Excessive Alcohol Use and Risks to Women’s Health

Then she was sexually assaulted, and a new pattern emerged. “It’s hard to get out of that cycle of shame, drinking and abuse,” Cooper says. Although the gender gap in alcohol consumption is narrowing among all ages, the reasons differ.

Additionally, changing social mores are making it more acceptable, and in many cases actively encouraging, women of all ages to drink. The combination of more women drinking and women drinkers being more impacted by alcohol has created a health epidemic of women and alcoholism that is impacting millions of American families.

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Prenatal alcohol exposure can cause children to experience physical, cognitive, and behavioral problems, any of which can be components of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders . Drinking during pregnancy can also increase the risk for preterm labor. To date, much of the research into alcoholism and alcohol abuse has focused on men, however, that is changing. As recognition of the growing problem of alcoholism in women continues, there is more research into women with alcoholism. This research includes not only looking at how many women drink alcohol but also how alcohol and alcoholism impact females differently than men.

Fortunately, there are now many different alcohol addiction treatment plans that help ease cravings. Women with a family history of alcoholism will be at risk of the disease. Some women have a hard time maintaining close friendships and romantic relationships. They are prone to drinking alone, which is a sign of alcoholism when it happens often.

Drinking Regardless of Consequences

The long-term health effects of heavy drinking in women are reason for concern. According to research, women who drink excessive amounts of alcohol are at a higher risk for developing certain serious diseases and conditions. One of the major points of concern is the increase in excessive alcohol consumption by adolescent girls. Research shows that youth who begin drinking before the age of 15 have a 40% higher risk of developing alcohol abuse or alcoholism than those who start drinking at older ages. Women who consume large amounts of alcohol are at an increased risk of breast cancer.

Changes in hormone levels during the menstrual cycle may also affect how a woman metabolizes alcohol. Women have lower levels of two enzymes—alcohol dehydrogenase and aldehyde dehydrogenase—that metabolize alcohol in the stomach and liver. As a result, women absorb more alcohol into their bloodstreams than men. “That’s when I got scared, when I tried to not drink and only made it two days,” says Cooper, now 30. In Cooper’s case, drinking eventually led her to drop out of college at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Excessive Alcohol Use is a Risk to Women’s Health

Femininity scores were normal for the al coholic women. Acceptance or nonacceptance of feminine role behavior, heightened by the perception of premenstrual physiologic changes, may serve as a significant stress for alcoholic women. Brain damage from alcoholism is shown to happen sooner in women than in men. Additionally, alcohol consumption in adolescent years is shown to possibly interfere with normal and healthy brain development.

For people over 26, women are increasing their alcohol consumption faster than men. Among teens and young adults, however, there’s an overall decline in drinking. Alcohol consumption can cause early-onset dementia because it causes cognitive abnormalities. Alcohol can also reduce short-term memory and target higher-executive cognitive functions. women and alcoholism These effects are even more pronounced among those who participate in heavy drinking. Said that women, who consume anywhere between 2 to 5 drinks on a daily basis, are 41% more likely to get breast cancer. Heavy alcohol consumption can also be linked to other cancers, such as cancers to the neck, the head, and the digestive tract.