ALCOHOL AND THE HUMAN BODY

[Music] here is a colorless liquid that looks like water it has a pungent odor and a burning sweet taste its chemical formula is c2 h5oh this is ethyl alcohol the alcohol found in intoxicating beverages it's made out of carbohydrates such as starch or sugar cereal grains are starchy materials commonly used in making alcoholic beverages out of wheat beer is usually made beer contains about four and one half percent ethyl alcohol as shown by the striped area across the bottom of the bottle grapes and other products that contain sugar can also be used to make alcoholic beverages out of grapes wine is made wine contains about 15 percent ethyl alcohol all alcoholic beverages are products of fermentation as these samples of wheat and grapes are fermenting alcohol is being produced the raw material usually needs to be prepared for fermentation by breaking or cracking or crushing whatever is being used fermentation has to take place fermentation is the action of yeast cells on sugars to produce alcohol the bubbles seen here are carbon dioxide given off during the fermentation beer and wine are products of fermentation alone but whiskey a third type of alcoholic beverage requires distillation as well as fermentation the alcohol is separated from the other materials in the fermented mixture in this case the alcohol is made out of fermented corn mesh when the fermented mixture is heated vapors are given off that contain products of the fermentation including a relatively high percentage of alcohol as the vapors cool they change to liquid and drip from the distillery whiskey ordinarily contains about 43 percent or more of alcohol when we compare the three kinds of beverages we see that whiskey contains more alcohol than either wine or beer but in each of the three beverages the intoxicating part is always the same substance ethyl alcohol by using animated drawings we will see what happens to alcohol in the body in the alcoholic beverage shown here the black dots represent the ethyl alcohol content the alcohol travels down the esophagus and into the stomach and the small intestine capillaries in the stomach lead into a branch of the portal blood vein that connects with the liver shown at the left these capillaries absorb alcohol directly from the stomach and the portal vein carries this alcohol to the liver other capillaries absorb alcohol from the small intestine shown at the bottom the portal vein carries that alcohol to the liver also in the liver some of the alcohol undergoes an immediate change enzymes found only in the liver react with the alcohol and change it to acetic acid represented here as white dots this means that the alcohol burns or oxidizes thereby releasing calories of heat energy the acetic acid molecules and the molecules of ethyl alcohol not acted upon immediately by the liver pass on through the veins to the heart shown here in the center the more alcohol that reaches the liver at one time the more alcohol goes on to the heart unchanged the heart pumps this blood containing alcohol and the acetic acid into the arteries and on to all parts of the body whereas only the liver oxidizes pure ethyl alcohol to acetic acid any body tissue as for example the tissue shown here can oxidize acetic acid as acetic acid represented by the white dots burns heat energy is released and waste materials eliminated thus the liver is the one organ of the body where oxidation of alcohol to acetic acid takes place so except for small amounts of alcohol that escape through the lungs and kidneys alcohol in the bloodstream remains unchanged until it can be acted upon by the liver as the liver oxidizes molecules of alcohol to acetic acid other molecules return from the bloodstream the liver oxidizes about three-fourths of an ounce of alcohol per hour until the alcohol is all oxidized as long as there is any alcohol in the bloodstream some of it reaches the brain here it acts as an anesthetic the effects of alcohol in the human brain vary somewhat from person to person but its main effects follow a general pattern at first the greatest effect is on the cerebrum outlined here with a black border as little as five hundredths of one percent of alcohol in the bloodstream may affect this area 500 percent is about one ounce of undiluted alcohol in the entire bloodstream this darkened area is the judgment center and the center for tensions and anxieties even small amounts of alcohol tend to deaden these centers and because of this may provide an illusion of relaxation this is ordinarily the situation in moderate social drinking as the concentration of alcohol in the blood rises above 500 percent the judgment center becomes more and more depressed gradually too the muscular control center becomes less responsive to incoming signals from nerves in all parts of the body the person usually feels confident that everything is all right but a condition like this develops drivers in this condition are incapable of making responses fast enough for the safety of themselves or others this leads to accidents the vision center too is affected during intoxication this impairs the individual's normal vision blurring and other abnormalities of vision frequently occur driving or walking in traffic is extremely hazardous under such conditions if the concentration of alcohol continues to increase it finally affects a deeper center toward the base of the brain called the cerebellum when the concentration of alcohol in the bloodstream reaches about four tenths percent unconsciousness usually occurs four tenths percent is about eight ounces of undiluted alcohol in the entire bloodstream of an average sized adult gradually the brain and other organs are free of the anesthetic effect of the ethyl alcohol but even after consciousness is regained it takes some time before the person is fully in control of his muscular processes after deep intoxication the sobering up period for an average sized adult may take 12 hours or more even beyond this amount of time loss there frequently is a further period of partial incapacity so we have seen that alcohol oxidizes in the body and produces heat energy in this respect it is like any other food but as a food heat energy is all that pure alcohol can provide most other foods supply some needed material such as proteins vitamins or minerals pure alcohol contains none of these even though it supplies calories the substitution of alcohol for other foods over a long period of time produces serious nutritional deficiencies and decreases the resistance to infections into such diseases as pellegra [Music] those who are unable to avoid chronic over-indulgence in ethyl alcohol such as this man are usually termed alcoholics or problem drinkers for him like other alcoholics alcohol disrupts his life and injures his health investigations are convincing medical authorities that the problem drinker is a sick person this man needs medical attention the old method of treatment for a person in this condition was to throw him in jail but the hospital is the place for a person in a helpless condition due to alcohol medical science can help the problem drink or regain his physical health when there is any doubt as to the cause of the patient's condition a complete medical examination must be made an eye check will help determine whether the patient is suffering from shock by means of chemical tests on a sample of his blood the patient can be checked for diabetes and other diseases that may have symptoms similar to those of alcoholism blood pressure and heart tests will reveal the condition of the circulatory system physical tests and the study of the patient's history are needed in order to make sure that he is really suffering from alcoholism hospitalization for several days may be needed during this time he receives a balanced diet and is treated medically if necessary although he may recover physically he must avoid all future use of alcoholic beverages it's made clear to him before he leaves the hospital that even a single drink will certainly lead him back again to chronic alcoholism it's essential that every drinker understand how alcohol affects his body and face the possibility of someday becoming an alcoholic and he should realize that alcohol is a potential menace to community safety as well as to his personal health you