Blog posts of '2016' 'June'

It is simply amazing to consider the many articles that tout the benefits of a daily glass of red wine. So many of the headlines mentioning the cancer and heart disease fighting properties in wine, however, also tend fail to mention that alcohol isn’t always an ideal substance for everyone.

Certainly, there are recovering alcoholics who don’t need to hear that wine might be good to drink, but there are also people who should really avoid alcoholic beverages altogether. Who are these people – one major group that should abstain are those who qualify as “senior citizens”. Most medical experts point out that this massive portion of the population should really consider eliminating regular alcohol consumption from their daily behaviors altogether.

Why? There is an enormous list of reasons to avoid alcohol as you age, and the National Institute of Aging has made a very detailed publication about the issue readily available at their website. Before reviewing the information that they provide, however, you may be interested to hear that estimates suggest that around 50% of the senior population actually has a formal “drinking problem” and that many of these seniors’ primary care physicians actually fail to detect the issue. This is because they are not actually looking for the problem and instead will view their patient in terms of their geriatric needs or issues instead.

This means that they are testing for neurological and degenerative disorders while failing to detect that the problems are all the result from long-term or escalating alcohol consumption. The problems with diagnosis are exacerbated when the patient is taking medications that interact badly with alcohol as well.

With that in mind, let’s first take a look at what the NIA has to say about the senior population and alcohol, and then take another look at a different publication that also provides some startling facts on the problem as well.

In the NIA publication the authors outline the following facts about alcohol and aging:

• With age comes an increased sensitivity to alcohol. This means that a younger person can usually consume far more alcohol before it affects them in the way that it would an older person. Generally, this means that if you are consuming the same quantities of alcohol that you did twenty years earlier, you may actually have developed a drinking problem because you should not be able to “handle” that amount without experiencing the traditional side effects such as drunkenness.

• Alcohol exacerbates some serious medical issues. A person with diabetes with high blood sugar is taking serious risks when consuming alcohol because it has such an immediate and profound effect on glucose levels. Additionally, anyone who is suffering from bone loss is going to only further weaken them by consuming alcohol since it effects include calcium loss. Someone using anti-anxiety or mood disorder medication will also worsen their troubles by using alcohol on a regular basis too because the drugs can make the individual incredibly sleepy, sleepless, agitated, confused and more.

• Medications are a problem with alcohol. You may not read all of the documentation included with your medications, but the simple fact of the matter is that many major medications do not mix well with alcohol in any way at all. You can get dizzy, sick to your stomach, or much worse. Consider that simple aspirin with alcohol causes stomach bleeding; that cold medicines and the drowsiness they cause is worsened by alcohol; and sleeping pills can become dangerous when combined with alcohol. That is the OTC (over the counter medications) and the prescription drugs can get much worse.

• Someone with high blood pressure is increasing their risks of stroke each time they drink. If you are someone with chronic high blood pressure, you must not consume alcoholic beverages – even if you take a prescription medication to combat the issue. This is because it constrains your already weakened blood vessels and makes it even more difficult for blood to flow freely. This can make it far more likely for a clot or debris to break loose and travel quickly to your brain.

So, we know that medical issues can be worsened by consumption of alcohol, that some medications are very risky when mixed with it, that age decreases the body’s ability to metabolize alcohol, and that an increased chance of stroke occurs when someone with high blood pressure makes a habit of drinking. The study does not point out that alcohol is toxic and that it will affect every single bodily organ that interacts with it. This means that someone with a liver problem, bladder condition, stomach disorder, brain issue, throat problem or immune system issue is going to face problems if they regularly consume alcohol too.

The main problem with addressing alcohol consumption in the senior population is that most people just don’t want to accept the prognosis of “alcoholic” or even just to simply hear from their doctor that they should no longer consume alcohol. An interesting article by Dr. Stephanie Williams, a trainer for the American Society on Aging, discusses the newest protocols used for addressing the situation. In her piece she outlines the “motivational interviewing with an educational slant” that is used to focus on a patient’s health without any accusatory language. This allows some goals to be developed for the immediate future, while also providing the kind of encouragement necessary for recognizing the problem.

A final issue to consider when thinking about alcohol and aging is the ultimate effects it has on the brain. In fact, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism published a paper that reviewed alcohol in the aging population and which concluded that “Alcoholism may accelerate normal aging or cause premature aging of the brain” as well as such startling facts as:

• Hip fractures increase with alcohol consumption due to loss of bone density and the often dizzying or discombobulating effects of alcohol.

• Long term alcohol consumption actually creates more enzymes capable of breaking down many common prescription drugs. This means that medications meant to boost the health of the individual are destroyed by alcohol.

• Seniors with high alcohol consumption rates are more likely to suffer depressive disorders.

This publication pointed out that use of medications has had positive results in combating alcoholism in the elderly, but that abstinence is the one way to ensure that the negative effects came to a stop.

If you are a senior who suffers from alcoholism, or if you are someone with a senior loved one dealing with the problem, it is imperative that you find a way to intervene with the situation as quickly as possible. We have looked at all of the facts associated with alcohol and aging, but there is one final issue that is terrifying to consider and that is the effects of alcohol on the senior population that is still driving. The NIAAA study stated that the elderly are the fastest growing portion of the driving population to be involved in alcohol-involved traffic crashes. A senior in a crash is going to suffer greater injury than a younger person in an accident of the same magnitude and may even have consumed less alcohol before the incident.

Getting help for a senior with alcoholism won’t only save their life, but it is quite likely to save the lives of others too.