The term “alcoholism” is commonly used but poorly defined. The World Health Organisation’s definition of alcoholism, in fact, describes it as “a term of long standing use and variable meaning”.
Magnus Huss, a Swedish physician, first used the word in 1849 but in medical circles the words “alcohol abuse” and “alcohol dependence” continued to be preferred. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, alcohol dependence started being called “dipsomania” and, in 1979, WHO disfavoured the use of alcoholism as a diagnostic entity, classifying the condition as “alcohol dependence syndrome”.
The Big Book (from Alcoholics Anonymous) states that once a person becomes an alcoholic he will always remain one. Yet, the publication stops short of explaining what is meant by the term “alcoholic”.
WHO estimates there are 140 million alcoholics worldwide. Often, alcoholics are addicted to other drugs, more often benzodiazepines, whose consumption might require the user to resort to additional medical treatment. Extreme drinking (defined as more than 30 units per day for several weeks) can occasionally cause psychosis – a severe mental illness where hallucinations and delusions of persecution develop.
The recommended daily drinking limits are three to four units for men and two to three units for women: A large glass of wine or a pint of strong lager is equivalent to three units.
Persistently exceeding these limits should make one seek the causes and what help is available to cure the habit.
Experts estimate that alcohol abuse causes at least 33,000 deaths in the UK each year and, while rates of liver disease are falling in the rest of Europe, they are rising in the UK. A 2006 cancer study found that liver cirrhosis deaths were already about twice as high in Scotland as they were in other European countries. Liver disease used to affect mainly drinkers in the middle age but now sufferers are becoming younger. Up to one in three adults in the UK drinks enough alcohol to be at risk of developing alcohol-related liver disease.
Chronic pancreatitis is another disease associated with heavy drinking. It is caused when the pancreas becomes inflamed and cells become damaged. Diabetes is a common side effect of chronic pancreatitis.
There is evidence that heavy drinking can reduce the body’s sensitivity to insulin that can trigger Type 2 diabetes.
Alcohol alters the brain’s chemistry and increases the risk of depression. It is often associated with a range of mental health problems. A recent British survey found that people suffering from anxiety or depression were twice as likely to be heavy alcoholics. Alcohol is a depressant not a stimulant. This means it slows down the brain and the central nervous system’s processes.
What is alcoholism? The suffix “ism” indicates an exaggeration of a condition. In our context, it is the continual heavy drinking of alcoholic liquor, which, by time, exacerbates the mental and physical mode of any individual.
Who can be labelled as an alcoholic? Only the alcoholic can explain if he or she is an alcoholic or not, although alcoholics are nearly all in the denial category, always denying that their defaults can be contagious. But the concept of self-determination causes problems in the family or at work between colleagues and between partners. Any occurrence because of alcohol and any related symptom can evolve to label one an alcoholic.
Alcoholism can spread quickly enough to affect all the members of the family. It goes round like a merry-go-round, feasting during an occasion of indulgence. In a social gathering, the alcoholic wants to be the centre of attraction as a change of metabolism converts him or her into an irrelevant and vague personality.
The alcoholic needs specific help and it is difficult for one to try to cure oneself on one’s own. Will power alone does not work. Although will power features prominently in the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche and in the psychotherapy of Alfred Alder, it will not combat alcoholism on its own. However, it is surely needed if the alcoholic asks for help. Inoculation will not solve alcoholism either and the only sure treatment that gives results is sharing experiences with other alcoholics who have given up the habit. The good news is that former alcoholics who are now sober have come together and formed organisations that help others to come out of their addiction of excessive drinking and return to being exemplary citizens in today’s society.
As these “converts” continually warn us: Beware of the first drink because alcoholics do not and cannot pause and they will continue downing booze till a “last drink” drives them back to their habit. This is the way alcohol works: It affects the brain until the drinker feels less inhibited and more confident. Relying on excessive drinking to boost one’s confidence surely brings embarrassing side effects.
Of course, the above solely concerns the alcoholic or the problem drinker and not the social drinker who enjoys a lesser amount of drinks and is able to make it back home in a proper and gentlemanly manner, yet remaining at all times an able communicator. To the social drinker, I say: Good luck and ad multos annos. To those others who do not fall within this category, I appeal to them to stop and ask quo vadis. Seek help before it is too late for you to come to your senses to be even able to ask yourself that incisive question.