The immediate physical effects of drinking alcohol can range from mild mood changes to complete loss of coordination, vision, balance, and speech. Any of these can be signals of poisoning known as acute alcohol intoxication, or drunkenness. These effects usually wear off in a matter of hours after a person stops drinking. Many law-enforcement agencies regard a .08 percentage of alcohol in the bloodstream as evidence of intoxication. Larger amounts of blood alcohol can impair brain function and eventually cause unconsciousnes

Simply drinking regularly can bring about damage to internal organs. A heavy drinker will suffer brain shrinkage, which is loss of brain cells. Not only that but even moderate drinking may affect the functioning of your brain. This can all lead to loss of memory. A heavy drinker can get a build up of fatty deposits in the liver, which can eventually lead to a disease called cirrhosis and means that the liver is irreversibly damaged. Through drinking, gastritis and stomach bleeding can be caused. Heavy drinkers will increase their likelihood of getting cancer. By drinking excessively you are doubling the risk of getting cancer of the gullet, trebling it for cancer of the throat and quadrupling it for cancer of the voice box. The risk of getting breast cancer is also greatly increased. Heavy drinkers can get nerve pains or tightening in the arms and legs, something that is very uncomfortable.

Do you have a drinking problem? Have you ever felt you should cut down on your drinking? Have people annoyed you by criticizing your drinking? Have you ever felt bad or guilty about your drinking? Have you ever had a drink the first thing in the morning to steady your nerves or get rid of a hangover? If you answered ¡§yes¡¨ to one question, you may have a problem with alcohol. More than one ¡§yes¡¨ answer makes it highly likely that a problem exists. If you feel you have a problem with alcohol, please see your health professional right away. Effective treatment is available.

The following symptoms are associated with abuse of alcohol; temporary blackouts or memory loss, recurrent arguments or fights with family members or friends, continuing use of alcohol to relax, to cheer up, to sleep, to deal with problems, or to feel "normal", headache, anxiety, insomnia, nausea, or other unpleasant symptoms when you stop drinking, flushed skin and broken capillaries on the face; a husky voice; trembling hands; chronic diarrhea; and drinking alone, in the mornings, or in secret. These

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