Drinks Cost More than Money

Nearly all college-aged individuals know the effects of drinking alcohol, right? The effects come on slow at first, a good feeling, a sudden increase in quality and quantity of your dance moves, and an increase in friendliness with the people around you.

It doesn’t sound so bad, does it? But the truth is that while parts of your brain are enjoying the happy mood, loosened inhibitions, and overall fun experience, other parts of your body are paying the bill for it immediately.

Unlike that mountain of despair known as your student loans, which could be the reason that you’re reaching for the bottle in the first place, you don’t have an option to pay now or later. A more accurate comparison would be that you are on a cash only shopping spree.

You pay now every time that you make a purchase. It doesn’t mean that you will go broke overnight, but it also doesn’t mean that your savings, in this case your health, will last forever.

Impact on Body Systems

With just one night of binge drinking, which is classified as any bout of drinking that raises your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) over .08, certain systems in your body will be impacted more than others. Immediately as you begin drinking, your poor excretory system begins attempting to rid your body of the toxins that you are so hastily filling it with.

Until that point in the night, your liver was enjoying a relaxing evening. Now, as you begin to flood your body with more liquid courage than you can handle, it’s like your liver just got an email about a 12 page term paper due tomorrow that it forgot to write. So, your liver jumps up and starts working right away in an attempt to keep you safe, which puts a considerable amount stress of the liver.

If you continue to do this over time, it can lead to permanent liver damage and possibly serious health issues. Remember to keep in mind that the liver is just one of many organs in your body that is physically affected by alcohol use and abuse.

Short- and Long-Term Effects

In addition to the added strain on the excretory system, other systems, like the central nervous system, the circulatory system, musculoskeletal system, and the immune system, will endure many negative effects due to alcohol, especially chronic use. Although the health concerns associated with chronic alcohol use seem like obvious facts, the odds of alcohol consumption dropping are on par with the odds of its negative effects ceasing to take effect.

The important thing to keep in mind is that everything you put into your body will have some kind of effect on it. Whether it’s one drink or twelve, your organs and body systems will be impacted.

Alcohol is an integral part of many cultures across the world; however, people should educate themselves on the short- and long-term effects of alcohol use and abuse to ensure that they don’t cause themselves unnecessary harm.

As with any substance that you choose to put into your body, weigh the risks and benefits so that you can make the most informed choice possible.