Does Alcohol Reduce Life Expectancy?

In the UK, there is a big drinking culture that leads to many people drinking more than they should and more often than they should.

Because this behaviour is normalised, it can make it difficult for you to be able to identify when you are engaging in excessive drinking.

Women and men are advised to not drink more than 14 units within a week. Anything more than this is considered heavy drinking, and it can be very dangerous for your health.

People who regularly engage in excessive drinking don’t tend to do it safely, and instead, they binge drink. Binge drinking is when a person has multiple drinks one after the other and is considered harmful when more than 4 drinks for women and more than 5 drinks for men are had in succession.

There are a few different reasons why a person may drink excessively and engage in binge drinking.

People may binge drink because:

• They are trying to be sociable, and they use excessive amounts of alcohol to keep their anxiety at bay
• They have a high tolerance after drinking for so long and need to have more alcohol in one sitting to feel any effect
• They have trouble sleeping and try to use excessive drinking as a sleep aid
• They are struggling with depression and try to use excessive drinking to elevate their mood

You may find that you identify with the list above. If that is the case, you should be careful as you are putting yourself at risk. Whatever the reason, excessive drinking is never a good idea. It is simply too dangerous for any of the perceived positives it may bring.

What Are the Risks of Excessive Drinking?

There are many risks associated with excessive drinking, both in the short term and in the long term.

This is because alcohol is one of the most easily accessed substances that can be abused, with it being available in some form almost 24 hours a day. This leads to there being little restraint on when people can always be drinking and allows addiction to easily develop.

The short-term risks associated with excessive drinking can include:

• Drunk driving accidents
• Loss of balance leading to falls and injuries
• Loss of impulse control leads to risk-taking behaviour and eventual injuries
• Violence, be it physical or sexual, against a stranger or loved one
• Domestic abuse is more likely to take place when alcohol is involved
• Higher risk of careless sex, leading to unwanted pregnancies or STDs or STIs
• Pregnant women may experience a miscarriage or stillbirth, or their baby may develop fetal alcohol syndrome

The short-term risks can seriously affect your future and even put your life in danger. These risks become even greater if you are drinking alone or in a strange area you don’t know very well. You could be putting yourself at serious risk while you are in a vulnerable state.

The long-term risks can be even worse.

The long-term risks associated with excessive drinking can include:

• High blood pressure
• Heart disease/attacks
• Liver disease/failure
• Kidney disease/failure
• Higher risk of some cancers including breast, mouth, throat, oesophagus, voice box, liver, colon, and rectum
• Higher risk of losing your driver’s license or losing your job
• Higher risk of becoming homeless
• A weakened immune system puts you at risk of getting sick more easily
• Learning and development problems cause issues if you are still young and in school
• More likely to develop dementia or Alzheimer’s
• Unlock dormant meant health issues including anxiety, depression, and bipolar disorder
• Severe insomnia
• Social problems including loss of contact with friends and family members
• The development of an alcohol addiction

These risks can kill you if you are not careful. But it is easy to convince yourself that one more drink won’t hurt, and you will be perfectly fine to carry on as you always have. This attitude is hazardous, and with every session of binge drinking, you do you are increasing the risks more and more.

If you find that you’re drinking excessively you may need additional support through alcohol detox.

Problems that Reduce Life Expectancy of Those Who Drink Excessively

You deserve to live a long and happy life. One where you can be as healthy as possible and not need to worry about being drawn away to alcohol.

But you simply will not get to live this life if you continue to drink excessively.

Some of the long-term risks mentioned will not only make you ill but also hold the potential to kill you.

For example, if you experience organ failure due to excessive drinking, you may need an organ transplant. An incredibly long and difficult process due to a healthy organ shortage. You will also need to be completely sober and committed to never drinking again to be eligible for these organs otherwise, they will go to someone else on the transplant list.

A compromised immune system, now more than ever in modern times, is dangerous. You are putting yourself at risk from viruses and infections that you may not be able to bounce back from. Something as simple as the common cold could kill you.

This is made worse by the potential of you developing cancer, something that has been chronically undertreated in the last couple of years due to there simply not being enough staff and appointments available.

This isn’t here to scare you. It is important that you understand the risks associated with your lifestyle so you can make an informed decision about how you want to move forwards from here.

Contact Us

At Ocean Recovery, we can offer you alcohol rehab services that will help you deal with your excessive drinking so that you can do something before it is too late.

All you must do is give us a call at 0800 880 7596, and we will be able to get you the treatments that you need.

The sooner you act, the less likely you will be to experience the life-altering side effects of excessive drinking.

• 
• 
• 

John Gillen - Author - Last updated: March 15, 2023

John is one UK’s leading professionals in the addiction recovery industry. Pioneering new treatment techniques such as NAD+ and ongoing research into new therapy techniques such as systematic laser therapy, John is committed to providing the very best treatment for people throughout the UK and Europe. During his extremely busy schedule, John likes to regularly update our blog section with the latest news and trends in the industry to keep visitors to our site as well informed as possible on everything related to addiction treatment.