Friday, February 19, 2021

How Alcoholism Is Destroying Your Muscles – Know The Facts

 

Alcoholism has a serious impact on your health. It can break you physically and emotionally and leave you nothing but a weak and sick body and mind. If you are already on muscle gaining activities, alcohol can hamper your effort. You don’t need to be addicted, but a sufficient quantity of drink regularly is enough to create muscle discomfort in your body. You notice a kind of joint pain or muscle discomfort in the morning after having heavy drinks at night. So, if someone consumes alcohol regularly, it can make the situation worse. Going for residential rehabilitation can solve your issues or consult the best rehab healthcare centers like Rehab HC to treat your problems properly is essential.

Common Muscle Problems You Can Have

If any of your relatives are suffering from alcohol addiction, he/she may have the following muscle problems like

  • Muscle cramps
  • Aching joints
  • Impaired recovery
  • Weakness
  • Poor performance in physical activities
  • Less endurance

Effects of Alcohol on Muscle Development

Medical professionals know how alcohol can damage your muscles. As per several studies, it has been proved that alcohol has many negative impacts on the human body, damaging muscle growth, and development. For example, alcohol causes dehydration. If you stayed dehydrated for hours, it can damage your muscle growth and become weak. Here are some of the ways alcohol can damage your muscle development.

1. Alcohol Prevents Calcium Absorption

Calcium is one of the major nutrients that your body requires for bones and muscle development. But, when someone depends much on alcohol, it prevents the absorption of calcium into your bloodstream and hampers muscles’ growth. As a result, your body gets weak by losing strength.

2. Alcohol Induces the Release of Creatine Kinase

Creatine Kinase is a kind of chemical that lives in the muscles of your body. Whenever you are injured, your muscles release this chemical to cure the injury and build the muscles to function again properly. But, increased release of CK means your muscles are more injured. When an alcoholic person goes through a blood test, the result shows a high level of CK. This means the person is going through severe muscle damage. To put it simply, alcohol damages muscles and release CK in high quantity.

3. Alcohol Causes Muscle Cramps

This is another way how alcohol causes muscle damage. The job of your liver is to get rid of any harmful substances as soon as possible. Now, your liver takes much time to get rid of it and remains in your bloodstream when you consume alcohol. Thus, it makes your body intoxicated. Now, if you exercise, your body produces lactic acid, causing cramps. Usually, your liver always works to get rid of lactic acid to keep your body working. But, when you already have alcohol in your body, your liver tries to remove that first. So, the lactic acid remains in your body, and you suffer from muscle cramps.

4. Alcohol Causes Aching Body

People, who are too alcoholic, always suffer from joint pains and aching body. It happens because alcohol makes you dehydrated. Alcohol works as a diuretic, which means it increases urine production. Once you urinate frequently, your body will lose enough fluid, and you get dehydrated. As a result, your body aches and suffer from cramps. If you have alcohol, drink enough water to keep your body hydrated.

5. Alcohol Hampers in Re-building the Muscles

To build the muscles, Human Growth Hormone (HGH) works effectively. It helps in building muscles and collagen in your body. Consuming too much alcohol can disrupt the function of HGH and, thus, damages your muscle growth. Besides, the HGH is produced during sleep. Alcohol however damages the sleeping pattern and thus, reduces the overall production of HGH. Alcohol also increases the level of the stress hormone, which damages the production of HGH.

6. Alcohol Can Cause Muscle Inflammation

Studies prove that alcohol causes inflammation in your body. Once you are feeling the sensation in your muscles, you feel agitated. When someone is already suffering from muscle and bone diseases like arthritis and gout, alcohol can worsen.

These are some ways in which alcohol damages your muscles. If you are suffering from alcohol addiction and its side effects, it is time to consult the UK’s best drug and alcohol addiction treatment. Rehab Healthcare or Rehab HC is a leading name among rehab healthcare centers in the UK. Instead of following any DIY method, you should always follow the expert’s advice from the rehab centers to solve your addiction and treat your physical and mental issues due to the addiction.

Visit: https://rehabhc.co.uk/how-alcoholism-is-destroying-your-muscles-know-the-facts/


Benzodiazepine Detox – Things You Need To Know


 Certain medicines come with habit-forming functions. If they are taken in high doses for a long time, you can get addicted to them. The addiction can go into such a bad condition that you may need to go through the detox program. Benzodiazepine is a drug used for treating different types of issues like insomnia, anxiety disorder, epilepsy, and alcohol withdrawal. This medicine is so addictive that taking it without prescription or having it in high doses can result in addiction. To get rid of this, you need to visit the best rehab healthcare like Rehab HC to get the best treatment to get out of your addiction.

What Is Benzodiazepine Withdrawal?

Benzodiazepines, popularly known as ‘Benzos,’ are prescribed drugs used to treat several kinds of disorders like stress, anxiety disorder, muscle tension, epilepsy, panic attacks, insomnia and even alcohol withdrawal. Once a user takes Benzos for a long time, they develop a tolerance to it and start taking it for a more extended period. As the tolerance increases, the users need to increase the dose to feel the drug’s impacts. This addiction can be deadly if the user doesn’t go through any Benzodiazepine detox treatment.

The first step of the treatment is always to safely help the patient to stop taking the drug. On stopping the medication, the patient will experience withdrawal symptoms, but a rehab centre like RehabHC knows how to deal with such situations and help the patient.

Symptoms of Benzodiazepine Withdrawal

Any kind of withdrawal symptom from addiction is harrowing and stressful. The patients with Benzodiazepine addiction will have to go through this. They will suffer physically and emotionally throughout the withdrawal period, and this time is going to be tough and even life-threatening. The more extended period you are taking this drug, the more intense withdrawal symptoms you will face. It is not safe to just stop taking benzos on your own so best to seek help.

The most common symptoms are-

  • Sleep disturbances
  • Anxiety
  • Increased tension
  • Difficulty in concentrating
  • Panic attacks
  • Heavily sweating
  • Immense headache
  • Palpitating heart
  • Cravings
  • Muscular pain/stiffness
  • Hand tremors

In cases of severe addiction, more severe symptoms can be noticed. These are less common, but people with high addiction may suffer from-

  • Hallucinations
  • Suicidal thoughts
  • Psychotic reactions
  • Seizures

How Long the Benzodiazepine Withdrawal Lasts?

Practitioners prescribe different doses of Benzos for individuals. As per the brands, the life of the medicine depends. If you consume the shorter-acting Benzos, the withdrawal symptoms will start sooner than those with longer-acting ones. Usually, for shorter-acting Benzos, the withdrawal symptoms begin within 2 to 6 hours, while in the other case, it may take 24 to 48 hours.

Phases of Benzodiazepine Detox

In the rehab centers, usually, two types of Benzodiazepine Detox methods are followed. Both kinds of detox program come with particular withdrawal symptoms-

1. Acute Withdrawal Phase

This is the initial phase of Benzodiazepine Detox. When Benzos are prescribed to reduce anxiety disorders, but the patient gets addicted to it, they have to go through this phase as a part of treatment. The anxiety-related mindset can lead to hypersensitivity if the patient falls for Benzos addiction. At the withdrawal phase, the patient may suffer from a hallucination, distortions, etc. this phase can last from 5 to 14 days. during this time, the patient can suffer from several other withdrawal symptoms, like-

  • Panic attacks
  • Restlessness
  • Anxiety
  • Sleeplessness
  • Weakness
  • Dizziness
  • Muscle pain

Apart from these, the patient may suffer from high sensitivity to light and sound. Usually, this happens when rebound symptoms begin to appear. People suffer the most during the night times when their sleep cycles are affected, and they get disturbed sleep, nightmares, etc., throughout the night.

2. Protracted Withdrawal Phase

In this phase, the patient suffers from similar kinds of symptoms, but in a reduced manner. This phase lasts longer. This phase runs when the patient is under a detox program, and his/her body learns to cope with the changes of not having Benzodiazepine. This time, your body stabilizes, but the effect of addiction is still there, so sometimes you may feel certain distortions, like-

  • Depression
  • Lesser anxiety
  • Irritability
  • Poor concentration

These symptoms may appear and go as the drug’s initial shock is still in your system during this phase.

So, here you get to know about Benzodiazepine Detox. If you know someone is suffering from this issue, it is high time to consult the best rehab health centre like Rehab Healthcare (RehabHc) for safe and proven treatment.

How Does Alcoholism Affect Seniors?

 

Age is only going to increase with time. While for many, age is just a number, many others take it more seriously. You will start noticing changes in your physiology and even in the way the body responds. People often continue with the habits they had in their youth, but the body will not react the same way. Alcohol detox will be more than a necessity.

With age, the muscular, nervous, and digestive systems all become weak. If you have been known for your binge or daily alcohol drinking all your youthful days, you may begin putting a check on it and gradually reduce your drinking.

Alcoholism in Old Age – Some reasons and Associated Problems

Many people claim to become addict to alcoholism as they near the senior age group. The reasons could be many:

  • Solitary drinking
  • Depression
  • Age-related weakness or ailments
  • Loss of near ones
  • Chronic health issues
  • No busy lifestyle

Seniors may become prone to chronic health issues and memory loss too. They may have to take more painkillers and stuff to stay healthy. Mental health starts deteriorating too when they notice they no longer can function as easily as before.

They start losing their ability to go to work and even lose their self-confidence. All these are enough excuses for them to go for drinking. The post-retirement period is a lonesome phase when they do not have a job on hand. They tend to believe that they are friendless and even without any self-worth.

The drinking problem takes its form when seniors lose count of the number of bottles they down on a day. They also are in trouble if they lose all sense and consciousness. 14% of the seniors admitted to the hospital emergency room are due to age and drinking-related issues.

People suffer from depression, knowing that they are no longer as good-looking as they were in the prime of their life. They feel low when no one gives them that appreciative look or praises them for their appeal.

Heart issues may increase with age, as well diabetes. So, consumption of drinks may even increase blood sugar as well as blood pressure levels. Too much consumption will only lead to major hazards like stroke or even a heart attack.

Senior Alcoholism – Never Spoken Loud

People around the world may be suffering from alcoholism in their senior years. While many may not even know that they are slipping to the phase when they would be addicts. They may begin drinking because they may have nothing else to do. They use it as a means of being busy and to while away the time in hand. This said, many claim they go to drink because that’s where the friends are.

Senior Alcoholism is as much a serious problem, but it is not even generally talked about. Just like the elders, even the alcoholism they have is less spoken about. There are not many people around when the person reaches a sixty or a seventy.

Notable Signs of Alcoholism in Elders

A person will not admit he or she is a senior since they can still walk around on their own. They would not worry about alcohol causing them any harm. But they fail to realize that the body will become aged and so you as a family member or even a friend should observe.
Here are a few things for you to notice.

  • Short term memory loss
  • Fluctuations in blood sugar levels
  • Fluctuations in blood pressure levels
  • Disassociation from friends or family

When you begin recognizing addiction, the elders exhibiting these symptoms need to get the best help immediately. Counseling by a friend or a concerned family member will do wonders if you see these symptoms only recently. If the senior person has been an addict for a longer time, then they will need alcohol detox.

Remedies and the Thorough Cleansing

The elders may feel ashamed of being judged because of alcoholism. Visit Rehab Healthcare (RehabHc) for proper care of all alcohol and drug problems. Their counselors will provide the adequate solution to the alcohol problem.

The treatment options include professional counseling, alcohol detox (cleansing treatment), and other psychological interventions. Whatever is the method, the need for supportive family and friends will help in alcohol treatment in elders.