Alcohol: how it affects your body

This post is not meant to enable any negative feelings. Its rooted in awareness. I drink alcohol – I think drinking can be fun (but not necessary in order to have fun) or it can be destructive but it's up to us.

Liver Burden: Over 90% of alcohol is metabolized by the liver - and the rest is eliminated by urine or respiration. When we consume alcohol, it gets absorbed by the stomach and small intestine, then moves through capillaries from the GI tract to the liver. The dehydrogenase enzymes (alcohol and aldehyde dehydrogenase) are largely found in the liver and are mainly used to break down and metabolize alcohol. Your liver can only process a certain amount of alcohol at a time and if your drinking exceeds that, alcohol will accumulate in the blood and tissues until it can be metabolized.

The enzymes break down alcohol into acetaldehyde - a metabolite of ethanol, a toxic byproduct - eventually it gets further broken down into water and carbon dioxide. Acetaldehyde is what contributes to hangovers and has been considered a carcinogenic and oxidizing agent. Acetaldehyde disrupts the liver antioxidant system and reduces oxygen in mitochondria. 

Anti Diuretic hormone significantly reduced - you know the term don't break the seal? Meaning once you pee after a few drinks, you’re going to have to keep peeing. We have an antidiuretic hormone (ADH) which sends a signal to our kidneys to release less water and decrease urine output. This hormone helps to control water balance in our body by returning it back into the blood. Our body, in the name of survival, reduces this hormone when we drink, so it can push you to go pee - and to keep peeing because it recognizes the toxin and is working to eliminate it. So show your body some love – break the seal and keep peeing.

Vitamin depletion

All fat soluble vitamins, B vitamins and minerals have been found to be deficient amongst chronic drinkers.

Alcohol can impair the digestion of proteins to amino acids where are needed to numerous functions in the body:

Alcohol can impair fat absorption including vitamins A, E, D, K

Carotenoids in the liver which have an antioxidant effect are made from fat soluble vitamins.

Fat soluble vitamins are especially important for the brain. 

Glutathione depletion: a strong antioxidant (protective against oxidative damage) made in different tissues and organs like the liver and lungs. It plays an important role in ethanol detoxification. Glutathione production declines with aging. In mice studies, ethanol administration led to 50% decreased glutathione levels by the end of 6 hours.

Glutathione is often used during phase 2 liver detoxification, phase 2 is a conjugation pathway meaning the liver adds a molecule to the toxin to make it less harmful - often that pairing involves glutathione molecule.  

Depletion of Magnesium (and other minerals) - alcohol intake can lead to electrolyte and mineral depletion. Alcohol can enable a loss of magnesium from tissues and increase in urinary loss. Studies have shown that alcohol is a magnesium diuretic - driving magnesium into our urine. A study from Journal of International Medical Research showed a decrease in calcium and magnesium levels from increasing blood alcohol.

Blood brain barrier - ethanol crosses the blood brain barrier. It disrupts blood brain barrier integrity, increasing permeability and contributing to neurotoxicity. The BBB is regulated by tight junctions (like in the gut) and serves as a boundary of the central nervous system, its critical for brain homeostasis. Alcohol has been shown to contract brain tissues and destroy brain cells and over time lead to impairments with cognition and memory. It can also interfere with communication between nerve cells.

Damage to DNA - research study from Cancer Research UK noted in mice that acetaldehyde can break and damage DNA within blood stem cells, leading to altering DNA sequences from rearranged chromosomes.
Acetaldehyde can cause a variety of DNA lesions in human cells. Lesions on DNA can lead to cell mutations and interfere with transcription (genetic process).