Information for Young People
Thinking of Drinking?
Alcohol and its effects
Alcohol will affect everyone differently, changing how they think, feel and act.
To make things extra complicated, it might not affect you in the same way each time you drink.
Also, the amount you can drink before things start to get REALLY risky depends on all sorts of things such as your age, height, weight, mood, gender, where you are, how much you've eaten that day…the list goes on and on! You just CANNOT predict what will happen.
As far as the risks go, there are 2 main types: What could happen now (short term) and what could happen in the future (long term).
Short term effects
The effects can happen really quickly. When you have a drink, it will get into your bloodstream in just a few minutes and then will be carried to every organ in your body, including your brain, which is what leads to being drunk.
BUT the effects can take hours to wear off, especially if you've had a lot. When the effects finally do wear off, you can be left with a hangover. Your head will ache, you will feel tired, mardy, sick and dizzy. Nice! And that's if you're lucky!
If you've had too much to drink in one go you can also get alcohol poisoning or overdose, which can be life-threatening and means you might have to go to hospital for treatment. This is usually a very unpleasant experience and can be very scary.
STOP PRESS!!!! LOOK AFTER YOURSELVES AND YOUR MATES!!!
If you are out drinking and you think somebody might have overdosed or have alcohol poisoning, CALL AN AMBULANCE STRAIGHT AWAY AND DO NOT LEAVE THEM ALONE! The longer you leave it to get help, the worse the damage can be. Delaying getting treatment for someone could even mean they die. You might worry about getting into trouble, but how much worse will that be if a mate is seriously ill or dead because no-one got any help? How would you feel if it was you?
So how do you know if someone is overdosed or poisoned by booze?
Well they might be:
- Throwing up (the body is trying to get rid of the poison they have swallowed, it is NOT making room for more beer!)
- Unable to speak.
- Passed out
(always check if you think someone is asleep, they may be unconscious.) - Cold and pale but sweating as well.
So don't hesitate, get some help fast, you might just be saving a life.
So what else can happen if you drink too much in one go? Well…
- You could end up hurting yourself badly by having an accident. Also alcohol is a painkiller so you might not realize how badly you are injured until it wears off. This often means the original injury is made a lot worse and more complicated to treat.
- You can have fall outs with others, including fights as alcohol can make you say or do things you normally wouldn't.
- You might end up doing something you regret later because when you're drunk because you aren't thinking straight. This could be anything, but examples might be having sex, committing a crime or taking other drugs, all of which are obviously really dangerous and could lead to all sorts of problems later.
BUT WORST OF ALL… Alcohol also affects your memory so if you do end up doing something you regret while drunk, you might not even remember what it was! This can be really embarrassing and upsetting for you and others.
Okay, so what about the long term risks?
Alcohol can mess with your head…
- At first, it might seem that alcohol makes you feel happy, confident and more ready to have a laugh. But booze is actually a depressant and if you drink too often it can make you mardy and stressed.
- You might have real trouble concentrating. Not good in a lesson or exam!
- Even worse, you can get really down and depressed, scared and even feel like killing yourself.
- You might end up having problems sleeping and eating.
- You can end up trying to deal with your problems by drinking, which leads to more problems, which leads to more drinking…. If you get caught in this cycle you could be dependant or addicted and need expert help or even medication to stop.
- People around you will be affected by all of these things because they care about you, your mates, your family, everyone can suffer, not just you.
Alcohol can mess with your body…
Booze can damage just about every part of your body including:
- Liver.
- Brain.
- Heart.
- It can lead to cancers in your mouth, throat, stomach, intestines, bowels and bladder.
- If your liver isn't working properly you can get jaundice (skin and eyes go yellowish) and your appearance will suffer.
- Alcohol is stuffed with calories and can make you put weight on.
There are no known safe drinking limits for children and teenagers. Even a little bit can be damaging because your body is still growing.
And it's getting worse. There are now more young people than ever having to have hospital treatment for damaged livers caused by drinking too much. So you might think that because more people drink, that makes it safer, right? WRONG!!! We need young people to get wise about drinking so that you can help stop the increases in alcohol-related health problems. It's all up to you…
Adult females regularly drinking 2 large glasses of wine a day are 50% more likely to get breast cancer and twice as likely to have high blood pressure.
Adult males regularly drinking more than 2 pints of strong lager a day are over 3 times more likely to get mouth cancer and could be 3 times more likely to have a stroke.
Alcohol can mess with your home life…
Over half the problems of domestic violence and child abuse in this country are related to alcohol use.
If someone in your home drinks too much, including you, this can lead to arguments and breakdowns in relationships.
Booze costs money! If you drink too much you could end up in debt, selling your stuff or even stealing to buy more.
Drinking too much can affect your school, college or work prospects. Are you really going to feel like sitting through a lesson or an exam with a hangover? And if you are missing loads of school, you will not do as well as you could which could affect your options for the future.
