Alcoholism (What it is, Concept and Definition)

What is alcoholism

Alcoholism is a chronic and generally progressive disease caused by repeated and excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages.

The term alcohol is of Arabic origin made up of 2 words: to the what does it mean he and kohol which expresses “subtle”.

Initially, the term was used to indicate the antimony powder that women used in their eyes; later, the word alcohol was used to refer to any element refined to its essence.

Once the Greeks and Romans discovered the distillation process, the Arabs used the term under study to refer to the distillation product.

According to the World Health Organization, alcoholism is defined as:

“psychoactive substance with dependence-causing properties, it has been widely used in many cultures for centuries. “The harmful consumption of alcohol carries a heavy social and economic burden for societies.”

Alcohol is a drug that acts as a depressant of the central nervous system, that is, as a sedative. In turn, by depressing the brain’s control centers, it reduces inhibitions; however, ingesting large amounts of alcohol can cause disorders in speech and muscle coordination, sleep, and even coma.

In turn, a hereditary predisposition to alcoholism has been demonstrated that could influence the timing of neurological complications.

Alcohol produces psychological and physical dependence. Alcohol dependence has the characteristics of tolerance of its effects and withdrawal symptoms when consuming is stopped, a characteristic that disappears when the affected person drinks another drink.

In reference to the above, some withdrawal symptoms are: headache, anxiety, insomnia, tremors, delirium, seizures, among others. Furthermore, a person who suffers from this disease always has an excuse to drink, the company is no longer important since the only essential thing for the alcoholic is the drink and, like any disease, the patient does not accept that he has a dependence on alcohol, which which is a psychological mechanism to not admit that alcohol dominates your life.

See also: Addiction and Withdrawal.