliest of times. Scientist have found evidence of a wine like drink in fragments of 9000 year old Chinese jars! People have included alcohol as part of important celebrations, religious ceremonies, and as offerings for their Gods and ancestors!
These days we don’t tend to wait for a special occasion to have a drink. Most of us enjoy the occasional wine with our dinner, after work beer, or a good night out with our friends! That’s quite normal!
In today's society, we're bombarded with advertisements on television and magazines promoting the new favourite alcoholic beverage of choice. The temptation is hard to avoid. That’s all good if you are a responsible drinker! The fact is, it's not uncommon for us to drink a little more than we intended!
Research has suggested that 'light alcohol consumption' may actually offer some health benefits, although it's another story when too much is consumed! Alcohol affects every organ in the body and can lead to a range of disorders if misused. Unfortunately there's one physical effect of alcohol on the body that we may not even think about!
There's a definite link between infertility and alcohol. The physical effects of alcohol on the body if you are planning to conceive are just too hazardous to ignore or take lightly! This goes for guys and gals!
Drinking may be lowering or delaying your chances of starting a family! It's scientifically proven that alcohol abuse can damage the reproductive system. Numerous studies are suggesting that the higher your alcohol consumption, the less chance you have of conceiving!
However, current research is also indicating that even a moderate level of drinking may be affecting our fertility health (although the information regarding the 'associated levels' are still unclear). What's classed as moderate consumption varies with health guidelines within different countries. Women seem to develop alcohol related medical conditions at significantly lower levels of consumption than men.
The fact is, that if you and your partner are trying for a baby, there's no definite safe level of alcohol consumption in regards to fertility.
How is infertility and alcohol related?
One of the most common physical effects of alcohol is a significant depletion of vitamins and minerals. The body's less capable of absorbing and processing the essential nutrients that are required for our system and reproductive health.
Alcohol's pure carbohydrate, but has no vitamin or mineral content (these are needed to break down carbs). Our system will then draw out the vitamins and minerals from other parts of the body. This leads to many deficiencies. This is one reason how infertility and alcohol may be related, because our fertility health is reliant on many nutrients.
The liver acts like a filter protecting the body from different toxins, but alcohol can impair this detoxifying process. This organ can become weakened through too much drinking, as the liver is overworked trying to metabolize the alcohol. This can cause a person to become run down and sick.
Alcohol consumption can contribute to hormonal imbalances. We have a family of hormones in our body called estrogen (which includes estradiol, estrone, and estriol). These hormones classed as ‘steroid hormones’ are an important part of the different sexual functions for both men and women.
An overworked liver can cause an excess of estrogen to build up in our system (a healthy liver would normally help to regulate this hormone). This then puts the estrogen/progesterone hormones out of balance, thus promoting estrogen dominance problems and diseases which can have a huge impact on our reproductive health!
This situation is made even worst because we are surrounded by estrogen mimicking chemicals (in modern society.) These chemicals are inadvertently ingested, absorbed through our skin, and inhaled, so these need to be filtered through the liver for detoxification. Read up on this very important topic within our environmental health hazards page!
Therefore if you are serious about conceiving you must take into account that you should be introducing a preconception care plan into your lives (both partners). As the infertility and alcohol relationship is an identified problem in today's society, it's wise to cut out the drinking for a while. Your body really needs to detoxify and replenish lost nutrients to ensure optimal fertility for both partners, and so you conceive a healthy child.
We will now look into what the physical effects of alcohol are in regards to our fertility health -
Infertility and alcohol - Men
Men who drink regularly are more prone to erection problems. Long term alcoholism may cause permanent impotency.Alcohol consumption depletes zinc which is vital for male fertility. Zinc is needed in high concentrations in the sperm as it makes up the outer layer and the tail. Zinc deficiency is a common cause of low sperm count.
Alcoholics have very low vitamin c in their body, as most of this nutrient is used fighting off the alcohols toxic effects. This vitamin is extremely important for sperm cells, as it protects them from oxitive damage, and helps to stop agglutination (a condition where the sperm clump together).
As liver impairment causes higher levels of the hormone estrogen in the male body, this in turn causes a drop in the progesterone hormone (precursor to testosterone). Sperm production can be adversely affected by this imbalance. An imbalance of estrogen can also lead to breast enlargement (gynecomastia) "which no man wants", or more prevalent for older men, prostate enlargement.
Research has shown that alcohol's a major contributing factor towards sperm cell damage or depletion, meaning low sperm counts, reduced sperm motility and abnormal morphology (shape). Continued alcoholism can cause permanent sperm cell abnormality and prostate damage.
Infertility and alcohol - Women
Hormone imbalance, one of the physical effects of drinking, directly interferes with the whole ovulation/menstruation cycle process. This is the major link between infertility and alcohol for women.♦ Anovulation (lack of ovulation with period).
♦ Amenorrhea (ceased menstruation cycle).
♦ Oligomenorrhea (irregular menstruation).
♦ Luteal phase dysfunction - abnormalities of the endometrial lining of the uterus, which may result in miscarriage.
♦ Alcohol induced hyperprolactinemia - presence of abnormally high levels of the prolactin hormone in the blood (this condition is more prevalent in females than in males). Besides menstruation irregularities, other symptoms may include a non pregnant/nursing woman producing breast milk and loss of libido.
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