We celebrate a birthday once a year but we are allowed to commemorate our unbirthdays 364 days of the year. In the end, age is just a number though. What really matters is life experience and understanding as we continue to age on a cellular level. We’re given this one vessel to live in doing with as we please and sometimes that vessel wears and tears quicker than the mind.
It kind of goes back to the question of how old would you be if you didn’t know how old you were? Do you go by aesthetics or by the emotional maturity of the person? Well when you take the mind and body of an alcoholic, there are so many factors that contribute to our physical aging from alcohol abuse.
All drugs take their toll on the body over prolonged periods of time. Alcohol abuse is no different. As they say, alcohol is a drug– period. The empty cans of fermented courage that we cling on to make us feel good for the time being, but sometimes the damage caused is irreversible. If looks and pulling off your best version of Adonis happens to be something of extreme value to you- pour the rest out for the homies because alcohol is only going to make you look older.
Tall Boys for Old Boys
Naruhisa Yamaki MD, an associate of the Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine claims that there is an element called telomeres in the body that has a lot to do with alcohol abuse and the rapid aging that takes place in this cause and effect scenario. “Telomeres, the protein caps on the ends of human chromosomes, are markers of aging and overall health.” Naruhisa spelled it out very simply. He went on to basically elaborate that every time a cell replicates itself, a little bit of the telomere on the chromosomes is shed and lost, so they the telomere lessens with aging.
“Our study showed that alcoholic patients have a shortened telomere length, which means that heavy drinking causes biological aging at a cellular level,” he further explained in regards to alcohol abuse. “It is alcohol rather than acetaldehyde that is associated with a shortened telomere length.”
Essentially when broken down into layman’s terms, alcohol abuse can cause the body to lose its natural telomere quicker and prevent oxygen from getting to the parts of the body in dire need. It is believed by Yamaki and his fellow associates that oxidation stress, telomere shortening, and neuron death are all linked together in some manner or another.
In a study started by Yamaki, he took 255 participants from alcoholism treatment services at Kurihama National Hospital in Yokosuka, Japan: 134 alcoholic patients and 121 age-matched controls or non-alcoholics, ranging in age from 41 to 85 years old. Histories, habits, origins and many factors were taken into account while gauging the varying telomere caps.
Quicker Ages from Liquor Hazes
This isn’t only about looks though. The cellular rate that alcohol abuse increases is on all cells in the body. This goes back to our conversation about wear and tear. As the body begins to age in a manner disregarding length of time on this planet, this means that so will the function of the body and the systems running the whole well-oiled machine. As organs and blood vessels begin to deteriorate, this will place the person in question in a more vulnerable state as far as the sentiments of their health go. They will become more prone to diseases and susceptible to other age-related illnesses such as
- Cardiovascular disease
- Diabetes
- Cancer
- Dementia
Now, of course, a lot of these maladies are dependent upon genetics and other assorted components of nature, but the point being is that the accelerated loss of telomere will cause mild effects of aging to occur much sooner than your physical vessel is anticipating.
Growing Old in a Bottle
No doubt about it, whether cracking open a brew or screwing the top of some glass, the oxidations stress brought about by alcohol abuse will cause things to backfire as far as aging may go. However, that doesn’t take into account all the miserable adverse effects that alcohol abuse tends to bring along as we chug the validation juice.
Those of us afflicted with alcoholic thinking will obsess over alcohol until the day we die unless we take action defeating our demons. Alcohol abuse doesn’t appear overnight nor does it Houdini it’s way out of your life that quickly either. Alcoholism is a cunning, powerful, and baffling disease that will lead the chemically dependent person down a path of pungent regret and distasteful decisions.
The idea behind alcohol abuse isn’t so much about how much alcohol was consumed, but more so about how quickly it was ingested and how quickly it will proceed to ruin your life. Eventually, your brain and its receptors will become over saturated from the alcohol going into your bloodstream. As this rapid cellular aging continues, the liver and kidneys won’t be able to process the liquids as the body would prefer. In a butterfly effect chain reaction, then the brain kind of just drowns itself for a little bit as wet brain becomes a closer reality on the race for destruction. Hopefully, most who are reading this can understand why alcohol abuse is so detrimental to the brain over the course of time.
Newborn Way of Life
Although alcohol can have some nasty effects after being abused for so long, that doesn’t mean that it’s ever too late to put the booze down. Nothing is permanent in this life except for death. Don’t become a victim to alcohol abuse allowing it to age you right into a hole 6 feet deep in the ground. Let your candle burn out naturally. If you or a loved one has been struggling to make the next step, please call 866-433-1992 or visit www.anylength.net. We have trained specialists on standby ready to help you start sending your life in a direction that will have you come out on top feeling healthy and happy with the outcome of your future. The time to love yourself is now.