Diseases of the Nervous System
George Feuer, Felix A. de la Iglesia in Molecular Biochemistry of Human Disease, 2020
Direct effects of acute alcohol intoxication or drunkeness include euphoria, an apparent decrease of the anxiety levels, nausea, dizziness, unsteady gait, and slurred speech287 (Table 4). The initial state can further progress to stupor and coma with respiratory depression. The degree of intoxication is largely dependent on the amount of alcohol consumed and the rate of alcohol metabolism. The metabolism is relatively constant, but modified by previous alcohol consumption and actual dietary intake. Interactions occur between alcohol and barbiturate or diazepam on the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal function in chronic alcoholics.405 The consumption of large amounts of alcohol during pregnancy may cause damage to the embryo and abnormal fetal development.463 Chronic alcoholic mothers may give birth to children with dysmorphic features and mentally deficient children.274,550
Models and theories of addiction
G. Hussein Rassool in Alcohol and Drug Misuse, 2017
According to the psychoanalytic theory, adaptive behaviour requires the harmonious functioning of the id, ego and super ego (the self). These components change during the stages of psychosexual development. The use of alcohol or drugs (smoking) is related to the “fixation” at the oral stage of development. Alcohol use disorder and other pathological conditions are attributed to the conflicts in these stages of development, resulting in the destructive interactions among the three components of the self. The aetiology of alcohol or drug dependence is assumed to develop from sensual satisfaction (avoidance of pain or anxiety), conflict among the id, ego and super ego and fixation in the infantile past (Allen 1996). In order to avoid pain or anxiety, alcohol intoxication is assumed to provide this relief. Freud made little reference to alcohol disorder in his published works but did suggest that the consumption of alcohol provided relief from the conflict generated by oral fixation, or repressed homosexuality. Opiate addiction is used as an attempt to deal with excessively punitive parental standards that create feelings of being unacceptable and worthless (Blatt et al. 1984).
The Extent of the Problems and the Epidemiological Aspects of Alcohol Drinking
Victor R. Preedy, Ronald R. Watson in Alcohol and the Gastrointestinal Tract, 2017
Most prospective studies have found that alcohol drinkers have a lower risk of coronary heart disease than nondrinkers.17-22,26,30,32,37-40 In some studies the risk decreased progressively with increased levels of alcohol consumption30,37-40 and in the others a reverse J- or U-shaped incidence or mortality curve was observed.17-22,26,32 The reductions in risk have been 20 to 70% compared with nondrinkers. The most plausible explanation for the protective effects of moderate alcohol drinking is that it elevates levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol which is inversely associated with the risk of coronary heart disease. In addition, alcohol is associated with an increased prostacyclin/thromboxane ratio and a decreased platelet aggregability. It also interacts with aspirin to prolong bleeding time. Alcohol also increases the release of plasminogen activator and lowers the level of fibrinogens, a potent risk factor for coronary heart disease.39 The biological plausibility and the consistent results in past epidemiological studies suggest a causal relationship.
Dedicated Swedish Football Supporters’ Narratives about Alcohol and Drug Use and Treatment Needs: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Interview Study
Published in Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly, 2022
There is also a link between football, alcohol, drugs, and violence (e.g. Cleland & Cashmore, 2016; Newson, 2019; Ostrowsky, 2018). It has been argued that relatively small groups of so-called hooligans enact violence and disturbances, and use drugs, whereas other researchers maintain that drugs, predominantly cocaine, are integrated into the whole supporter culture (Cleland & Cashmore, 2016; Newson, 2021; Rookwood & Pearson, 2010). It should be noted that alcohol intoxication can contribute to cocaine use (Guo, Ward, & Speed, 2020) and that individual alcohol use is influenced by the consumption of others (Bernhardsson, 2014; Ormerod & Wiltshire, 2009). The supporter culture is distinctly masculine, and stereotypical ideas about masculinity can foster substance use and violent behaviors (Burstyn, 1999; Cleland & Cashmore, 2016; Dunning, 1986; Van de Mieroop, 2009). Social context and relationships indeed influence the development, maintenance, and termination of SUD (Allen & Olson, 2016). Therefore, context and relationships need to be acknowledged in treatment aimed at persons with risky substance use, mild to severe AUD and/or SUD (American Psychiatric Association [APA], 2013).
A Theory-Based Intervention to Reduce Risk and Vulnerability Factors of Sexual Aggression Perpetration and Victimization in German University Students
Published in The Journal of Sex Research, 2022
Isabell Schuster, Paulina Tomaszewska, Barbara Krahé
Several factors at the behavioral level have been associated with a risk of sexual aggression perpetration and higher vulnerability to sexual victimization. It is estimated that alcohol is involved in as many as 9 out of 10 cases of men’s self-reported perpetration incidents (Koss et al., 2022). Alcohol use, both in sexual situations and as a general pattern of behavior, may contribute to a higher likelihood of sexual aggression perpetration and victimization due to its psychological and pharmacological effects (Abbey et al., 2004; Rogers & Rogers, 2021). On the side of the perpetrator, alcohol impairs higher-order cognitive processes and narrows the perceptual field, facilitating the misperception of the other person’s signals. Also, short-term benefits of sex may become more salient than the potential negative long-term effects. On the side of the victim, alcohol intoxication may undermine the recognition of risk cues and the ability to resist due to motor and cognitive impairments.
Male mice exposed to chronic intermittent ethanol exposure exhibit significant upregulation or downregulation of circular RNAs
Published in The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, 2022
Zhe Gong, Xiaoming Rong, Xiangpen Li, Hongxuan Wang, Dandan Liu, Lei He, Jingrui Pan, Qingyu Shen, Ying Peng
Alcohol use disorder is characterized by loss of control in alcohol consumption, a strong desire for alcohol drinking, and anxiety or depression during withdrawal. It involves several neurobiological aspects, including alterations of various neurotransmitters and their receptors in specific areas (1), neuroinflammation (2), and neurohormonal changes (3). Among these, neurotransmitters, including dopamine, glutamate, γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), serotonin, and endogenous opiates, are thought to be involved in the motivation for drug seeking and maintenance of alcohol use after developing an alcohol use disorder (4,5). Despite the harmful consequences of this disorder, effective preventive strategies and treatment options remain suboptimal. Moreover, the biomarkers of alcohol use disorder remain unknown.