Binge drinking is defined in America as four or more consecutive drinks for a woman and five or more drinks for a man on a single occasion. It is unhealthy and produces many negative outcomes – some in the short-term and others more long range.
Short-term Consequences
Perhaps the most common consequence of binge drinking is the next day’s hangover. Feeling nauseated, tired and suffering a headache after a night of drinking may seem like a small price to pay – but it’s the body’s way to letting you know that it has been poisoned. You may vomit for the same reason.
Longer-term Consequences
People who start out binging on the weekends often see their drinking start to bleed over in their weekdays too. Around 25 percent of those who begin by binge drinking go on to develop a regular drinking habit. When that happens, alcohol starts to affect work, school, relationships and health, including fertility among both men and women.
Alcohol affects the brain both short-term and long-term. In the short-term, drinking affects a person’s ability to speak and behave normally. It also makes them less inhibited and less capable of making sound judgments. Car accidents, risky sex, altercations and injuries are the short-term consequences of impeding the brain with alcohol. Over longer amounts of time drinking can lead to depression which can, in turn, drive further drinking.
And, most people are aware that long-term drinking can do serious and irreparable harm to the liver – the organ chiefly responsible for filtering alcohol. Cancers and other chronic illnesses are also related to long-term drinking.
Binge drinking is most often practiced by young men, but not by them exclusively. And, it can quickly become a more static problem. Just one episode of binge drinking can cause deadly alcohol poisoning which is another way to say you can die from an overdose of alcohol. If you or someone near you is consuming too much alcohol weekend after weekend, it’s time to get help. Family Guidance can offer that help. Call today.
