Furthermore, alcohol can have many physical effects on a person’s body; internal organs and systems can be severely damaged and even shut down when too much alcohol is consumed (#2). The prolonged use of large amounts of alcohol without an adequate diet may cause serious liver damage, such as “cirrhosis of the liver" (Secretary of health 47). “It has been estimated that 10% of all alcoholic persons develop cirrhosis, a disease characterized by diffuse scarring of the liver” (Secretary of health 47). The central nervous system can also be permanently damaged causing a person to possibly blackout, hallucinate, and experience tremors. The term “blackout” does not mean loss of consciousness, but is referred to as the “lost hour” with the intoxicated person remembering nothing the next day (Burgess 13). The withdrawal symptoms that a severe alcoholic can experience are sometimes compared to the same withdrawals as a heroin addict, yet people still do not consider alcohol to be a drug. Drinking during pregnancy can cause serious damage to the unborn child. An unborn child of an alcoholic may develop mental or physical retardation during pregnancy. Additionally, a child who has an alcoholic parent is much more likely to become an alcoholic themselves later in life.

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