HEALTH Lesson 3: Alcohol and your Brain. ( Clear thinking. Damage for health.)

Important warning (важное предостережение):

do not rely on any material (не полагайтесь на какой-либо материал)

in this presentation (в этой презентации).

This material is not a recommendation or advice (этот материал не является рекомендацией или советом).

This material may not be complete (этот материал может быть не полным),

accurate or reliable (точным и благонадёжным) for any particular circumstances (для любых частных случаев).

This applies to health and wellbeing matters (этот материал применим для здоровья и вопросов благополучия)

and everything else in this presentation (и всего остального в этой презентации).

If you wish this material to form the basis (если Вы желаете, чтобы этот материал сформировал основу)

of any action or inaction (какого либо действия или бездействия) you should obtain qualified independent

advice on it (Вам следует получить квалифицированную независимую консультацию по данному вопросу),

including from a medical practitioner (включая ‘консультацию’ от практикующего врача).

You should rely only on that independent advice (Вам следует полагаться только на эту независимую консультацию).

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ALCOHOL and YOUR BRAIN. (Алкоголь и Ваш мозг).

GET THE FACTS (Фактические материалы).

It may be legal (Алкоголь может быть узаконенным) — but it is still a drug (но всё же является наркотиком).

Be safe, be sensible (будь осторожен, будь благоразумен),

know your limit (знайте свой предел),

ALCOHOL is a DRUG too! (Алкоголь тоже является наркотиком!)

Think before you drink (подумайте, прежде чем выпить),

your body belongs to you (Ваше тело принадлежит Вам).

The purpose of this presentation (цель данной презентации) is to help you understand (помочь Вам понять)

the impact  that alcohol (то ‘ударное’ воздействие алкоголя) has on your brain (имеет на  Ваш мозг) and the damage it can do

(и вред, который он может нанести).

‘ALDOF’ is to provide you with information (Организация ‘ALDOF’ существует для того, чтобы обеспечить Вас информацией)

which will enable you to make informed choices (которая позволит Вам сделать осознанный выбор)

in relation to safe alcohol consumption (относительно безопасного употребления алкоголя).

Did you know? (А Вы знали?)

Healthy people metabolise alcohol (здоровые люди усваивают алкоголь) at a fairly consistent rate. As a rule of thumb a person will eliminate one standard drink or 10 mils of alcohol per hour and remember, it’s not how many drinks you have, but how much alcohol you consume. Several factors influence this rate including gender, age, height, weight, general health, the presence of food in the stomach, the concentration of alcohol in the drink and prescription or illicit drugs taken by the person.

It’s the blood-alcohol concentration or BAC which is the key to why we are affected by alcohol.

Basically, you blood alcohol concentration is the relationship between the total amount of alcohol in your system, divided by total body water, because alcohol is dissolved and diluted in water. So, that’s also why drinking lots of water with any alcohol consumption is a really good thing.

The BAC and the effects of alcohol go up, when the body is taking in alcohol faster then it can metabolize it. For example, if you being dring and consume a 750 ml bottle of rum or 3 bottles of wine, that’s around 26 standaard drinks between 6 p.m. and 2 a.m. your body will need untill sometime around 6 p.m. the next day to process and get rid of the alcohol. And that’s why driving or operating equipment the next day is not only illegal, but just crazy, particularly when you consider what this is doing to your brain.

Let me explain: alcohol enters the body and ends up in the stomach, at which point about 20% is absorbed immediately and the other 80% is absorbed in the small intestine. Theheart then pumps the absorbed alcohol to every part of the body, including the central nervous system, which consist of the brain and spinal cord, and it gets to the brain really fast. So, that’s why even after just one drink you can feel light-headed or relaxed.

Alcohol acts primarily on the nerve cells within the brain and interferes with communication between nerve cells and all other cells, slowing everything down. And that’s why when we drink even a little, we experience the effects of alcohol on our emotions, judgment, balance, memory, speech and anger levels, just to name a few.

Did you know that your brain is still developing, until you’re around 20 to 25, so, we need to be really careful because alcohol can do some irreversible damage to various parts of our brains. For example, drinking affects the cerebral cortex, which controls our senses and inhibitory centers, which is why, when we drink, we become more talketive, more self-confident and less socially inhibited. It also controls our thought processes. So, alcohol affects our ability to make good judgment or think clearly. The brain’s frontal lobes are important for planning, forming ideas, making decisions, using self-control. So, when alcohol affect the frontal lobes of the brain, you may find it hard to control emotions and urges, and you may act without thinking, and even sometimes become violent, or act completely out of character. Does this sound familiar?

The cerebellum is important for coordination, thinking and being aware. So, again you may have trouble with these skills, when alcohol affects the cerebellum. That’s why people affected by alcohol sometimes can’t walk properly, or lose their balance and fall.

The hippocampus is the part of the brain where memories are made. So, when alcohol reaches the hippocampus you may have trouble remembering something you just heard, or even worse — have a blackout and not be able to remember what you did last night. If alcohol damages the hippocampus you may find it hard to learn or remember things in the future.

The hypothalamus is a small part of the brain that does an amazing nymber of the body’s housekeeping chores. After a person drinks alcohol blood pressure, hunger, thirst and the urge to urinate increases, while body temperature and heart rate decreases.

And finally, the medulla controls the body’s automatic actions, such as your heartbeat. It also keeps the body at the right temperature. Because alcohol chills the body, drinking a lot of alcohol outdoors in cold weather can cause a person’s body temperature to fall below normal. This dangerous condition is called hypothermia.

Your body belongs to you.

GET THE FACTS

• Alcohol is unsafe for the developing brain.
• Alcohol can damage your brain forever.
• The long-term functioning and health of your brain depends on the choices you make today.
• Your responsible attitude toward alcohol can have a positive influence on your friends and family.

YOUR BODY BELONGS TO YOU!  Take care of it, it’s the only one you have.

ALCOHOL is A GRUG TOO! THINK BEFORE YOU DRINK! PRETTY SWEET and DEADLY!

Are bars always fun? Just like drugs… alcohol is addictive. Alcohol is a drug too.

Know which bar you’ll end up at.

Thanks to the following. DrinkWiseAustralia for their generosity granting funding for a major portion of this production.

Australian Lions Drug Awareness Foundation. For their importance and support throughout the production of this presentation… etc…