Alcoholism

Alcoholism is a chronic illness characterized by the habitual consumption of alcohol. Some alcoholics drink daily. Others drink less often, but the drinking becomes out of control. Alcohol use is to the degree that it interferes with physical or mental health or with normal social or work behavior. Alcoholics who do not quit drinking decrease life expectancy by 10 to 15 years.
Alcohol produces both physical and psychological addiction. It is a central nervous system depressant that reduces anxiety, inhibition, and feelings of guilt. It lowers alertness and impairs perception, judgment, and motor coordination. In high doses, it can cause loss of consciousness and even death. Chronic alcoholism damages the brain, liver, heart. Alcohol also can impair vision, impair sexual function, slow circulation, cause malnutrition, cause water retention (resulting in weight gain and bloating), lead to pancreatitis and skin disorders (such as middle-age acne), dilate blood vessels near the skin caus...