Alcohol Abuse Advice

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• MedicationsThe main use of medications for alcoholism is to encourage withdrawal.  Antabuse (also known as Disulfiram), for instance, prevents the elimination of chemicals which cause severe discomfort when alcohol intake is lowered. Heavy drinking while taking Antabuse can result in severe illness and death.

Naltrexone is also a widely used drug because it helps reduce cravings for alcohol while the person is on it. Both of these, however, have been proven to cause a rebound effect when the user stops taking them. These do allow a person to overcome psychological addictions to alcohol, but they do not treat the neurochemical addiction.

• RationingRationing or other attempts to control use become increasingly ineffective as pathological attachment to the drug develops. Thus, consumption continues despite of serious health, personal, legal, work-related, and financial consequences.

• DetoxificationDetoxification programs run by medical institutions include, staying in a hospital for a number of weeks in specialized wards. The information about such medical institutions is readily available online through web sites like Google Health. In severe cases, detoxification may lead to death. Even a simple “de-tox” can involve seizures, if not monitored properly.

• Post Detox TherapyAfter detoxification, various forms of psychotherapy are recommended to deal with underlying psychological issues leading to alcohol dependence. It also helps the recovering addict to adjust with prevention skills. These therapies also help to treat underlying mood disorders, and psychoses associated with alcoholic symptoms.

• Group CounselingThe group-counseling approach to treatment of alcoholism is very popular. For details of institutes that help in this purpose can be found online through websites like Google Health and Google Medical.

• PreventionSome programs attempt to help problem drinkers before they become dependents. These programs focus on harm-reduction and reducing alcohol intake.

• Nutritional therapyAnother treatment program is based on nutritional therapy. Many alcohol dependents have insulin resistance syndrome, a metabolic disorder where the body’s difficulty in processing sugars causes an unsteady supply to the blood stream. While the disorder can be treated by a hypoglycemic diet, this can affect behavior and emotions.
Alcohol dependence can lead to fatal outcomes such as head injuries, motor vehicle accidents, violence and assaults, neurological, and other medical problems. Alcohol addiction is a treatable disease. If a person is an alcoholic he can contact his physician for the most current treatments available and also search online on Google Health and Google Medical.