The earlier alcohol consumption begins in age, the greater the risk of dependence and the more serious the disease will be.
Illness, because alcohol addiction is one of them. And it is clear that acute alcoholism starts younger and younger! Binge drinking, in French express biture, that is to say the maximum absorption of alcohol in a minimum of time, affects young people at an earlier age. Scientists from the Institute for Scientific Research on Beverages report children aged 11, 12 or 13 who end up in hospital emergency rooms in comatose states.
With what consequences for their health?
Indeed, alcohol in high doses alters the neurons which will be all the more damaged as the time and the dose of exposure last a long time. And the younger you are, the more immature and fragile the brain. The extreme example is that of the pregnant woman who drinks a lot: this is the 1time cause of mental retardation in children.
And what damage does alcohol produce in older children?
It damages the neurons in such a way that a vicious cycle will be established, making weaning difficult. Indeed, when we drink, we alter our intellectual functions: memory of course, but also the ability to assess the seriousness of a situation and that of initiating changes in behavior. However, for Professor Philippe Gorwood, psychiatrist at St Anne’s in Paris, weaning requires bringing into play these skills which are, due to the disease, deteriorated. The whole difficulty of weaning lies there, and failures are not, as we often believe, linked to weakness or a lack of will, but to the disease itself.
But is there one profile or personality traits more at risk than others?
Indeed, still according to Professor Gorwood, when we are impulsive, unstable, hyperactive, in search of sensation, we will be during the 1er contact with alcohol, much more interested than a person who does not have these personality traits. Because alcohol causes a slight euphoria, disinhibition, a feeling of relaxation, and therefore very positive sensations, we tend to look for them later. A dangerous research to which no animal other than man is exposed Man is the only animal to seek alcohol, all the others avoiding it because they know that it is toxic.
Reference:
IREB Scientific Day 2011 (Institute for Scientific Research on Beverages / Nov 9, 2011 /
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